Caribbean News
Caribbean countries too rich and too poor, CARICOM Sec Gen says rules need to change
February 28, 2018 – Port-au-Prince, Haiti – CARICOM countries are in a financial quagmire because they are too rich to qualify for certain aide following catastrophic encounters like the ones with hurricanes Irma and Maria, but too poor to afford the cost of damages and losses caused by these natural disasters.
CARICOM’s Secretary General, Irwin Larocque made the announcement, which was no surprise, during day one of the 29th CARICOM intercessional meeting held at the Marriott in Port-au-Prince Haiti. Larocque said ideally, CARICOM countries need to access more concessionary money and although there was some success at a United Nations and CARICOM sponsored Pledging conference where some $5b was raised, not all of the money has been provided as yet.
Mr. Larocque pointed to The Bahamas, which over three years was hit with a damage bill of $678 million and associate member country, British Virgin Islands where the price tag after the September hurricanes of 2017 is $1 billion.
“What is needed is access to resources which must include significant grant funding and very concessional financing. Without access to such financing, this would exacerbate already high debt levels across the Region, which is due in large measure to exogenous shocks including severe climatic events. Most of our countries are categorized as middle or high-income and are largely ineligible for concessional development financing and Official Development Assistance (ODA), due to the use of GDP per capita as the principal criterion.”
There was no comment on where this concessionary funding would come from. Larocque did say though that, “There is need for new thinking, leading to changes in the criteria for determining access to concessionary financing by small, vulnerable, middle income countries.”
KINGSTON, April 29 (JIS):
Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation, Senator the Hon. Matthew Samuda, says the outcome of discussions arising from the Jamaica National Stakeholder Consultation on Climate Services and the 1st National Climate Forum (NCF-1) will assist in guiding the Government’s planning for climate change.
This, he points out, is important for climate mitigation as well as building Jamaica’s resilience.
“We look forward to the discussions that will, no doubt, take place. We look forward to the basis of planning for the Government to streamline its investments to ensure you have the tools that you need to better advise us, that the WRA (Water Resources Authority) has the tools to digitise its monitoring network, and that all of the agencies that touch our planning mechanisms have the tools. But we need to know what we are facing, and we’re guided by your expertise,” Minister Samuda said.
He was addressing the opening ceremony for the Jamaica National Stakeholder Consultation on Climate Services and the 1st National Climate Forum (NCF-1) at the Courtyard by Marriott Hotel in New Kingston on Monday (April 29).
Senator Samuda said given the fact that the climate has changed and continues to do so, investments in and collaborations on building Jamaica’s predictive and scientific capacity must be prioritised.
“Ultimately, we need to be able to assess our current climatic realities if we are to better plan, if we’re to insist and ensure that our infrastructure meets the needs that we need it to. I’m very happy that this event is happening… because this is a critical issue.
“Jamaica, last year, faced its worst and most severe drought… and this year, we’re already seeing the impacts of not quite as severe a drought but, certainly, a drought with severe impacts, especially in the western part of the country,” he said.
Principal Director, Meteorological Service of Jamaica, Evan Thompson, explained that the forum aims to, among other things, establish a collaboration platform for climate services providers and users to understand risks and opportunities of past, present and future climate developments, as well as improve inter-agency coordination of policies, plans and programmes.
Among the other presenters were Ambassador, European Union to Jamaica, Her Excellency Marianne Van Steen; Chief Scientist/Climatologist, Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology, Adrian Trotman; and Head, Regional Climate Prediction Services, World Meteorological Organization, Wilfran Moufouma-Okia.
The Meteorological Service of Jamaica hosted the Jamaica National Stakeholder Consultation on Climate Services and the 1st National Climate Forum (NCF-1) in partnership with the Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology and the World Meteorological Organization.
The National Stakeholder Consultation is a governance mechanism that guides how different sectors or actors work together to create products that contribute to adaptation and resilience-building. It seeks to create a road map for the development and implementation of climate services to inform decision-making.
NCF-1 aims to bridge the gap between climate providers and users. It increases the use of science-based information in decision-making and operations with the aim of generating and delivering co-produced and co-designed products and services.
CONTACT: CHRIS PATTERSON
-
TCI News1 week agoExperience Turks and Caicos and Ministry of Tourism explore development of Cruise industry at Seatrade Global Cruise Conference
-
Latin America and Caribbean5 days agoRegional SDGs Update
-
Caribbean News1 week agoUN Security Council fears further conflict between Guyana and Venezuela
-
Crime6 days agoFollowing Court ruling, US Embassy Doubles Down on Warning: DO NOT TRAVEL TO TCI WITH GUNS, AMMO
-
Bahamas News6 days agoEnvironment State-Minister updates ‘Our Ocean’ forum on The Bahamas as SIDS leader in sustainable tourism
-
Caribbean News1 week agoU.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS SHINES AS A PREMIER DESTINATION AT THE 2024 SEATRADE CRUISE GLOBAL CONFERENCE
-
Bahamas News4 days agoPacesetting Cohort of Eleuthera Residents Graduate from Leading Light Programme
-
Caribbean News6 days agoRBC appoints new Head of Caribbean Banking