The Government of Barbados announced that a total of six projects, ranging the funding value from US $90,000 to US $10,000,000 are at the advance stages of preparation.
The Commonwealth is providing Barbados technical assistance to strengthen its access to climate finance by designing six projects ranging in value from US$90,000 to 10,000,000.
The projects are being prepared by the government of Barbados with the support of the Commonwealth Climate Finance Access Hub’s National Adviser deployed in the country, Winston Bennet.
Bennet helps ensure that projects proposed by the country meet the technical requirements of international funders that address climate change. He provides advice on seeking suitable donors and techniques to make successful funding applications.
Projects, currently in the pipeline, involve vital sectors of Barbadian economy and its national development priorities. Focus areas include renewable energy and climate resilience with an emphasis on water resource management, as well as civic participation in the climate change discourse.
With the Commonwealth’s support, two additional projects have already been submitted to Japan’s Grant Assistance for Grassroots Human Security Projects and UNDP Small Grants Program. These include climate-smart agricultural training sessions, one aimed at persons with developmental disabilities/mental health needs and the other focusing on at-risk youths.
The Climate Finance Access Hub General Manager Bilal Anwar appreciated the progress of the assistance programme in Barbados, saying: “The pipeline of projects shows that our programme is directed towards climatically sensitive sectors and with the funding becoming available, it helps the country in pursuing its sustainable development goals and objectives.”
The Climate Finance Access Hub, based in Mauritius, is a Commonwealth initiative to assist small and vulnerable member states by unlocking their potential for climate finance. The hub has positioned eight National Advisors in some of the most climatically vulnerable countries of the world in the Africa, Pacific and Caribbean regions.
