For Immediate Release
Bahamas to Access $100M European Union-funded Programme to Support Climate Resilience
BRUSSELS, Belgium (March 30, 2021) – The Bahamas, represented by Ambassador, H.E. Maria O’Brien, Extraordinaire and Plenipotentiary of The Bahamas to the Kingdom of Belgium and Head of Mission to the European Union, will have access to the Climate Services and Related Applications Programme (ClimSA) initiative launched by the Organization of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS) on 30 March 2021. The approximately $100 million (EUR 85 million) intra-ACP Programme is funded by the European Union (EU) under the 11th European Development Fund (EDF). ClimSA is the EU’s climate-based science initiative to help ACP countries achieve climate neutrality by 2050 as a component of the Paris Agreement and achieve United Nations sustainable development goals by 2030.
The ClimSA programme will strengthen the production, availability, delivery, and application of science-based information to improve the quality and quantity of regional climate prediction and services offered by ACP Regional Climate Centers and National Hydrometeorological Organizations. ClimSA aims to provide members of the OACPS with innovative and collaborative solutions to manage climate-related risks, support the sustainable development within ACP regions and support regional organisations within the OACPS with accurate and accessible data to build climate resilience. Financial support is expected to be divided equitably by the six regions in the OACPS, with extra attention to small island developing states such as The Bahamas.
The Bahamas expects to gain socio-economic benefits in five climate-sensitive areas: agriculture and food security, health, water, disaster risk reduction, and energy. According to Ambassador O’Brien, the programme is a critical part of building the country’s ability to reduce the impact of the climate crisis and increasingly powerful hurricanes. Access to the programme’s climate services and related application programmes will be via the region’s key stakeholder, the Caribbean Meteorological Organization (CMO). For The Bahamas, the CMO will facilitate structured interactions between researchers and climate services providers, guarantee and secure the provision of climate services at the regional and national level, provide accessible climate information, support the preservation of ecological diversity, and build resilience while strengthening our capacity at all levels of decision making.
OACPS Secretary-General H.E. Gorges Rebelo Pinto Chikoti, emphasised the importance of collaborative efforts to move towards climate resilience and address the vulnerabilities within Member States. He stated, “Improving climate change productivity can be the catalyst that lifts millions of our population out of poverty as a result of the shocks of climate change on their livelihoods.”