President Jokowi Calls on NAM States to Unite Against Covid-19

Bogor, MINA – Indonesian President Joko Widodo calls on heads of states and governments of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) to unite against Covid-19.

“59 years ago the NAM was established to fight the” common enemy “of imperialism and neocolonalism. Right now our “common enemy” is COVID-19, “President Jokowi said when attending the NAM High Level Conference (Summit) specifically for handling Covid-19 in NAM member countries from the Bogor Presidential Palace, Monday, May 4.

According to Jokowi, this pandemic is far from over. Therefore, he invited the NAM countries to move quickly, carefully and strategically. The President also said three important things that need to be prioritized by the NAM state.

“First, strengthen political solidarity between us, because only by working together can we win this war,” the President said.

In the virtual summit which coincided with the momentum of the Commemoration of the 65th Anniversary of the Bandung Dasasila and the 60th Anniversary of the founding of the NAM, the President also invited the NAM member countries to focus their energy and time fully to face the challenges of Covid-19.

“Secondly, translating political solidarity into concrete cooperation. We must fight to get fair and timely access to Covid-19 medicines and vaccines at affordable prices, “Jokowi said.

He further stressed that patent regimes and intellectual property rights related to drugs and vaccines could be applied flexibly for humanity.

In addition, Jokowi invited to strengthen cooperation in the recovery of the global supply chain for trade in health products and food needs.

“Third, strengthening global partnerships for developing countries. We need to voice and fight for commitments on development and humanitarian assistance, debt relief, and debt repayment obligations from official creditors that can be diverted to finance the handling of Covid-19, “said the President.

Jokowi added the G-20 commitment to suspend debt payments for low-income countries needs to be implemented.

At the end of his remarks, the President reiterated that multilateralism must remain the foundation of international cooperation.

“In the future, developing countries must struggle to improve global health governance so that we are better prepared to handle the pandemic in the future,” he concluded. (R / RE1)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)