Black Immigrant Daily News

The Ambassador of the United Mexican States to the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Luis Manuel L?pez Moreno presented his Letters of Credence to OECS Director General Dr. Didacus Jules at a ceremony held on Monday March 27.

Ambassador Moreno expressed great honour in being able to represent his country in the OECS region for a second time, having previously served as Mexico’s Ambassador to the OECS. In presenting his Letters to the Director General, the Ambassador conveyed the kind compliments of President Andr?s Manuel L?pez Obrador, who he indicated is keenly aware of the work and progress of the OECS, particularly in respect of efforts towards regional integration.

In accepting the Letters of Credence, Dr. Jules extended a warm welcome to Ambassador Moreno. He conveyed his appreciation of the constructive role that Mexico has played and continues to play in the development process of the OECS region. According to Dr. Jules,

“The member countries of the OECS have had excellent diplomatic relations with Mexico and have benefitted from invaluable development assistance and cooperation with Mexico in numerous areas including education, diplomatic training, agriculture, environmental issues, and support in the development of appropriate infrastructure and facilities.”

In further acknowledgement of Mexico’s contribution to the development of the OECS region, the Director General noted that the OECS-Mexico close friendship is of tremendous importance to the Commission and individual Member States that duly recognize Mexico as a valuable friend and cooperation partner.

In response, Ambassador Moreno informed that “One of the strategic elements of the Government of Mexico is to promote mutual cooperation for the development of the Caribbean countries; to consolidate Mexico’s presence in the region; and to actively participate in addressing the challenges of the regional agenda.”

He continued, “Mexico shares with the Organisation and its Member States, the values of integration, democracy and solidarity and wishes to remain a reliable partner for the development of the OECS and its Members States”

During a courtesy meeting that immediately followed the Ceremony, the Director General and the Ambassador exchanged views on a number of possible new areas for development cooperation initiatives between the OECS and Mexico, and agreed to commence in-depth discussions on those in the immediate future.

In closing, the Dr. Jules again welcomed the Ambassador to the OECS and pledged the full support of the Commission to further advance the friendship and strategic partnership between Mexico and the OECS.

Formal diplomatic relations between the OECS and the United Mexican States were established in 2009.

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The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has been an important partner in Barbados’ drive to achieve its agricultural and marine development priorities, including natural resource management and climate change adaptation.

This partnership has continued under the ‘Addressing the Water-Energy-Food Nexus’ (WEF) sub-project of the “Mexico – CARICOM – FAO Initiative Cooperation for Adaptation and Resilience to Climate Change in the Caribbean.”

The initiative targets actions that contribute to reducing the impacts of global shocks such as climate change and COVID-19 on household livelihoods, food and water availability, including practices in technologies for improved water productivity. Critical to achieving this is the implementation of best practices training within the agriculture sector to ensure environmental management.

Sixteen farmers under the WEF subproject are receiving training in ‘Farming Best Practices’ to learn efficient irrigation techniques, water resource management, and conservation agriculture methods. The distribution of rainwater harvesting/storage facilities and assistance with solar powered irrigation systems for sustainable open field production and soil conditioning are key components of the training to further support the technical knowledge. The training is being facilitated by FAO National Project Coordinator (NPC) for the WEF sub-projectKris Grogan and Agricultural Best Practices Specialist Mr Colin Maynard.

FAO Representative Barbados Mr Juan CheazPelaez, noted that “This sub-project seeks to address the Water-Energy-Food nexus. We know that, among others, climate change will exacerbate water scarcity. Inadequate access to water for agricultural production, along with the high dependence on imported fossil fuels combine to worsen the vulnerability of producers in Barbados.”

The Barbados Climate Change and Agricultural Policy Framework encourages adaptation and mitigation measures for the agricultural sector to build resilience against the impact of climate change. The FAO ‘Farming Best Practices’ training is another program which will facilitate agricultural development as the participants identify problems, test solutions, and adopt appropriate practices.

FAO NPC Kris Grogan stated “We are happy with the attendance at today’s training as we aim to boost resilience and facilitate adaptation to climate change in Barbados. These opportunities under this project will help farmers further develop best practices and skills by providing learning experiences and promoting exchange of information.“

This farmer-to-farmer knowledge exchange adds to the value of the training as the sessions allow for discussion in a collaborative manner where farmers’ can learn from each other’s abilities and experience. The training also seeks to empower farmers in innovation with the use of on-farm renewable energy systems, solar powered irrigation systems and water storage facilities provided.

Workshop participant Tanisha Hunte spoke to the value of the training indicating that, “Sometimes on-farm rainwater harvesting seems farfetched but today made it seem more feasible.“

The “Mexico – CARICOM – FAO Initiative Cooperation for Adaptation and Resilience to Climate Change in the Caribbean” or ‘Resilient Caribbean Initiative’ aims at improving the resilience and adaptation to climate change of agriculture, food systems and rural communities in vulnerable populations in Caribbean countries. The initiative will advance water resource management to increase agricultural productivity. The project will also address the challenge of the low productivity of small-scale farming by providing technological innovation to agricultural producers.

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Seven CDEMA Participating States are set to benefit from a five-day Regional Training Workshop in Post-Disaster Needs Assessment (PDNA) Methodology being held in Barbados from March 27 – 31.

This workshop will build resilience among the Participating States as it will maximize and accelerate effective response and recovery. This initiative is being executed by the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) with support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean, the European Union through the PARTICIP Project, and by the Enabling Gender-Responsive Disaster Recovery, Climate and Environmental Resilience in the Caribbean (EnGenDER) Project, which is funded by Global Affairs Canada and Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office from the Government of the United Kingdom. The initiative aims to develop professionals with the capacity to support the assessment of damage and loss and sectoral recovery needs in the wake of a disaster.

Climate change has increased the frequency and intensity of natural disasters, making vulnerable groups such as low-income communities and coastal populations more susceptible to their impacts; for instance, in the Caribbean and thus the Participating States, rising sea levels and stronger hurricanes threaten the livelihoods and safety of island nations that heavily rely on tourism and fishing industries.

Since 2020, the EnGenDER project has been implementing initiatives in nine Caribbean countries to integrate gender equality and human-rights based approaches to strengthen disaster risk management and build resilience for the effects of climate change.

The PDNA methodology training will be provided to senior economic planning and sectoral representatives from the seven CDEMA Participating States Antigua & Barbuda, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Jamaica, Saint Lucia and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. The UNDP support includes technical support from the Panama Regional Hub (PARH) and sponsorship of some of the Trainer Experts from UNDP Global through PARH.

The purpose of this training workshop is to provide technical support to 40 professionals who are responsible for planning and executing needs assessments and designing their own recovery frameworks within their country. The ultimate goal is to ensure a consistent and coherent approach while delivering an objective and comprehensive estimation of recovery needs. Furthermore, the workshop aims to facilitate swift decision-making and action.

The workshop will enable participants to acquire the necessary knowledge and skills to support their respective Participating States in post-disaster recovery efforts. This event underscores the importance of regional cooperation and partnership in disaster risk reduction and management. It is a step towards building a more resilient Caribbean region.

Head of Cooperation for the Eastern Caribbean at the High Commission of Canada, Abebech Assefa shared, “Canada is committed to reducing the impacts of natural disasters and providing timely and effective assistance for those who have been affected as they recover and rebuild. Canada stands at the forefront of promoting and supporting gender equality and I am happy that gender will be a cross cutting theme of the training. The reality is that men, women, boys, girls and all other groupings are impacted by events differently and if we don’t acknowledge that when we undertake our needs assessments, we risk exacerbating pre-existing inequalities or creating new ones.”

Richard Carter, Team Leader of Climate Change and Disaster Risk Reduction for the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office addressed the audience in the Opening Ceremony and noted, “In the current context of increasing frequency and intensity of natural disasters in the region; the absolute necessity for evidence-driven prioritisation of limited financial resources post-disaster; and the expected requirement of internationally standardised disaster impact assessments as the basis for claims against loss and damage funding, this PDNA training is far from an esoteric or academic exercise – it is a functional necessity for the Caribbean region.”

Lieutenant Colonel Kester Craig, Deputy Executive Director of CDEMA stated, “This workshop forms a key part of CDEMA’s thrust to enhance recovery capacities in the region, and it contributes to the mandate of the Caribbean Resilient Recovery Facility (CRRF), which is being established, in collaboration with other regional and international partners, to effectively operationalize and manage recovery in the Region. CDEMA is striving for resilient recovery that is nationally driven by strengthening Governments’ recovery systems before a disaster strikes. Given the uncertainty around future climate impacts and other emerging hazards, CDEMA is seeking to strengthen the capacities of national governments to plan for and effectively manage recovery from disasters. By hosting this workshop on the methodology for post-disaster needs assessment and by operationalizing the Caribbean Resilient Recovery Facility, CDEMA is working on many different fronts to advance recovery and Comprehensive Disaster Management in the region.”

Ugo Blanco, Deputy Resident Representative for UNDP Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean stated, “This training is timely as the Caribbean is well known to be among the most hazard prone regions in the world and is particularly exposed to geological and hydrometeorological hazards.” As he provided Caribbean examples of the hazards, he stated, “all [disaster examples] underscore the need for recovery planning, institutionalizing recovery in government and the building of recovery capacity to reduce the loss of life, property, environmental assets and livelihoods in Caribbean SIDS.”

As climate change effects become more prevalent in the region, it is vital that developmental efforts continue to reinforce the need for regional resilience and bolstering livelihoods for traditionally vulnerable groups. UNDP Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean, in partnership with governments and stakeholders, remains dedicated to the advancement of inclusive and sustainable development throughout the region. This intervention is part of the work of UNDP Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean in its commitment to building resilient communities that can withstand shocks and crises while reducing gender vulnerabilities.

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Guyana on Monday night welcomed the arrival of the British Airways flight from London with the government saying it underscores its aggressive policy-driven approach to development and heavy investments.

“Connecting the world to Guyana remains a priority of this government. We see Guyana as an active part of a global travel network, and we are continually engaging major airlines with a view to encouraging them to serve this destination.

“Our pursuit of airline connectivity is part of a wider strategic economic objective to make Guyana easily and affordably accessible to all business in all sectors, including the leisure and pleasure travel sector,” said Tourism, Industry and Commerce Minister, Oneidge Walrond, adding that the introduction of the flights presents a myriad of opportunities for Guyana.

Public Works Minister, Bishop Juan Edghill, told the welcoming ceremony that “we are growing, and we will continue to grow. So, there are two things we’re doing. We’re expanding facilities at the airport, and we are growing routes”.

Minister within the Ministry of Public Works, Deodat Indar, said “Guyanese should be proud that what we have now is an environment that can bring more aircraft from different destinations.

“For an investment decision to fly the Guyana route, it took some amount of doing, some amount of calculation, and some amount of confidence in Guyana, and I am hoping that other airways follow suit as British Airways did to fly this route,” said Indar.

Among the passengers on the inaugural flight at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport,

were the United Kingdom’s Minister for the Caribbean and the Americas, David Rutley, and St. Lucia’s Tourism, Investment, Creative Industries, Culture and Information, Dr. Ernest Hilaire.

Hilaire said the return of British Airways to Guyana – United Kingdom (UK) route is a win for Caribbean integration.

“We came to celebrate you receiving this flight… I cannot recall a direct flight from Guyana to St Lucia, so just like this is a milestone for you, the flight returning is a milestone of St Lucia,” Hilaire said as he pointed to the new possibilities for people-to-people and tourism exchanges.

The airline will service the route twice weekly with one stop in St Lucia.

Last last year, London announced that Guyanese nationals would be allowed visa-free entry into the European country for up to 180 days.

Rutley said he would be using his visit here to “launch a new chamber of commerce as well which will then help to cement those relationships at the business level.”

UK High Commissioner to Guyana, Jane Miller said the inaugural flight is not only the culmination of hard work at the business and diplomatic levels but also a personal win for so many people.

“It feels transformational. It’s a huge step for me both personally and professionally,” she said.

The new organization, BritCham Guyana says it will foster an open networking environment where companies can engage and discuss issues impacting their businesses and UK-Guyana trade.

“We would like to congratulate BritCham Guyana and we look forward to working with the team,” said Anne-Marie Martin, Director of Membership UK & International at the British Chambers of Commerce.

“BritCham Guyana offers an opportunity to bring together a rich and diverse network of UK investors, exports, and services with strong governance, world-class standards, and experience that complement the ambitions of Guyana’s business community through long-term and sustainable partnerships,” Miller added.

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