by STAFF WRITER
UNITED NATIONS, Sep 30, CMC – Grenada has called on other Caribbean nations and Small Island Development States (SIDS) to serve as “test cases” for nationwide implementation of climate-related technologies and advances.
In addressing the 73rd Session of the United Nations General Assembly Debate on Saturday, Foreign Affairs Minister Peter David said the Caribbean also represents “some of the most globally compelling business cases for sustainable renewable energy investment.
“Being climate smart goes beyond policies,” he said. “It goes beyond resilient housing, resilient infrastructure and resilient agriculture.
“It means that the region can also serve as a global beacon for renewable energy and energy efficiency,” David added. “We aim to not only be resilient, but with our region’s tremendous potential in hydro-electricity and geothermal energy, we could also be climate smart.”
In understanding the need to rethink the Caribbean’s adaptation to climate change, David said the Government of Grenada has established a new “over-arching” Ministry, titled the Ministry of Climate Resilience, Environment, Fisheries, Forestry, Disaster Management and Information.
He said its mandate is to “work speedily to ensure that engrained in every aspect of our country’s development is the question of addressing climate change and climate resilience.”
The Foreign Affairs Minister said Grenada is also currently shifting some of its macroeconomic focus to ensure attention is paid to the development of its green and blue economies, “thus marrying economic development with environmental sustainability.”
He said while the road to climate-smart sustainability is “long and arduous,” it is not insurmountable, “and we must ensure that we are strategic in this journey.”
In building climate-smart and sustainable societies, David said the inherent need to improve the health of citizens and the conditions for fostering good health must not be discounted.
But, he said, unfortunately, like many Caribbean Community (CARICOM) states and other developing nations, Grenada struggles with the scourge of non-communicable diseases.
He, therefore, called for global leadership and looks forward to international solutions “that would preserve the health of our people, promote longevity and sustain our future.”
David said the successful completion of last week’s UN High-Level meetings on non-communicable diseases and Tuberculosis is “encouraging, particularly the commitments set forth in the Political Declarations, laudably adopted by consensus.
“Now is the time to scale up our efforts to ensure we honor those commitments,” he said.
But, as the region attempts to create sustainable societies, David said it is confronted with “certain global financial policies and actions that pose significant threats” to the region’s sustainable development.
He said correspondent banking and de-risking, blacklisting and middle-income status graduation are measures that negatively affect Caribbean economies.
“The unilateral and premature graduation of many Small Island Developing States to Middle Income Status without consideration of our region’s specific vulnerabilities has resulted in significant budgetary shortfalls, adversely affecting our economic and social development,” David said, pointing out that the region has inherent structural economic challenges that already restrict the pace of its development.
“We ask that these impediments to growth be considered when our matters arise for consideration,” he said.
David noted that the Caribbean Development Bank has pioneered the use of vulnerability indices when setting the terms of its financing, and urged international partners to work toward “an acceptable ‘Country Vulnerability Index’ that holistically assesses our countries’ development and risks.”
Moreover, David said the withdrawal of correspondent banking services to CARICOM Member States can be seen as “an economic assault that would destabilize the financial sector of our already vulnerable economies.
“Remittances contribute in real and significant terms to the GDP (gross domestic product) of small states,” he said, alluding to the World Bank, which he said has stated that “any sudden stop in remittances in economies that rely on these flows could pose a significant threat to socio-economic stability.”
Added to the threat of lost correspondent banking relationships is “the unilateral and often unfounded blacklisting of our institutions as ‘money launderers’ and our countries as ‘tax havens,’” David said.
“It pains us as policy-makers when we expend our limited resources to comply with international rules, only to face arbitrary punishments when we are quite evidently doing our best,” he said.
David said there are no easy answers to these challenges, but he urged the region’s partners to “desist from draconian approaches to these matters when dealing with vulnerable developing nations.”
The Foreign Affairs Minister said Grenada continues to work with its international partners to advance international peace and security.
He said Grenada’s position on the development of nuclear weapons is clear, stating that the development of nuclear weapons is “inherently destructive, and, therefore, serves no good purpose for humanity.”
“Deterrence only makes sense where there is the possibility of deployment,” he said. “The mere existence of these weapons anywhere, is unacceptable.
“Grenada, therefore, urges its friends to desist from the development and testing of these weapons,” he added. “Imagine what we could achieve instead, if we put our brilliant scientists to work on Climate Change and building climate-smart resilient and sustainable societies.”
As leaders strive to maintain the Caribbean Region as a zone of peace, David said “some of us continue to be affected by the trafficking of small arms from the countries that manufacture and sell these arms freely.”
He noted that, in some of the islands, states-of-emergency have been declared at various times “to control criminal activity, because of the increasing availability and use of small arms.”
David said small arms and gun violence undermine the rule of law and are often major factors behind the displacement of civilians and the violation of human rights.
“We cannot build sustainable societies if our public security is incessantly threatened by this scourge,” he declared.
David said as efforts are being made to create sustainable societies, “the people of Cuba continue to suffer under the unjust decades-old embargo imposed on them by the United States of America.”
He said Grenada continues to call for the immediate lifting of “the unfair economic, commercial and financial embargo on the Republic of Cuba.”
He added that Grenada “strongly supports” UN General Assembly Resolution 70/5, which calls for an end to “this dreadful embargo.”
David said some of the region’s neighbors in Latin America are currently experiencing political and economic challenges, “which threaten the peaceful existence, sustainable development, and, by extension, the stability of the region.
“Grenada calls for dialogue and asks that good sense and wisdom prevail in all attempts aimed at resolving these conflicts,” he said. “In the same vein, we call for the political integrity and sovereignty of these states to be respected.
“The Government of Grenada continues to offer its hand in good faith to facilitate dialogue towards the settlement of said disputes,” David added.
