By: Kimberly Ramkhalawan
April 1, 2022
Over 40 percent of the Caribbean’s Foreign exchange goes into paying for fuels for its electricity supply and transportation. Freeing this cash through a pursuit to become 90 percent renewable energy is the goal for the region, at least by the year 2040.
Just some of the figures provided by chief executive officer of the Caribbean Climate-Smart Accelerator (CCSA), Racquel Moses, as she spoke at the Inter-American Development Bank’s (IDB) Climate roadmap for Latin America and the Caribbean forum. Moses made her introduction as the reason behind becoming climate smart along with properly guided economics, as a means of ‘protecting ourselves from exogenous shocks’. This she says goes with other goals outlined in conservation, which aims at protecting 30 percent each of the land and the ocean by 2030, and giving nature the much needed chance at regeneration.
She adds that while there is no doubt the interest and ambition to achieve these goals are present, the challenge lies in what it costs to protect our ecosystems.
Moses, says monies are available, but the know-how on structuring these interventions assist in how the executions are done. This is where the accelerator company she heads comes in. Outlining some of the projects the CCSA is privy to pursue, partner and push include the generation of new green jobs, building economic resilience based on what she calls ‘future based opportunities rather than the past’, while pointing to the growth of the tourism sector being in tandem with green jobs as an export from the region.
Currently on the cards, Moses says is the Integration of the Caribbean’s energy market, future proof and focused on working together as a collective region.
One example she cited was generating of geo-thermal energy in Dominica, while using this to bridge relations with Trinidad and Tobago where it is converted to green hydrogen for regional export.
Describing it as a moonshot for the region if the chance is not taken now, it could be missed later on.
Another project she says is a solar assembly project to be based in Trinidad and Tobago, facilitating the exporting of solar panels to the region at an affordable rate, meeting the independent energy targets set out as the Caribbean.
As for food sustainability, Moses says the CCSA, was involved in climate smart agriculture in Jamaica. This she says has garnered quite some attention outside of the region, with many in the private sector looking to partner with the project. go
While much of the Caribbean Climate Smart Accelerator mirrors what was said and resolved at COP 26 held in Glasgow, Scotland, Moses made sure to remind those that meeting those goals was critical to saving the region, as everything was at stake, yet much more to be gained, in savings, from our ecosystems, to our health.
Further discussion centred on initiatives forging a more Resilient region and innovating in Green Finance. Climate Action Climate Change, with Andrea Meza, Minister of Environment and Energy for Costa Rica spoke to the advancements in the region through developmental models that targeted creating sustainable jobs through blue and green economies. As to what is needed, Meza said the time was now to interrupt the accelerated process of nature being destroyed. She also used the term accelerated to give effect to the plans moving within the planet limitations, new skills acquired among its people, entering into global value chains and understanding the electro-mobility while understanding city spaces in our region.
Environmental Attorney, Caroline Prolo expressed the potential was huge for Latin America and the Caribbean to put forward a low carbon economy, as there was abundant wind and access to sunlight for the generation of solar power. She added that one plus for the region was the vast potential for biodiversity development through its rainforests. To promote these kinds of economies also means putting in place the right policies and legislation that governs and protect its vulnerabilities, while enhancing conservation as well as recovery of the rainforests that foster climate financing in the region. Nick Stern, Professor of Economics at the Institute of Climate Change, London School of Economics said while the IDB was in a predicament of finding itself in a position of having to strike a balance with climate change, funding and development , he says COP 26 was the first which saw an active role of the private sector in the outlining of its mandate and resolution He added that this decade was critical to meeting targets set out at COP 26.
In 2021, the IDB approved almost US$4.5 billion for climate-related operations, the highest amount ever, of all sovereign guaranteed projects approved, nearly 78% had climate-related components.