US Ambassador to UN Thomas Greenfield allocates $43M for climate resilience in Caribbean

The US Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield announced over $43 million in USAID funding to address the climate and biodiversity threats in the Caribbean. Speaking during the 46th Regular Meeting of the Conference of Government of CARICOM, she said that these funds include the $15.8 million which were announced earlier by the USA.

While making the announcement, Ambassador Greenfield showcased the US’s commitment towards the Caribbean and its continuous contributions in uplifting the region.

The US Ambassador led the United States delegation to the CARICOM meeting in Guyana while building a strong collaboration between the US and the Caribbean Community. According to Linda Thomas-Greenfield, these funds will be part of the President’s Emergency Plan for Adaptation and Resilience dubbed as PREPARE. She said that through this plan, the US is maintaining its dedication to partner with the people of the Caribbean to facilitate resilience and climate adaptation in the region.

In addition to this, the Ambassador also announced that USAID will be providing $5.8 million to lessen threats to coastal marine biodiversity while building the resilience of coastal communities in the region. The US aims to focus on preserving endangered ecosystems and species including the coral reefs and mangroves as well as sharks, rays, marine turtles and more.

During the meeting, Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield also talked about strengthening the water security in Haiti. She said that the USAID will provide $10 million funding to enhance to capacity and performance of water sector institutions and markets in Haiti. She added that around one million citizens of Haiti will benefit and will have access to climate resilient sources of safe water.

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In addition to this, the USAID Assistant Administrator Marcela Escobari also announced two new projects as part of the USAID’s $20 million Caribbean Climate Investment Program. These projects will work towards increasing climate investment in the Caribbean.

The first project with the PFAN – Private Financing Advisory Network includes $3 million for business advisory services which will help prepare small and medium-sized enterprises for investment. According to Escobari, the second project will include $608,000 to Deetken Impact which is a climate resilience and renewable energy investment firm focusing to boost small and medium-sized enterprises.

He also mentioned that $6.1 million in funding was recently announced by USAID for the new Caribbean RESET program. This program will reduce barriers to public as well as private finance to build climate and disaster resilience while adopting climate smart practices in major sectors.