RC Trebucq's Welcome Remarks at the Training of Trainers Workshop on SDG Achievement in Dominica

Representatives of the Government, Development Partners,

Distinguished Guests,

Colleagues and Friends

A special good morning to all of you.

It’s my pleasure to welcome you to this Training of Trainers Workshop for sustainable recovery and resilience towards achieving the SDGs in the Commonwealth of Dominica.

First, I wish to thank the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (ECOSOC), United Nations Office for Sustainable Development (UNOSD) and United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) for forming such an important partnership with the Dominican government. At a time of great disruption and uncertainty, this workshop reminds us of the value of multilateralism, the importance of working together to prioritize the special and differential needs of the most vulnerable countries and ensures that the rights of those most at risk are provided for and protected.

I wish to commend Dominica for strategically dedicating the resources of the Ministry of Planning, Economic Development, Climate Resilience, Sustainable Development and Renewable Energy to the implementation of the SDGs.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Over the last decade, Dominica has been severely impacted by two major climate disasters, the COVID-19 pandemic, and now the triple crisis of food, energy and finance, worsened by the ongoing conflict between Russia and the Ukraine.

Tropical Storm Erika resulted in losses of up to 90% of GDP in 2015, while Hurricane Maria in 2017 saw losses of up to 225% of GDP - enormous amounts for any country, far less an already vulnerable small island state like Dominica. SIDS like Dominica are more disproportionately affected by these intense climate shocks, which calls for a whole of society approach to engaging these issues.

As Dominica made efforts to get back on its feet and build back better, COVID-19 made landfall, and set the nation back even further back by disrupting recovery efforts. Livelihoods were wiped out, further exposing the society’s most vulnerable, as in 2020, GDP growth was estimated to have contracted by 11%.

Just last month, up to 55% of Dominicans reported some form of food insecurity according to the recently published Caribbean Food Security & Livelihoods Survey, conducted by CARICOM and WFP. The triple crisis of fuel, food and finance presents its challenges, especially to the poor.

Distinguished Guests,                                                                               

I’ve highlighted these worrying trends not only to tell the story of Dominica’s resilience in the face of climate disaster and high vulnerability, but to highlight the difficulty at both the country and household levels.

Today’s workshop has been designed to tackle this same problem. It builds on the understanding of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Dominica, and promises to strengthen mitigation against shocks, and to keep building back better towards achieving the 2030 Agenda.

Government Representatives, and Development Partners,

Of particular importance will be the work to support Dominica’s vision to be the World’s First Climate Resilient Country, a process that many other Small Island States (and the wider global community), will be watching very closely. In the upcoming presentations and discussions, you will learn more about the programme through practical examples and tested methodologies from the experts. I believe that this workshop is the beginning of many more that will be replicated across the region to improve resilience in the future.

Just recently, the Hon. Dr. Vince Henderson reported Dominica’s progress towards the SDGs in Dominica’s 1st Voluntary National Review at the  High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) in July. Dominica has already been proactive in developing and integrating national level policies in line with the SDGs, through the Climate Resilience and Recovery Plan (CRRP) and the National Resilience Development Strategy 2030. Successful integration and implementation of these at the local level depends on all of us, especially you.

So, on behalf of the United Nations team for Barbados and Eastern Caribbean, thank you to the Government of Dominica, the UN agencies and departments and to you, the participants for your commitment during this workshop. I wish you every success.  

Thank you!