Caribbean leaders are calling on Canada to step up efforts to reform global financial institutions so small states can fight climate change.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met with a dozen Caribbean leaders in Ottawa on Wednesday, as part of a two-day summit aimed at forging closer ties with Canada.
The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) includes 15 countries and five overseas territories, stretching from the Bahamas to Trinidad and Tobago — but not Cuba.
CARICOM heads of government began the day Wednesday with a morning meeting focused on tackling climate change, green growth and biodiversity.
This meeting was followed by a discussion on the reform of lending institutions such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
In recent years, Caribbean states have described a dilemma they now find themselves in: middle-income countries that do not qualify for the same funding as parts of sub-Saharan Africa. This leaves them economically devastated by large hurricanes, yet unable to afford the infrastructure needed to withstand such storms.
“We go to these meetings and we can’t get anything done [à cause] of the absence of political will, lamented the Prime Minister of Barbados, Mia Mottley on Wednesday. Canada has the potential to not only be a leader in this area, but also to begin to be able to help us tell the truth to decision-makers. »
Mme Mottley is among country leaders who have proposed new financing mechanisms, such as a “vulnerability matrix” that takes into account the economic capacity of small countries as well as their exposure to extreme weather events.
Canada has raised the need for such reform at several global forums, including during Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly’s speech last year at the United Nations General Assembly.
Prime Minister Mottley stressed on Wednesday that “a few countries are still blocking progress” towards reform, without naming them. “We are literally preventing countries from reacting adequately to maintaining the lives of populations,” she lamented.
Mr. Trudeau and Mr.me Mottley co-chairs the Sustainable Development Goals Advocates Group, a United Nations committee. As such, they have focused on trying to help small states struggling to recover economically from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic while also facing natural disasters.
Resolving the crisis in Haiti
The leaders were also due to discuss the political and humanitarian crisis in Haiti on Wednesday, in the hope of putting an end to the violence by criminal gangs, which threatens to spread in the region.
These meetings also mark the first visit to Canada by Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry since August 2021, when he assumed office without having been elected, following the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse on July 7.
Mr. Trudeau pressures Ariel Henry to work with his political opponents. His office released a statement that spoke of the urgent need for a power-sharing agreement between Prime Minister Henry and opposition groups.
The UN Security Council earlier this month approved a multinational military intervention in Haiti, led by Kenya, to root out criminal gangs that have committed violence and blocked access to essential goods.
Mr. Trudeau’s office said Wednesday’s session aimed to ensure the stability of Haiti at the end of this mission, by asking other Caribbean states to help, with Canada, the country to establish a maintaining effective order and fighting corruption.
The Ottawa summit comes as Canada seeks votes for its candidacy for the UN Human Rights Council.
At the opening of the summit, Mr. Trudeau said Canada views CARICOM countries as partners in a turbulent world.
“It is now clearer than ever that economic policy is security policy, climate policy and social policy – everything is interconnected,” he argued.
“We are going through a serious period with serious consequences. As strategic partners, as friends, we must work together if we want to protect our population, if we want to meet the expectations of our citizens. »
Leaders are scheduled to participate in a roundtable discussion on trade and investment on Thursday morning, before a closing press conference in the afternoon.