FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
St. Vincent and the Grenadines
First National Communication
(BRIDGETOWN, BARBADOS) Information is Power! The Government of St.
Vincent and the Grenadines will now be better armed to address the issue
of global climate change. The Government has just completed a Draft
National Communication on Climate Change as part of the country=92s
commitment under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate
Change (UNFCCC). The report was prepared by the National Environmental
Advisory Board and the Ministry of Health and the Environment. The draft
will be launched as part of a national stakeholder meeting, which will
take place in St. Vincent on March 27th, 2000. The Final Report will be
submitted to the UNFCCC Secretariat in May of this year.
This small island state is one of 181 signatories to the UNFCCC, that is
required to update periodically a National Communication on Climate
Change. Although St. Vincent and the Grenadines, as a small country,
contributes very little to global emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs)
that cause global warming, it is very vulnerable. In fact, St. Vincent,
together with the rest of the Caribbean countries, is among the most
vulnerable countries in world to the impacts of global climate change,
particularly sea-level rise and extreme weather events.
The information base and the policy framework presented in the report
will have short-and long-term benefits for the country, both in terms of
environmental and economic sustainability. Furthermore, since St.
Vincent and the Grenadines if the first Caribbean country to prepare its
report, other Caribbean nations can also use this National Communication
as a reference in completing their own.
The report also contains an inventory of greenhouse gases as well as a
vulnerability assessment for the country and recommends policy response
mechanisms for addressing climate change adaptation and mitigation.
The development of the Report has been facilitated through the Global
Environment Facility-funded Caribbean Planning for Adaptation to Climate
Change (CPACC) Project based in Barbados. The CPACC Project, implemented
since 1997, aims to "support Caribbean countries in preparing to cope
with the adverse effects of Global Climate Change, particularly
sea-level rise and marine areas through vulnerability assessment,
adaptation, planning and capacity-building linked to adaptation
planning". The project is a collaborative effort of the Global
Environment Facility, the World Bank, the Organisation of American
States, the Caribbean Community and the University of the West Indies
Center for Environment and Development.
For further information, contact the CPACC/RPIU at (246) 417-4580/3 or
Dr. Reynold Murray, Environmental Coordinator for St. Vincent and the
Grenadines, Ministry of Health and Environment at (784) 485-6992.
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