November 1, 2024
The Member States of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) have been engaged in an extensive international environment agenda which will evolve with key decision-making on Biodiversity, Climate Change, Land Degradation and Plastics. While the negotiating agenda remains challenging for our limited national capacities, we remain committed given the clear and present danger that inaction in these spheres pose to the livelihoods of current and future generations of citizens of the Caribbean Community.
Biodiversity COP 16
CARICOM Member States are deeply committed to the implementation of the Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) as well as monitoring and reporting on its implementation. To this end, Member States are committed to updating and aligning National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPS) to the Global Biodiversity Framework. We also place priority on the completion of finance strategies to accurately cost activities but note that these are dependent on the successful completion of the NBSAPs.
However, the Community, remains concerned about the slow pace of the NBSAP update and alignment processes due to challenges encountered with procurement processes outside the control of the Member States. While Member States appreciate the support provided, it is critical that administrative processes be expedited to ensure that more valuable time is not lost.
In an effort to provide constructive solutions, we believe there is room for CARICOM Regional Institutions, sensitive to the regional and national capabilities of CARICOM Member States and capable of providing clear direction, guidance, and timely feedback to the CBD and the GEF national focal points’ organisations, particularly those with limited manpower, to plan and implement the NBSAP-related projects and be accredited to the GEF to implement projects and programmes. Considering this, we request that the Caribbean Development Bank consider being accredited to the Global Environment Facility.
As a Community, we have observed that for effective implementation of Global Biodiversity Goals, there must be closer synergies with other Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs) including the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) and the Basel, Rotterdam, Stockholm and Minamata (BRSM) Conventions. The time for developing actions to advance synergistic implementation is now, especially considering limited human and financial capacity for implementation.
We recognise the need to strengthen the Region’s capacity in biodiversity by, among other things, enhancing training and local expertise; developing research infrastructure; and strengthening regional institutions dedicated to biodiversity
We therefore welcome the nomination of the CARICOM Secretariat to serve as a host sub regional Technical and Scientific Cooperation Centre (TSC) under the Convention of Biological Diversity to support the implementation of the Global Biodiversity Framework and continue its efforts to support Member States to elevate the importance of biodiversity management. In this regard, we call on regional and international partners to support the CARICOM Secretariat in progressing the work of the TSC.
The issues of Invasive Alien Species, Marine and Coastal ecosystems, the 30 x 30 target, Digital Sequence Information and its linkage to Access and Benefits sharing and restoring degrading ecosystems, are all shared concerns for our Region. These issues are underpinned by the need for increased public awareness and strengthening data and information systems. There are also issues that speak directly to our vulnerabilities such as post-disaster recovery and the need to restore critical island ecosystems such as tropical and mangrove forests, as well as sustainable resource management in extractive industries such as mining and forestry and how these help with the fight against the impacts of global climate change.
For these reasons, this Community remains hopeful, but realistic, regarding implementation of the GBF. Despite our inherent vulnerabilities and fiscal challenges, we continue to be ambitious and innovative. We look forward to working with parties, civil society and international development partners, to make positive changes for planet and people.
Climate Change COP 29
The climate change crisis is not abating. Our Region remains in the direct path of impacts from extreme weather events to slow onset events, all of which threaten our people, their livelihoods, our economies, and our environment. Continued global inaction will result in an overshoot of 1.5 degrees Celsius in this decade. The consequences will be devastating for island economies dependent on agriculture, fishing and tourism as evidenced following the passage of Hurricane Beryl through our Region, and the significant impacts of ocean acidification on marine ecosystems and marine biodiversity.
Following the outcomes of the First Global Stocktake of the Paris Agreement goals, the COP 28 United Arab Emirates (UAE) Consensus was endorsed to put the world on track to achieve the 1.5 degrees Celsius temperature goal and to protect the most vulnerable via an energy transition package, a global resilience framework, and the newly operationalised loss and damage fund.
CARICOM is committed to the full implementation of the UAE Consensus. We expect that the Baku Climate Change Conference (COP 29) will build on the Consensus, deliver on the climate finance goal for its implementation, and safeguard the interests of Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and Least Developed Countries (LDCs).
There must be sustained efforts for the conservation, protection and restoration of forests, nature and ecosystems in general to achieve the 1.5 degrees Celsius temperature goal, including through enhanced efforts directed towards (i) halting and reversing deforestation and forest degradation by 2030, (ii) other terrestrial and marine ecosystems acting as sinks and reservoirs of greenhouse gases, and (iii) biodiversity. Carbon markets and other financing mechanism are crucial to resourcing these efforts.
CARICOM emphasises that implementation of the UAE Consensus is urgent. The transition away from fossil fuels is fundamental to keeping global warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius. We encourage all Parties to the Paris Agreement to contribute to this global effort by implementing current nationally determined contributions (NDCs) and elaborating their next NDCs due in February 2025. We call particularly on the Group of 20, who are responsible for 80 percent of global emissions, to bring forward 1.5 aligned NDCs as soon as possible. Our future is dependent on your action and ambition.
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