Basseterre, Saint Kitts & Nevis - A two-day consultative process with respect to land management in the context of Climate Change Adaptation in Saint Kitts and Nevis concludes today. The consultation, which is being replicated across the Member States of the OECS, informs an OECS Gap Analysis of the institutional, technical, and human capacity constraints to be addressed under the EU funded Global Climate Change Alliance (GCCA) Project on Climate Change Adaptation (CCA) and Sustainable Land Management (SLM) Project. The project is being spearheaded by the Organisation of East Caribbean States.
The two-day programme of consultations and site visits saw the spirited participation of a broad stakeholder group representing public service agencies and NGOs across the Federation. These included the Department of Physical Planning & Environment, Ministry of Agriculture, the Land Registry, Ministry of Economic Affairs and Public Sector Investment Planning, NEMA, Department of Lands and Surveys, Water Services Department, National Housing Corporation, The Parks and Beaches Commission, The Nevis Historic Conservation Authority and the Ministry of Sustainable Development.
Leading the consultations is a technical team from the University of the West Indies Engineering Institute and the Social and Sustainable Development Unit of the Organisation of East Caribbean States (OECS) Commission. On the ground mobilization was coordinated by the national focal point in Saint Kitts, Ms. June Hughes, Senior Environmental Officer, at Ministry of Sustainable Development
The Global Climate Change Alliance (GCCA) Project on Climate Change Adaptation (CCA) and Sustainable Land Management (SLM) Project is intended to support the efforts of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) to help Member States enhance their resilience to the impacts of climate change. The GCCA project will define and implement sustainable land management strategies and practices for each of the independent and overseas territories within the OECS, and will recommend institutional strengthening mechanisms for the OECS Secretariat to coordinate and drive the process. The project objectives will be implemented through the identification and implementation of effective and sustainable land management frameworks and practices and the design and delivery of physical adaptation pilot projects (PAPs).
Eleanor Jones, who leads the UWI technical team for the Saint Kitts/Nevis consultations emphasized the critical importance of a harmonised approach to land administration and a proactive stance to dealing with the effects of Climate Change.
“We cannot do anything about the events related to Climate Change that will affect us, but we can do something about how our people respond. As such, our work is to contribute to the process of improving the coping capacity of the region, by providing technical expertise to the OECS Commission to help its member states in that regard”.
As part of yesterday’s consultation, stakeholder groups had an opportunity to field potential Pilot Adaptation Projects (PAPs) for possible funding. With guidance from the technical team, stakeholders received an orientation in the methodology for project proposal formulation reflecting critical considerations such as sustainable livelihoods, preservation of life, environmental management and disaster mitigation.
Implementation of the GCCA project will span a four year period. The Gap Analysis falls within phase one, and is charged to identify the needs of Member States relative to Sustainable Land Management and Climate Change Adaptation. By the end of the project it is anticipated that projects formulated in response to the gap analysis and pilot interventions will have been fully implemented.
*************************
DISCLAIMER
This article was posted in its entirety as received by SKNVibes.com. This media house does not correct any spelling or grammatical error within press releases and commentaries. The views expressed therein are not necessarily those of SKNVibes.com, its sponsors or advertisers
