During his Opening Press Statement at the first RegionalMeeting of the Heads of Government of the Caribbean, within the United NationsFramework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), on August 16, 2022,Bahamas Prime Minister and Minister of Finance the Hon. Philip Davis said thatthe participating countries had come together, with shared determination, so thatin November we will speak in one voice, at COP27, on the “most vital and urgentclimate issues of our time”.
“Our goal is to construct practical climate financing solutions – ones that help usmove forward, rather than lead to further indebtedness,” Prime Minister Davissaid, at the press conference, held at Baha Mar Convention Centre.
Also present were Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Senator theHon. Ryan Pinder; Special Advisor to the Prime Minister on Climate Change andEnvironmental Matters, Rochelle Newbold; and Director for Transparency at theUNFCCC, Donald Cooper.
Prime Minister Davis pointed out that, in 2019, almost exactly three years prior,The Bahamas was hit by a Category 5 storm.
“Hurricane Dorian devastated Abaco and Grand Bahama, ripping up homes andbusinesses and schools, shattering families and communities and resulting in theloss of many lives,” Prime Minister Davis said.
“We live in a region accustomed to fierce storms,” he added. “But the scale andscope of this tragedy, and the certainty that more Category 5 storms are in ourfuture, underscored not just for Bahamians, but for many throughout theCaribbean, the urgency of addressing climate change.
“There is no country on earth where the impact of climate change cannot be felt.But for small island nations like ours in this region, the threat is existential.”
Prime Minister Davis noted that the World Meteorological Organization recentlyreported that sea levels rose more swiftly in the Caribbean region than anywhereelse in the world in 2021.
“This is the front line,” he said.
“We know we need to rebuild for resiliency, and to adapt to the realities of awarming planet. But that’s a task made harder by the economic impact of Dorian– that one storm alone cost our small country billions of dollars,” Prime MinisterDavis added.
“In fact, half of my country’s debt can be linked to hurricane damage.”
Prime Minister Davis noted that burning fossil fuels had generated an enormousamount of wealth, globally.
Yet, he noted it was countries like The Bahamas, that had contributed “such a tinyfraction” of global emissions, that were both most vulnerable to the impacts ofthe accelerating changes in climate, and badly positioned to afford adaptationstrategies.
“In other words, those who are the least responsible for the climate crisis arepaying the highest price,” Prime Minister Davis said.
“I remain optimistic about our collective ability to meet the challenges of climatechange. I believe we can change course,” he added. “On behalf of theGovernment of The Bahamas, I would like to thank the UNFCCC for their supportin hosting this regional heads meeting.”
During his Opening Press Statement at the first Regional
Meeting of the Heads of Government of the Caribbean, within the United Nations
Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), on August 16, 2022,
Bahamas Prime Minister and Minister of Finance the Hon. Philip Davis said that
the participating countries had come together, with shared determination, so that
in November we will speak in one voice, at COP27, on the “most vital and urgent
climate issues of our time”.
“Our goal is to construct practical climate financing solutions – ones that help us
move forward, rather than lead to further indebtedness,” Prime Minister Davis
said, at the press conference, held at Baha Mar Convention Centre.
Also present were Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Senator the
Hon. Ryan Pinder; Special Advisor to the Prime Minister on Climate Change and
Environmental Matters, Rochelle Newbold; and Director for Transparency at the
UNFCCC, Donald Cooper.
Prime Minister Davis pointed out that, in 2019, almost exactly three years prior,
The Bahamas was hit by a Category 5 storm.
“Hurricane Dorian devastated Abaco and Grand Bahama, ripping up homes and
businesses and schools, shattering families and communities and resulting in the
loss of many lives,” Prime Minister Davis said.
“We live in a region accustomed to fierce storms,” he added. “But the scale and
scope of this tragedy, and the certainty that more Category 5 storms are in our
future, underscored not just for Bahamians, but for many throughout the
Caribbean, the urgency of addressing climate change.
“There is no country on earth where the impact of climate change cannot be felt.
But for small island nations like ours in this region, the threat is existential.”
Prime Minister Davis noted that the World Meteorological Organization recently
reported that sea levels rose more swiftly in the Caribbean region than anywhere
else in the world in 2021.
“This is the front line,” he said.
“We know we need to rebuild for resiliency, and to adapt to the realities of a
warming planet. But that’s a task made harder by the economic impact of Dorian
– that one storm alone cost our small country billions of dollars,” Prime Minister
Davis added.
“In fact, half of my country’s debt can be linked to hurricane damage.”
Prime Minister Davis noted that burning fossil fuels had generated an enormous
amount of wealth, globally.
Yet, he noted it was countries like The Bahamas, that had contributed “such a tiny
fraction” of global emissions, that were both most vulnerable to the impacts of
the accelerating changes in climate, and badly positioned to afford adaptation
strategies.
“In other words, those who are the least responsible for the climate crisis are
paying the highest price,” Prime Minister Davis said.
“I remain optimistic about our collective ability to meet the challenges of climate
change. I believe we can change course,” he added. “On behalf of the
Government of The Bahamas, I would like to thank the UNFCCC for their support
in hosting this regional heads meeting.”
