Primera ministra de Barbados advirtió que el cambio climático puede generar desplazamientos masivos en el Caribe
Advierten sobre desplazamiento masivo en el Caribe
La primer ministra de Barbados, Mia Mottley, advirtió hoy que su país y otros del Caribe deben estar preparados ante la posibilidad de un evento climático que podría desplazar a miles de personas.
Mottley manifestó la necesidad de implementar planes de preparación para tal contexto pues el 2017 mostró lo que podría pasar en la región con el impacto de sucesivos huracanes.
Las inundaciones costeras y tierra adentro debido a la intensificación de las marejadas ciclónicas también siguen siendo un problema para muchos de nuestros otros países, y Trinidad, Guyana y Surinam pueden no ser azotados por huracanes pero sí por inundaciones, alertó la mandataria.
Durante la entrega de las Estrategias de Seguridad Marítima Regional y Nacional en Barbados, Mottley recordó que el aumento de un metro en el nivel del mar puede desplazar a aproximadamente 110 mil personas en los estados miembros de la Comunidad del Caribe, según pronósticos de organismos regionales y de las Naciones Unidas.
Se estima que el 2,0 por ciento de la población de San Cristóbal y Nieves y el 3,0 por ciento de la de Antigua y Barbuda podrían ser desplazados como resultado de este tipo de eventos, acotó la primera ministra barbadense citada por el diario Barbados Today.
Este potencial desplazamiento nos lleva a preguntarnos si la respuesta actual en nuestros estados miembros puede acomodar la gestión de la migración masiva o el desplazamiento de un número tan grande de personas, cuestionó Mottley.
PM: Caribbean should prep for regional migration after a disaster
Barbados and other countries in the region need to be prepared for the possibility of a climate event that could displace thousands of people.
That is the view of Prime Minister Mia Mottley, who believes that the effects of climate change could cause mass migration and displacement in the Caribbean.
Speaking today during the hand over of the Regional and National Maritime Security Strategies, Mottley said plans had to be put in place to prepare for such a situation.
“2017 was that year that showed us the possibility of what could happen with the impact on Dominica and Antigua and Barbuda in particular with those successive hurricanes that hit us. The coastal and inland flooding due to intensified storm surges have also continued to be a problem for too many of our other countries. Trinidad, Guyana and Suriname may not be hit by hurricanes but they are hit by floods…” Mottley pointed out.
“We have been told by the CCCCC (Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre ) and the UNDP that a one metre rise in sea level can displace approximately 110,000 people in CARICOM member states. For the RSS in particular, it was estimated that two per cent of the population in St Kitts and Nevis and indeed three per cent of the population in Antigua and Barbuda could be displaced as a result of these types of events. This potential displacement leads us to enquire if the current response in our member states can accommodate management of mass migration or displacement of such a large number of persons,” she said.
“Commodore Shurland and myself have been in conversation recently and with some of our international partners with respect to this reality of our capacity to be able to handle mass migration as a result of climatic events. It is our judgment that there is much work to be done if we are able to do this seamlessly and time is not on our side.”
Mottley said it was imperative humanitarian and security missions were identified as key initiatives going forward.
Chief of Staff of the Barbados Defence Force Errington Shurland said today’s ceremony would see the handing over of an overarching regional strategy and national maritime strategies for the seven-member states of the RSS.
He admitted that progress had been hampered by COVID-19.
Shurland said the initiative had been launched in March, 2019 and was expected to be completed by March, 2021.
However, he said the strategies were necessary as the shared maritime space between countries in the region brought shared challenges such as transnational organized crime.
“These shared challenges dictate that cooperation and information sharing between the RSS member states are critical for maximizing maritime and port security by essentially multiplying the capabilities and resources of any one state.
“Sustainable development and peace and security are two sides of the same coin. Development and security go hand in hand. Fundamentally there can be no sustainable development without security, stability and peace,” Shurland said.
CARICOM Heads of Government engage Green Climate Fund
As the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) continued its preparations for the United Nations COP 26, Heads of Government met on Tuesday with the Executive Director of the Green Climate Fund (GCF) Mr. Yannick Glemarec.
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) 26th Conference of the Parties (COP 26) takes place in Glasgow, United Kingdom from 31 October to 12 November 2021.
The Heads of Government in their discussions with Mr Glemarec called for a simplification of the process to access funds under the GCF as well as for an increase in the percentage allocated to adaptation to climate change by the Fund.
The CARICOM leaders also urged Mr Glemarec to establish an office of the GCF in the Region in order to enhance interaction between the Fund and the Community.
Tuesday’s meeting was the latest in a series of activities to prepare the Community’s case for actions to be taken at COP 26 which would redound to the benefit of the Region. Earlier this month, Heads of Government had met in Special Session to discuss plans for COP 26.
Ministers of the Environment met in Special Session on 15 October to finalise positions for the negotiations at COP 26 and to hold discussions with a representative of the COP Presidency the Honourable Wendy Morton. Last Thursday the Ministers met virtually with the United States Special Envoy on Climate Change Secretary John Kerry to exchange views on the possible outcomes of COP 26.
