CARIBBEAN COMMUNITY SECRETARIAT
REVISED DRAFT
CARIBBEAN REGIONAL POSITION
ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PROGRAMME OF ACTION FOR THE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
OF SMALL ISLAND DEVELOPING
STATES
13 APRIL 2004
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PAGE(S)
ACRONYMS
INTRODUCTION 1 - 7
CHAPTER 1: THE SOCIO-ECONOMIC CONTEXT 8 -16
CHAPTER 2: NATIONAL INSTITUTIONS, ADMINISTRATIVE 17-20
CAPACITY AND FRAME WORKS FOR
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER 3:CROSS SECTORAL AREAS 21-29
Regional Institutions and Coordination ) 21-23
Capacity Building ) 24-27
Financing and Investment for Sustainable ) 27-29
Development )
CHAPTER 4:REVIEW OF THE IMPLEMENTATION OF 30-63
THE SIDS /POA
Climate Change and Sea Level Rise 30-34
Risk Management and Disaster Preparedness 35-38
Management of Waste 38-39
Freshwater and Waste Water Management 40-43
Coastal and Marine Resources Management 43-48
(including Coastal and Marine Biodiversity)
Land Resources (Including Terrestrial - 48-52
Biodiversity)
Energy Resources 52-56
Tourism Resources 56-59
Biodiversity Resources 60-61 Communication and Transport 61
Science and Technology 62-63
CHAPTER 5:TRADE AND INVESTMENT 64-68
CHAPTER 6:PROGRESS TOWARDS MILLENNIUM 76-92
DEVELOPMENT GOALS (MDGS)
Poverty 76-79
Education 79-80
Child Mortality 80-81
Gender Equality and Empowerment of ) 81-82
Women )
Health 82-83
HIV/AIDS Management 83-86
Malaria and other Diseases 86-87
Environmental Sustainability 87-88
Global Partnership for Development 88-92
CHAPTER 7:EMERGING CONCERNS AND SPECIAL ) 93-99
NEEDS )
Debt Servicing 93
Economic Vulnerability 93
Environmental Vulnerability 93-94
Social Vulnerability 94-95
Good Governance 95
Culture 95-96
CHAPTER 8:POTENTIAL FOR REGIONAL AND 100 - 103
INTERNATIONAL INTERVENTION
Capacity Challenges 100
Trade Related Challenges 100-101
The Challenge of International Competitiveness 101
The Challenge of Sustainability Energy ) 101
Management)
Social Vulnerability 101-102
Environmental Vulnerability 102
Economic Vulnerability 102-103
ANNEXES
ANNEX 1:TEMPLATE FOR THE PREPARATION OF
THE CARIBBEAN REGIONAL POSITION
ANNEX 2:EXTRACT FROM THE DRAFT SUMMARY OF
CONCLUSIONS OF THE SIXTEENTH MEETING OF THE COTED ON THE MANAGEMENT OF THE CARIBBEAN SEA
ANNEX 3:EXTRACT FROM THE DRAFT SUMMARY OF
CONCLUSIONS OF THE SIXTEENTH MEETING OF THE COTED ON THE UN CONVENTION ON COMBATTING DESERTIFICATION
ANNEX 4:LIST OF DOCUMENTS REVIEWED
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ACRONYMS
AOSIS Alliance of Small Island States
ACS Association of Caribbean States
CARICOM Caribbean Community
CARECCaribbean Epidemiology Centre
CARICADCaribbean Centre for Development Administration
CAST Caribbean Alliance for Sustainable Tourism
CDB Caribbean Development Bank
CEHICaribbean Environmental Health Institute
CERMESCentre for Resources Management and Environmental Studies
CHACaribbean Hotels Association
CIDACanadian International Development Agency
CIMH Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology
CCACaribbean Conservation Association
CCCCCCaribbean Community Climate Change Centre
CCSTCaribbean Council for Science and Technology
CDMP Caribbean Disaster Mitigation Project
CDERA Caribbean Disaster Emergency Response Agency
CDMP Caribbean Disaster Mitigation Project
CPACCCaribbean Planning for Adaptation to Climate Change
CREDP Caribbean Renewable Energy Development Project
CRPMCaribbean Regional Preparatory Meeting of SIDS + 10 Review Meeting
CSME CARICOM Single Market and Economy
CTO Caribbean Tourism Organisation
EEZExclusive Economic Zone
EMAEnvironmental Management Authority of Trinidad and Tobago
ESDUEnvironment and Sustainable Development Unit of the OECS
GEFGlobal Environment Facility
IDPIntegrated Development Plan/Planning
IPCCInter-Governmental Panel (of Experts) on Climate Change
NEANational Enabling Activities
NICUsNational Implementation Coordinating Units
NIHERSTNational Institute for Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology of Trinidad and Tobago
NRCANatural Resources Conservation Authority
OASOrganisation of American States
OECSOrganisation of Eastern Caribbean States
POAProgramme of Action
RPIURegional Project Implementing Unit
SIDSSmall Island Developing States
SIDSNETSmall Island Developing States Network
SLRSea Level Rise
UNCED United Nations Conference on Environment and Development
UNCLOSUnited Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea
UNDP United Nations Development Programme
UN/ECLACUnited Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean
UNDESAUnited Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs
UNEPUnited Nations Environment Programme
UNEP/ROLACUNEP’s Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean
UNGAUnited Nations General Assembly
UNGCSIDSUnited Nations Global Conference on the Sustainable Development of Small
Island Developing states
USDE Unit for Sustainable Development and Environment of the OAS
UWI University of the West Indies
UWICEDUniversity of the West Indies Centre for Environment and Development
UNFCCCUnited Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
1
INTRODUCTION
Fourteen (14) CARICOM countries comprise members of the United Nations which are classified as SIDS. There are also a number of non-independent entities, associate members of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, which share the Caribbean Sea and participate in activities relating to the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States (SIDS). Most of these states and entities participated in the historic United Nations Conference on the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States, held in Barbados in 1994. They all therefore subscribed to the Barbados Programme of Action (BPOA).
The Caribbean SIDS are all linked and collaborated through the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, more specifically the activities of the Sub-Regional Headquarters of the ECLAC for the Caribbean. Within this framework the Caribbean Development and Corporation Commission (CDCC) gives political guidance to environment and sustainable development aspects. They are also linked through the Association of Caribbean States (ACS) which has a special mandate relating to the promotion of the management of the Caribbean Sea in the context of sustainable development.
Most of these SIDS have adopted integration and cooperation as a strategy to ameliorate their vulnerability and enhance their resilience for the challenges of sustainable development. In this regard while all are members or associate members of the UNECLAC and the ACS, the majority are members of a deep integration arrangement – the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), and the smallest members are parties to an even deeper arrangement, the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS).
The template for the production of National Assessment Reports on the implementation of the Barbados Programme of Action (BPOA) was submitted to all Caribbean SIDS. Most Caribbean SIDS produced draft National Assessment Reports (NARs) which provided a significant basis for discussion at the Inter-Regional Preparatory Meeting in The Bahamas, 26-30 January 2004.
This revised draft document seeks to pull the key issues and recommendations from the NARs, other sources and comments from national governments and regional institutions on a first draft issued in January 2004. It is still a Revised Draft.
THE CARIBBEAN COMMUNITY (CARICOM)
The Caribbean Community was established as the Caribbean Community and Common Market by the Treaty of Chaguaramas signed on 4 July 1973. By Treaty revision, effective February 2002, the successor entity is now the Caribbean Community, including the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME). The Members of the Community consist of Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas (The Bahamas is a member of the Community but not the CSME), Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Montserrat, St. Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago. Associate Members areAnguilla, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands and Turks and Caicos Islands
CHART 1 : CARICOM COMMUNITY ORGANS AND BODIES
.
The functions of the major community organs include:
The Conference of Heads of Government (The Conference): The Supreme Organ of the Community. The primary responsibility of the Conference is to determine and to provide the policy direction for the Community. It is the final authority for the conclusion of Treaties on behalf of the Community and for entering into relationships between the Community and international organisations and states.
The Community Council of Ministers (The Council): The second highest Organ. It consists of Ministers responsible for Community Affairs and any other Minister designated by Member States in their absolute discretion. It is responsible for the development of Community strategic planning and coordination in the areas of economic integration, functional cooperation and external relations.
The principal organs of the Community are assisted in the performance of their functions by the following four Ministers Councils:
- The Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED): Promotes trade and economic development of the Community and oversees the operations of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME). Sustainable development matters are dealt with by COTED, although there are elements which fall under COHSOD, COFAP and COFCOR or include significant collaboration.
- The Council for Foreign and Community Relations (COFCOR): Builds relations among Community Member States and between the Community and international organisations and third states.
- The Council for Human and Social Development (COHSOD): Promotes human and social development.
- The Council for Finance and Planning (COFAP): Coordinates economic policy and financial and monetary integration of Member States.
In addition to the formal bodies and organs of CARICOM highlighted in Chart 1, at the Seventh Special Meeting of the Conference, held in Chaguaramas, Trinidad and Tobago on 26-27 October 1999, Heads of Government agreed to :
“...Constitute themselves into a quasi-cabinet with individual Heads having responsibility for critical portfolios.”
The arrangement enhances the political input and should enhance implementation.
QUASI-CABINET
At the Seventh Special Meeting of the Conference, held in Chaguaramas, Trinidad and Tobago, on the 26-27 October 1999, Heads of Government agreed to :“...constitute themselves into a quasi-cabinet with individual Heads having responsibility for critical portfolios.”
These are:
1. External Negotiations – Jamaica
2. Single Market and Economy (including Monetary Union) – Barbados
3. Health (including HIV/AIDS) and Human Resource Development - St Kitts and Nevis
4. Science and Technology – Grenada
5. Tourism (including Land, Cruise, Suva Partnership Agreement provisions etc) - The Bahamas
6. Services (including Information Technology and Telecommunications) - Antigua and Barbuda
7. Agriculture and Agricultural Diversification and Food Security (including the RTP) – Guyana
8. Security (Drugs and Illicit Arms) - Trinidad and Tobago
9. Transport (Maritime and Aviation) – Haiti*
10. Labour (including intra-community movement of skills) – Dominica
11. Sustainable Development (including Environment and Disaster Management) – Belize **
12. Community Development and Cultural Cooperation (including Culture, Gender, Youth and Sport)- Suriname
13. Justice and Governance - Saint Lucia
14. Bananas - St Vincent and the Grenadines
* This portfolio has since been reassigned to St Vincent and the Grenadines
** Montserrat will work closely with Belize given its special interest in Disaster Management
THE ORGANISATION OF EASTERN CARIBBEAN STATES (OECS)
The Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) was established in 1981 by the Treaty of Basseterre. The OECS is now a union of nine countries: Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Anguilla, Montserrat and the British Virgin Islands. Seven are full Members of CARICOM and the others are Associate Members.
At the OECS level, OECS Ministers Environment Policy Committee give political direction to environmental matters. These states have signed a St. George’s Declaration of Principles for Environmental Sustainability in the OECS.
THE BPOA REVIEW PROCESS
By Resolution 57/262, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) agreed that an International Meeting should be convened in Mauritius to undertake a full and comprehensive review of the implementation of the Small Islands Developing States Programme of Action (SIDS/POA). This Review Meeting, which is set for 30 August to 3 September 2004, will have been held ten years after the adoption of the SIDS POA in 1994. It provides opportunity for Caribbean SIDS to analyse their experiences in the implementation of the BPOA and other international sustainable development agreements. It will also facilitate the identification of new priority issues and individual and collective actions to deal with them.
A major stage in the Caribbean's preparation for the SIDS + 10 Review was the convening of a Caribbean Regional Preparatory Meeting (CRPM) in Trinidad and Tobago (6-10 October 2003). This was preceded by a Civil Society Consultation (October 3-5, 2003). Regional Meetings were held in the other two SIDS regions – the Pacific and AIMS regions.
An Inter-Regional Meeting on the Review of the Programme of Action for Small Island Developing States (the Barbados Programme of Action – BPOA) was held in the Bahamas (26-30 January 2003), to consolidate the SIDS overall position in preparation for the Mauritius Meeting. The Bahamas Meeting, which was organized by the United Nations Department for Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA), was preceded by a CARICOM Preparatory Ministerial Session (25 January 2004).
The major background documentation for the Meeting was the Draft Position Papers submitted by the three SIDS regions (including the draft Caribbean Regional Position). It was agreed that the Regional Position Papers would remain in draft form to receive inputs until shortly before the Mauritius Meeting.
The major outcome documents adopted at The Bahamas Meeting were the -
(i)Nassau Declaration; and
(ii)AOSIS Strategy for the Further Implementation of the BPOA.
The report of the Meeting has been finalized by UNDESA and is to be the basis for negotiations at the Preparatory Meeting under the auspices of the Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) on 14-16 April 2004 immediately before CSD XIII.
THE DRAFT CARIBBEAN REGIONAL POSITION
In preparation for the CRPM and The Bahamas Meeting, Caribbean SIDSs were requested to provide National Assessment Reports (NARs) on their implementation of the Barbados SIDS/POA in a standard format using a specified template format provided by the United Nations Department for Social and Economic Affairs (UNDESA). The template also includes a section on implementing the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) agreed at the Millennium Summit held in September 2000. The Commonwealth Secretariat, the United Nations Environment Programme's Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean (UNEP/ROLAC), and the United Nations Developments (UNDP) provided assistance to the Caribbean SIDS. None (9) of the Caribbean SIDs completed their final NARs. Assistance was also provided to the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat by UNEP to undertake a Regional synthesis of the NARs prepared by Caribbean SIDS.
Key Recommendation 1
A Call for a Caribbean Regional Position
The CRPM agreed that:
The CARICOM Secretariat, in cooperation with the UWICED, should coordinate the development of a draft Caribbean Regional Position on the basis of the NARs. The views and concerns of the Associate Members of ECLAC should be included in this position. The structure of the Caribbean regional position should follow the format given in Annex 1 of this report, and should include separate reporting on all the chapters of the BPOA, including new and emerging issues.
Most Caribbean SIDs took some time to produce their final NARs. Some are still in the process. This revised draft Caribbean Regional Position (CRP) of April 2004 is an update on the January 2004 draft circulated at The Bahamas Meeting. It reflects the NARs and revised NARs received since The Bahamas Meeting, the comments received from Caribbean States and relevant agencies on the initial draft Regional Synthesis of NARs and the Report of the CRPM, as well as the January draft CRP. It also includes key points from the:
- October 2003 Civil Society Consultation Report
- The Report on the Review of BPOA implementation in the OECS (prepared on behalf of the OECS Secretariat)
- Reviews of BPOA implementation conducted by the Sub-Regional Headquarters of ECLAC for the Caribbean. These include the 1998 review (LC/CAR/G.520) entitled National Implementation of the SIDS/POA: A Caribbean Perspective and the 2003 review (LC/CAR/G.749) which spans the time between 1994 to 2003 entitled Review of the Implementation of the POA for the Sustainable Development of SIDS in the Caribbean Sub-Region 1994-2003. These documents were particularly useful as a source of information on non-CARICOM Caribbean SIDS.
- The SIDS Programme of Action: Agenda 21 – The Road to Johannesburg 2002 (Document LC/CAR/G.649) also prepared by the Sub-Regional Headquarters of ECLAC for the Caribbean.
- Other relevant SIDS related documents listed in Annex 2
The draft revised CRP does not describe in detail, conditions at the national level (e.g. projects and problems). The primary focus is on extracting the major findings and recommendations, especially those that have strong regional significance. Attention has also being given to identifying gaps that may be addressed through regional and/or international initiatives. This revised CRP has been re-structured from the previous version so as to reduce some of the repetition of points and arguments and overlap induced from strict adherence to the template agreed at the CRPM.
TOWARDS MAURITIUS
The Region’s preparations for participation in the Meeting are being guided by the Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED). Preparations and a strategy for the Mauritius Meeting were discussed at recent meetings of key CARICOM decision making bodies – the Sixteen meeting of the COTED (4-5 March 2004, Belize), the Thirteenth Meeting of the Community Council of Ministers (6 March 2004, Belize) and the Fifteenth Inter-Sessional Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government (25-26 March, St. Kitts and Nevis). There is therefore a heightened sensitivity of the political Directorate to and strategic inputs from that policy level into, the review of the BPOA. They are aware of the increasing vulnerability – economic, social and environmental –of the small island and low-lying coastal states they lead and the need for urgent and enhanced action at national, regional and international levels to contain and reverse deteriorating trends. The outcomes of the Mauritius International Meeting, in particular the extent to which they promote and support action, address key areas of vulnerability and build resilience will be crucial.
CHAPTER 1:
THE SOCIO-ECONOMIC CONTEXT: KEY CHALLENGES AND RESPONSES