The ravages of climate change on Barbados were brought into sharp focus yesterday when dignitaries here for the United Nations’ Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) got a first-hand look at how the island is pushing back on coastline erosion with protection work on the West Coast.
They also had exclusive interaction with some of the island’s youth involved in Future Barbados that features Project CATAPULT – a six-month programme during which participants work collaboratively and are mentored to investigate national problems and develop actionable solutions pivotal to transformation. It led United Nations Secretary General António Guterres to conclude that Barbados is on track to becoming a technology hub.
“Because of the climate crisis in particular, we have to divert our spending to be able to protect our people,” Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley told journalists on the grounds of Codrington College, St John, after a packed day of activities with her guests who included Guterres, President of Guyana Irfaan Ali and CARICOM Secretary General Dr Carla Barnett, who are both in Barbados for the first since taking up their respective posts, Secretary General of UNCTAD Rebecca Greenspan, and Commonwealth Secretary General Baroness Patricia Scotland.
She described the climate crisis as “the big issue of the time” that is slated for international discussion at the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, Scotland, from October 31 to November 12, 2021. (SNR)
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