THE CLIMATE change phenomenon is estimated to cost countries in the Caribbean sub-region up to five percent of their annual gross domestic product (GDP) between 2011 and 2050. That is, if adaptive or mitigative actions are not pursued, according to the summary of findings in a report released Monday by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC). The ceremonial launch of the summary report, titled The Economics of Climate Change in the Caribbean”, was organized by ECLAC’s Sub-regional Headquarters for the Caribbean concluded two years of research on the potential impact of climate change. Assessments were conducted in eight sectors identified as vulnerable by Caribbean stakeholders, across 14 countries. The research was done in collaboration with the Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre (CCCCC), with funding provided by the Department for International Development (DFID) of the United Kingdom.
Hirohito Toda, Officer-in-Charge of the ECLAC Sub-regional Headquarters for the Caribbean, told the audience that owing to the geographic characteristics and small economic size of the countries of the Caribbean, the region will be among the first to be affected. “Since more than half of the population lives near the coast, increase in temperature,”, he said, “change in precipitation and rise in sea level due to human activities will not only lead to loss of land, but to lowered prospects for economic growth as well as quality of life for its people,”.
Arthur Snell, High Commissioner for the United Kingdom, Great Britain and Northern Ireland to Trinidad and Tobago, applauded the efforts by ECLAC in spearheading the research on the issue of climate change, noting that the findings of the national studies will drive regional awareness and resilience building, and assist decision-makers in targeting their preventative and mitigating efforts.
Trinidad and Tobago’s Minister of Housing and Environment of Trinidad and Tobago, Roodal Moonilal, who delivered the feature address, stressed that national planning “is a critical component of overall adaptation action, if climate resilience of sectors and economies are to be built,”.
The report highlighted the need for Caribbean countries to take urgent action by employing energy efficiency measures, improving management of natural resources, and implementing financing mechanisms that support sustainable adaptive actions. It calls for a sub-regional adaptation response and the strengthening of institutional frameworks for responding to climate change.