Secretary-General Scotland and President of Mauritius put a spotlight on need for greater Climate Finance

This week, the Commonwealth Secretary-General, the Rt Hon Patricia Scotland QC, met the President of the Republic of Mauritius, Mr Prithvirajsing Roopun and Prime Minister, Mr Pravind Kumar Jugnauth, whilst on an official visit to the country. 

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Secretary-General Scotland was in Mauritius to attend the Fifth Commonwealth Climate Finance Access Hub (CCFAH) Steering Committee meeting and took the opportunity to connect with several Ministers on important issues facing the Commonwealth family such as lack of access to climate finance, the cost-of-living crisis, youth and gender empowerment, renewing tourism post-pandemic and opportunities for economic recovery.

In a statement after the meeting with President Roopun, Secretary-General Scotland said:

“The world is facing a tsunami of challenges, climate change poses an existential threat to all of us but particularly to small and vulnerable countries like Mauritius. Sea levels are rising, coastlands are eroding and climate disasters are increasing. I am determined to share the best practice, support and knowledge that we can offer, not just from the Secretariat but from across our Commonwealth family. The Commonwealth Climate Finance Access Hub is the jewel in our crown and a flagship programme that supports member states to address climate change. I express my thanks to the Government of Mauritius for the vital role they are playing in hosting and supporting the Hub.”

The Commonwealth Climate Finance Access Hub (CCFAH) was established in 2015 to support Small States and Least Developed Countries that are most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and provides technical support and capacity building for member countries to enhance their access to international climate finance. The CCFAH is hosted and supported by the Government of Mauritius in Port Louis.

In response to Secretary-General Scotland's words of thanks to the Government of Mauritius for their active efforts in supporting CCFAH, President Roopun quoted Desmond Tutu and said: 

"Do your little bit of good where you are, it's those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world."

Secretary-General Scotland also spoke to both President Roopun and Prime Minister Jugnauth about the outcome of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM2022) hosted in Kigali in June and discussed the next steps as outlined in the Communiqué.

During the week, the Secretary-General met with the Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade, the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, the Minister for Finance & Economic Planning and Development, Minister for Planning, Environment & Climate Change, Minister for Education, Minister for Youth Empowerment & Sports and the Minister for Gender Equality, Child Development and Family Welfare.

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Media contact

• Rena Gashumba  Communications Adviser, Communications Division, Commonwealth Secretariat
• T: +44 7483 919 968  |  E-mail