(Caribbean Community Secretariat, Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, Guyana) Guyana Minister of Natural Resources and the Environment, the Hon. Robert Persaud says, Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Leaders must join with one voice to call for urgent and meaningful action by the international community in addressing climate change and barriers to sustainable development.
Speaking on Friday, at the opening ceremony of the 39th Special Meeting of the Council for Trade and Development (COTED), on the environment and sustainable development, in Georgetown, Guyana, Minister Persaud noted that climate change is arguably the single largest threat to the development of the Caribbean region and to its very existence.
At that COTED Meeting, CARICOM Ministers with responsibility for environment and sustainable development are preparing for the Region’s participation in the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio + 20) set for Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in June of this year. The Rio+20 Conference will focus on two themes: the development of a green economy within the context of sustainable development and poverty reduction; and the institutional framework for sustainable development. The Meeting reviewed the UNGA Rio+20 Zero Draft Outcome Document in order to craft a strategy for the Region’s approach to the negotiations on the document.
Minister Persaud asserted that a collective approach was the only chance the Caribbean had “to be heard above the din of the politicking and lip service that have come to typify the international discourse” on environmental and sustainable development issues.
He said CARICOM leaders must ensure that they are prepared well at both at the national and regional levels to participate effectively in negotiations at the Rio+20 Conference.
One of the issues that will be addressed at Rio is that of an appropriate institutional framework for sustainable development.
According to Minister Persaud, CARICOM Leaders when addressing this issue, should seek to strengthen and expand existing institutions and initiatives and not seek to build new ones.
“Although the current institutional frameworks are far from perfect, they represent hard fought achievements, and must serve as the foundation for any proposed institutional restructuring,” Minister Persaud explained.
He added that given the Region’s vulnerabilities to natural disasters and the effects of climate change, we could hardly afford to abandon current institutions and create new structures. “We just don’t have the time,” the minister emphasized.
He highlighted the several challenges that the Region faced, noting that these have resulted in a reduction in remittances, tourism earnings and foreign and direct investments.
“We no longer have the luxury of endless discussions and weak commitments. Future generations will judge us on what we do with what we have at this key moment…” the Minister warned.
“They will judge us on our ability to make hard, collective decisions in the face of a mounting storm. The time to act is now,” he concluded.
