Caricom SG calls on U.S. to give climate change commitment

The Caribbean Community is urging the United States to commit to the outcome of the Cancún Climate Change Conference.

Caricom Secretary General Irwin LaRocque made the call at the accreditation ceremony of the new U.S. Ambassador to the community, D Brent Hardt at the Caricom Secretariat’s headquarters in Liliendaal, East Coast Demerara on Tuesday.

The secretary general acknowledged and commended the U.S. government’s efforts to initiate programmes such as Energy and Climate Partnership of the Americas (ECPA), which has 40 projects underway throughout the Americas including in Caricom states. He pointed out that the best way to combat climate change was on a global level and within the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

“The region, therefore, urges the U.S. to commit to the outcome of the Cancún Climate Change Conference in order to advance the chances of mitigation and adaptation for our small island developing and low-lying coastal states faced with the ravages of climate change, as we approach the negotiations in Durban, South Africa in December of this year,” LaRocque said.

The secretary general said that both sides had identified security, closer economic linkages, and climate change among the areas on which they will continue to focus as they advance relations.

In acknowledging the robust and friendly relations Caricom and the U.S. enjoy, he pointed out that the relationship had evolved, and was changing and adapting as their respective domestic circumstances and geopolitics require.

He singled out the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative (CBSI), launched last year, under which the U.S. government had provided significant funding to projects and initiatives in the region to reduce drug trafficking, enhance public safety and security, and promote social justice.

“This arrangement is mutually beneficial to both the U.S. and the region in the face of ongoing threats to the security of our respective countries,” LaRocque said, adding that he was deeply appreciative of U.S. support “in this important area, which is fundamental to providing the right environment for securing our objective of sustainable development”.

In remarks after presenting his credentials, Ambassador Hardt also spoke of the CBSI, describing the initiative as a “new and innovative approach” to security that sought to address both root causes and consequences of crime and violence that threatened the social fabric and economic vitality of Caricom states.

With respect to climate change, Ambassador Hardt said that his country recognised the “disproportionate impact” of climate change on small island nations and low-lying coastal regions, such as such as those in the Caribbean. As such, the U.S. was committed to cooperate with Caricom countries and institutions under the ECPA to support energy efficiency, encourage renewable energy development, and mitigate the impact of climate change.