Environment ministers meet in Belize

The week’s second regional conference opened this morning in Belize City and News 5’s Ann-Marie Williams found that the delegates had come to the right place.

Ann-Marie Williams, Reporting

CARICOM Ministers of Finance and Planning this morning met with their colleagues, who are responsible for the environment, as the first joint meeting of CARIFORUM ministers opened at the Radisson in Belize City.

Prime Minister Said Musa in his opening address said that sustainable development is more easily achieved with cooperation.

Prime Minister Said Musa

“To obtain broad policy support, to advance the projects currently under preparation in the region and to develop a strategy for future access to international resources. It is also hoped that we can create an awareness of the facilities available to member states, which would assist them in meeting their international environmental obligations. Another critical item to be considered at today’s meeting is the need to develop the institutional capacity for sustainable development programmes and policies. This includes the proposals to establish a Caribbean climate change centre and also the proposal to establish a Caribbean foundation for sustainable development. Such institutions are critically needed to provide the framework for systematic co-ordination.”

Environment Minister Johnny Briceno cited climate change as a hot topic.

Johnny Briceno, Minister of Environment

“When it comes to climate change, which is a big issue, if we were to talk to some of the older folks in our country, they knew when it comes to hurricane that a hurricane would come, strike for six, twelve hours and leave. Now when we look at Keith, and even Mitch in the region, they come and they stay for two, three days. The older folks will tell you well something is wrong, and obviously it has to do with climate change, global warming that are causing these problems, the intensity of these hurricanes and the length and the duration of these hurricanes. Now through these projects, through the climate change, we as a region can then access funding to be able to mitigate some of these disasters.”

Briceno says sustainable development can only be achieved if there’s a successful marriage between financial and environmental partners.

Johnny Briceno

“We have signed an agreement or a project with the World Bank whereby we are going to get about ten million U.S. dollars to be able to look at the reef, see how we can keep it in a protected and also use it in a sustainable manner for the region: Mexico, Belize, Guatemala and Honduras. This is the same concept that we are trying to use again not only in Central America, but even in the Caribbean region.”

“We cannot have the Ministry of the Environment working on certain projects, while the Ministry of Finance is working on something else that is going to be clashing with one another. As we said, here in Belize we are looking at responsible sustainable development. Responsible for the environment, to ensure that we are not degrading the environment and sustainable development that whatever projects we do, are going to be done sustainably.”

CARICOM Secretary General Edwin Carrington made comments that resonated with the participants.

Edwin Carrington

“I make bold to suggest that the Caribbean of small countries can only be successful by the closest cooperation and co-ordination among ministers of finance, planning and the environment within each of our countries and across the entire Caribbean.”

Ann-Marie Williams for News 5.

The conference ends on Thursday.