Program involves funding of US$20M to address climate, development challenges
The launch of the ONE Caribbean Regional Program aims to address regional challenges involving climate change and includes a commitment of up to US$20 million to action the program's priorities.
In a joint statement the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) governors for the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Guyana, Jamaica, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago have committed to intensifying joint efforts to "continuously improve the living conditions of citizens in the Caribbean region".
The statement was issued following a signing ceremony at the IDB Group 2024 Annual Meetings of the Boards of Governors in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic.
"We agree that there is a need to address the unique challenges of our region; and an opportunity to focus on the most pressing ones: high climate vulnerability and low resilience, low productivity, vulnerability to price shocks and food insecurity, large infrastructure gaps, limited implementation capacity, and citizen and business security.
"We recognize the longstanding experience of the IDB Group in the region, including its strong presence in our countries, its technical expertise, its regional integration mandate, and its role as a platform to leverage and channel donor resources.
"Building on over 55 years of successes of the IDB Group in the region and being mindful of the need for an ambitious agenda, we endorse ONE Caribbean: a regional programme that aims to support sustainable development in the Caribbean.
"We recognize that the best way forward is through collective actions that boost regional knowledge, improve resilience, and unlock financial resources to support the Caribbean's sustainable development."
The Group said it agrees to:
- Support the launch of ONE Caribbean, which will aim to address the interconnected nature of the challenges facing our region, to promote actions to support climate adaptation, disaster risk management and resilience; citizen security; private sector engagement in the economy; and food security—all enabled through digital transformation and the strengthening of institutions.
- Support the development of a ONE Caribbean regional Project Preparation Facility and execution model to help structure and finance projects that emerge as national and regional priorities.
The Group said this will help build the technical capacity to effectively identify and prepare projects that are well-structured and able to attract private sector investments, including through Public-Private Partnerships.
The Group has also agreed to "embrace the development of national digital and resilient investment plans, that will include financially viable projects and areas to engage public and private investments, with a regional impact".
The Group said these plans will build on existing national development plans and will reflect the IDB’s strategic proposal to bring sustainable and inclusive growth to Caribbean citizens.
Plans also include the "establishment of a Transitory Emerging Need for Sustainable Development in the Caribbean under the IDB’s Ordinary Capital Strategic Development Program, representing a commitment of up to US$20 million over five years, to accelerate the advancement of the Programme's priorities".
The Group said it will "endorse a Partnership and Resource Mobilization Strategy to help leverage additional funding sources for ONE Caribbean".
The strategy will include current mobilization efforts, in addition to the establishment of a multi-donor trust fund at the IDB to spark donors’ interest, and to identify and channel grants and concessional resources from global development partners to projects in the Caribbean.
The signing was undertaken by Prime Minister of Barbados, Mia Amor Mottley, Minister of Economic Affairs and Leader of Government Business in the Senate in The Bahamas, Michael Halkitis, Guyana's Senior Minister in the Office of the President with responsibility for Finance and the Public Service, Ashni K. Singh, Suriname's Minister of Finance and Planning, Kermechend Raghoebarsing, Trinidad and Tobago's Minister of Planning and Development, Pennelope Beckles and Belize's Minister of State of the Ministry of Finance, Economic Development and Investment, Christopher Coye.
Witnessing the signing was Ilan Goldfajn, President of the Inter-American Development Bank Group.