CARICOM advancing coordinated positions on climate change issues
Caribbean Community (CARICOM Secretary General, Dr. Carla Barnet says the regional integration grouping is advancing coordinated regional actions on climate finance, ocean governance and biodiversity protection to strengthen its preparedness and engagement ahead of major global environmental engagements.
Addressing the 124th Special Meeting of the Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED) – Environment and Sustainable Development, Barnett said these global environmental engagements include the 31st Conference of the Parties (COP31) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Seventeenth Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD COP17).
“We are also initialising the development of the CARICOM Climate Finance Action Plan (2026–2030), to ensure we are no longer sidelined in the discussions on global climate funds, operationalising the Technical and Scientific Cooperation Centre (TSC) under the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.”
Barnett said that the meetings are critical in ensuring representation and voice in many significant global processes which will bolster the sustainable resilience of CARICOM member states.
”CARICOM is making significant strides in developing our regional public goods by advancing the CARICOM Ocean Policy, and we are now looking to bolster our contribution to the sustainable development of the “blue” economy.
“This draft CARICOM Ocean Policy harmonises our efforts in fisheries, green shipping, and marine conservation, ensuring that our most abundant resource is used sustainably for generations to come.”
Barnett said that the region’s progress on all these fronts is buttressed by unwavering partnerships, expressing her gratitude to the Guyana government of Guyana, the Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre (CCCCC), the United Kingdom Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (UK FCDO), and the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ) for hosting the series of meetings that end on Friday.
“We are also meeting at a time of rapid and ongoing global change. As our region works to advance resilient and sustainable development, the global arena is experiencing increasing instability,” Barnett said, noting there is a troubling weakening of multilateralism and international norms “principles which have so far provided guardrails for our CARICOM countries in advancing sustainable development.
“Despite these headwinds, the Caribbean Community remains proactive. Our region has moved from the periphery to the very center of global environmental governance,” she said congratulating Jamaica’s Matthew Samuda and St. Kitts and Nevis’ Dr. Joyelle Clarke for their election as President and Vice-President respectively of the Eighth United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-8).
“It is unprecedented that two CARICOM member states serve in leadership positions of this body at the same time. These appointments are a signal of international confidence in Caribbean leadership.
“With two CARICOM member states at the helm, we are uniquely positioned to ensure that the triple planetary crisis – climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution – are addressed through the lens of the lived experience of Small Island and Low-lying Coastal Developing States (SIDS).”
Barnett said that as the region looks toward COP31, the complex climate landscape defined by prolonged vacillations about finance continues.
“This inertia puts CARICOM Member States at a severe disadvantage and compels us to take action in our best interest,” she said, adding that this COTED, will need to articulate a CARICOM Climate Finance Action Plan (2026–2030) that seeks to ensure that global promises of support are translated into transparent, accessible funding to support resilience.
“Simultaneously, we are at a critical juncture in the Global Plastics Treaty negotiations. With 8 billion tons of plastic waste already choking our ecosystems, the Caribbean is leading the call for a treaty that addresses the full lifecycle of plastics.
“Our regional unified voice will be essential to ensuring that global mandates match our national ambitions for plastic-free oceans,” she said, adding that the region’s stewardship extends deeply into the protection of life on land and at sea.
“As we prepare for the UN Biodiversity Conference (CBD COP17) in Armenia later this year, we will have critical discussions on substantial challenges in securing support to update National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plans, and towards preparing the Seventh National Reports to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity.
“It will be important to channel these and other challenges and priorities into a coordinated CARICOM message that our Ministers can communicate at the Conference of the Parties.” (CMC)
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