PM welcomes new facility for island states to build climate resilience

JIS:
Prime Minister Andrew Holness has welcomed the launch of the Infrastructure for Resilient Island States facility, which will provide critical support to small island developing states in building the capacity to recover quickly from climate crises.

The facility will support small island states to develop infrastructure that can withstand climate shocks, protecting lives and livelihoods.

“As we all know, a single disaster can derail the entire budget of a small island and set its economy back by years, reducing fiscal space to finance climate adaptation and resilience efforts," Holness said.

India's Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, was joined by United Kingdom Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, in launching the initiative on Tuesday.

It happened during day two of the 26th Conference of Parties (COP26) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Glasgow, Scotland.

The global climate change conference is being held in Glasgow, Scotland.

Holness, who was invited by Prime Minister Modi to address the launch, noted Jamaica's commitment to strengthening its resilience-building efforts.

The Government of India will shortly boost Jamaica's efforts with a US$1million grant to support the construction of facilities for sustainable agriculture.

In addition, he noted that in collaboration with development partners and the private sector, Jamaica will become the first country to develop a predictive climate-risk-assessment planning tool for major infrastructure investments.

Holness said Jamaica has conceptualised a pumped hydroelectric storage project, for which the country it is seeking support.

The project aims to utilise the island's mountainous topography and abundant sunlight to solve the perennial problem of drought, while also generating hydroelectric power.

“This would make clean, sustainable use of Jamaica's high concentration of freshwater resources in the north, to serve the large population centres and agricultural lands in the south,” the Prime Minister said.

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