GREAT BAY--Member of Parliament Francisco Lacroes, First Vice President of the Latin American and Caribbean Parliament’s Special Commission on the Caribbean, was among the officials leading the Commission’s first ordinary meeting in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, where parliamentarians addressed climate change, environmental protection, food security, development financing and regional integration.
Lacroes forms part of the new leadership of the Commission together with President Senator Otami S.S. Thomasia of Aruba, Second Vice President Deputy Jorge Cavoli of the Dominican Republic and Secretary Senator Ramón Yung of Curaçao.
The two-day meeting brought together parliamentarians from across Latin America and the Caribbean to examine challenges that have a direct impact on small island states and Caribbean territories, while looking at ways national legislatures can work more closely together.
Discussions focused heavily on climate resilience, adaptation and mitigation, protection of marine and coastal ecosystems, food security, the transition to cleaner energy and stronger regional legislation supporting sustainable development.
The Commission also reviewed progress on the Parliamentary Charter for Climate Action and discussed ways parliaments can play a greater role in meeting national and international climate commitments.
The environmental focus is consistent with issues Lacroes has raised in St. Maarten. Among many other environmental issues, he has additionally advocated for cleaner energy alternatives for St. Maarten, including the possible transition to liquefied natural gas, arguing that energy policy should take environmental impact, affordability and energy security into account.
Those local concerns formed part of a much wider Caribbean discussion in Santo Domingo, where delegates examined the particular difficulties small islands face in responding to climate change and environmental degradation with limited financial and technical resources.
Green financing was therefore another important subject on the agenda. Parliamentarians discussed mechanisms through which Caribbean countries could improve access to international climate and environmental financing. Cooperation with the United Nations Environment Programme and the Green Climate Fund was also addressed.
The Green Climate Fund recently established a regional office for Latin America and the Caribbean in Panama City. Participants also examined ways of strengthening the capacity of national parliaments to develop legislation and contribute more directly to policies connected to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
Regional integration and legal harmonization were another major part of the discussions. The Commission considered ways of increasing participation by English-speaking Caribbean parliaments, including through closer cooperation with the Caribbean Community, CARICOM.
Members agreed that challenges such as climate change, environmental protection, food security and sustainable development increasingly require coordinated regional responses rather than action by individual countries alone.
The Commission pledged to continue strengthening cooperation among Caribbean and Latin American parliaments, develop legislative approaches suited to the region and ensure that the particular challenges facing small island states remain part of the wider regional agenda.
