Barbados will be able to tap into a €100 million (BDS$218.8 million) loan from the European Investment Bank (EIB) for projects that secure clean water supply, improve collection and treatment of wastewater and solid waste, and upgrade flood prevention across the region.
The island is one of 14 Caribbean countries that will benefit from the joint initiative announced by the EIB and Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) on Thursday. The EIB loan will boost CDB support for the identified projects.
Along with Barbados, Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, St Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago will be eligible for the EIB-supported investments.
The investments will help countries adapt to more frequent periods of drought or intense rain caused by climate change and contribute to environmental sustainability through reduced ocean pollution.
Acting CDB President Isaac Solomon said this initiative – the two banks’ latest mutually beneficial collaboration – provides access to additional concessional resources to the 14 states, representing almost three-quarters of CDB’s borrowing member countries.
“More importantly, those countries represent over 19 million people. Resources such as these are therefore deeply appreciated, as adequate water and sanitation services, and the prevention of water-related disasters, are key to achieving and maintaining development in our region,” he said.
EIB Vice President Ambroise Fayolle, speaking from Washington DC, acknowledged that investing in sustainable water management is vital for the Caribbean small island developing states being impacted by extreme weather and climate change.
“The vulnerability of small island states on the frontline of climate change is at the centre of discussions here in Washington. Working together, we can achieve a far greater impact in tackling these challenges than working alone. Partnerships like the European Investment Bank’s longstanding relationship with the Caribbean Development Bank mean that we can contribute to projects and initiatives such as the one we have signed today, that support communities and our precious ocean ecosystems as well,” he said.
Jutta Urpilainen, European Commissioner for International Partnerships said that the European Union is committed to supporting its Caribbean partners in the face of climate change and extreme weather through the Global Gateway investment strategy.
“Resilient infrastructure is at the heart of this,” she said as he noted that Caribbean states emit a fraction of the global greenhouse gases, yet are facing the most devastating effects of climate change.
The EIB and the CDB have successfully worked together to support projects benefitting the Caribbean region since the EIB’s first loan to the CDB in 1978.
(PR/BT)
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