BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC – In the last few weeks, sadly, more than 100 people have died from oppressive heat in India. In Africa, while some countries are experiencing torrential rains, others suffer terrible droughts.
At the recent Commonwealth Health Ministers Meeting in Geneva, we collectively considered how climate change is increasing the incidence of vector-borne diseases – spreading malaria and other dangerous diseases, like the recent dengue outbreak in Samoa.
Commonwealth leaders have been calling for global action on climate change since 1989, before a process for international negotiations even existed. In line with their calls, climate scientists have long warned the world to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius to avoid dangerous tipping points that could lead to irreversible damage.
Worryingly, in February 2024, we breached this critical milestone. Global temperatures surpassed 1.5 degrees Celsius over the past 12 months, making it the hottest year on record.
The World Meteorological Organization warns that this record could be smashed again this year, leading to the loss of more lives and livelihoods and placing national systems and services under intense pressure.
This pressure is disproportionately borne by Small Island Developing States (SIDS). Despite making up only 3% of the world’s land area, SIDS is vital for the whole of humanity and the planet we share.
They safeguard 11.5% of the ocean’s Exclusive Economic Zones, which include 7 out of 10 coral hotspots and 20% of all terrestrial bird, plant, and reptile species.
Yet SIDS experiences five times more climate-attributable deaths due to extreme weather events, and when shocks hit, our SIDS is hit hard.
A cyclone or hurricane can knock a small or vulnerable country off its growth trajectory for years if not decades. In 2017, Hurricane Maria devastated my country of birth, Dominica, taking 225% of her GDP with it.
In 2019, shortly after Dorian, the most powerful hurricane to ever hit the Bahamas tore through the island nation, I visited the northern islands of Abaco and Grand Bahama. I was heartbroken to see what I could then only describe as a war zone.
Last year, Vanuatu was devastated by category five cyclone Lola, which hit seven months after twin cyclones Judy and Kevin had wiped out 50% of her GDP.
The lack of adequate financial support deepens the damage of these shocks.
Despite contributing only 1 percent of all global carbon dioxide emissions, SIDS struggles to need help to unlock climate finance. In 2019, they had access to only $1.5 billion from the $100 billion pledged to developing countries.
With no alternative, these countries often have no option but to obtain financing on unfavorable terms, resulting in high debt burdens. This creates a vicious cycle where debt becomes unsustainable and access to finance becomes even more limited.
The Commonwealth is home to two-thirds of the world’s SIDS, and this exceptional convergence of hardships is at the heart of my motivation to champion and support SIDS at every level.
SIDS has also been saying enough is enough and is leading the charge to reset our climate finance ambitions. At COP28, Commonwealth SIDS was at the forefront of hard-won progress on Loss and Damage.
Samoa, the Commonwealth’s incoming Chair-In-Office, joined other small islands and vulnerable countries at the 4th International Conference on Small Island Developing States (SIDS4) in Antigua and Barbuda. Leaders called for ‘collective quantified finance goals and funding’ to help them deal with frequent and intensifying natural disasters.
The Commonwealth is working to ensure that SIDS’ voices are heard at the highest level of the international system while providing practical support in critical areas such as finance and disaster resilience.
The Commonwealth Climate Finance Access Hub has unlocked US$330 million for our most vulnerable members, with another $500 million worth of project proposals in the pipeline.
Our national climate finance advisers work shoulder-to-shoulder with government officials across our member countries. They prepare project proposals and build governments’ capacity to face the challenges of climate change and development.
For years, leaders from these countries have taken the steps needed to transition toward low-carbon, climate-resilient development.
But reliable climate finance is key to scaling up this action. The Commonwealth Secretariat will continue to advocate for increased funding for adaptation, mitigation, and resilience-building, which is a lifeline for vulnerable countries.
Our commitment to climate change is not new; it is part of the Commonwealth’s DNA, and our history of environmental leadership continues to guide us today.
Our next Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) will take place in Samoa in October this year—the first CHOGM in a Pacific Small Island State—with a clear focus on building the resilience essential for each of our 56 nations to thrive.
If we are to achieve this, the world must keep its promises. Every commitment to climate action and finance made by world leaders is vital – but every failure to meet those commitments is an insult to the most vulnerable, and every example of inaction is an act of violence against those who need us to succeed, now and for generations to come.
The call to action on climate finance will continue to resound from Commonwealth SIDS at the UN General Assembly in September to the negotiations at COP29 in Baku in November. It must be heeded.
and then 