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A resolution adopted by the Organization of American States on Friday noted that previous hurricanes have led to higher insurance premiums, job losses and poverty. The resolution called for the immediate activation of a loss and damage fund agreed at a previous United Nations climate change conference to help vulnerable countries rebuild and prepare for future storms.
The resolution also calls on financial and development institutions to provide funds to small countries affected by the disaster on preferential terms, “without attaching any onerous conditions,” and to “cancel, postpone or reschedule debt repayments.”
OAS Secretary-General Luis Almagro noted that insufficient funds were flowing to islands affected by Hurricane Beryl, and UN and Caribbean leaders requested at least $9 million in aid.
He warned that the severity of natural disasters was increasing and Beryl was proof of that.
“This is yet another sign that the climate crisis is getting worse,” he said.
Bahamas representative Chet Nemour criticized the world’s major greenhouse gas emitters for “silence and non-commitment” about their responsibilities, noting that the Caribbean is one of the regions most affected by climate change and one of the regions that has contributed least to it.
“Countries like mine have to deal with it alone,” he said, noting that Hurricane Dorian battered the Bahamas for two days as a Category 5 hurricane in 2019. “Lives are at stake.”
Officials spoke of the need to invest in early warning systems and resilient infrastructure, noting that the Atlantic hurricane season had just begun.
Lynn Young, a representative from Belize, said governments must also prioritize discussions on climate finance.
“Hurricane Beryl highlights a pressing reality. The crisis is here,” he said.
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