BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC – The Barbados-based Caribbean Export Development Agency (Caribbean Export) executive director, Deodat Maharaj, says the Nairobi Declaration must leverage South-South trade, investment, and know-how to address the climate emergency.
In an opinion piece to coincide with the first edition of the African Climate Summit that began in Kenya on Monday, Maharaj said Africa and the Caribbean share deep historical and people-to-people ties.
“The African Union has identified the Caribbean as Africa’s sixth region. The shared experience of the climate emergency has created another commonality that presents an existential threat to both regions, particularly for small states.”
More than a dozen African leaders and some of the world’s climate change campaigners are meeting in Kenya for the summit that ends on Friday and has been convened to address Africa’s increasing exposure to climate change and its associated costs on the continent.
According to the United Nations, Africa accounts for only two to three percent of the world’s carbon emissions but has been the continent most affected by global warming.
Maharaj wrote that African governments, like their Caribbean counterparts, have limited capacity to respond to the climate crisis due to debt distress and economic shocks, necessitating urgent action, including debt relief and increased liquidity.
He said building on Bridgetown 2.0 and the Paris Pact. The Africa Climate Summit can help advance a transformational agenda to reset and reshape trade and investment relationships to build climate resilience.
“However, we need to move swiftly from high-level policy discourse to tangible actions where it matters on the ground. The private sector must be a central driver of this transformation, supported by appropriate policy frameworks.
“While commitments at the highest levels must be secured, direct business-to-business engagement is imperative, particularly in deepening South–South trade and investment relationships.”
Caribbean Export is the regional institution that remits to support private sector development through Export and steer foreign direct investment to the region. Maharaj said several recent high-level initiatives had been aimed at strengthening trade and investment ties between Africa and the Caribbean, such as the Afro-Caribbean Trade and Investment Forum.
“The ACS will primarily focus on driving green growth and climate finance solutions for Africa and the world. The expected outcomes, including those outlined in the Nairobi Declaration, will enable African countries to develop detailed plans and secure investments to support green growth, not only on the continent but also globally, as Africa supports decarbonization efforts elsewhere.
He said the ACS also focuses on sustainable agriculture, adding, “This is an area where the Caribbean has demonstrated a strong commitment, at the highest levels, to deploy technology alongside digitalization and innovation. Incentives are being provided across the board to support investments in this sector.
“Addressing the climate emergency through greening trade must go hand in hand with tackling food insecurity and encouraging agricultural production, which is also a priority in the Caribbean.
“Caribbean leaders have a clear goal of reducing food imports by 25 percent by 2025. However, to be successful in this venture and to build true climate resilience, stronger partnerships and deeper collaboration are required,” Maharaj said.
“South–South linkages offer a viable option for fostering direct business engagement and the transfer of know-how, thus bringing the call to action and the Nairobi Declaration to life,” he added.
The summit in Nairobi is being organized by the Kenyan government and the African Union and is running in parallel with Africa Climate Week. Its theme is “Driving green growth and climate finance solutions for Africa and the world.”
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