Antigua and Barbuda Delegation Concludes Regional Climate Finance Workshop in Barbados
01 June 2026
A four-member delegation from the Government of Antigua and Barbuda has successfully concluded participation in the two-day workshop “Prosperity on Our Terms: A Caribbean Agenda for Climate Finance Access and Addressing Loss and Damage,” held 28-29 May 2026 at the Hilton Barbados Resort, Bridgetown, Barbados.
Convened by the Climate Vulnerable Forum and the Vulnerable Twenty Group (CVF-V20) under the presidency of Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley of Barbados, the workshop brought together representatives from nine Caribbean V20 member states and the broader CARICOM community to advance the region’s access to climate and disaster risk finance.
The Antigua and Barbuda delegation comprised Gita Nicholas and Arry Simon of the Department of Environment and Carlon Knight and Sheneé Cornelius of the Ministry of Finance, Corporate Governance and Public-Private Partnerships.
Over two days, the delegation engaged substantive technical sessions covering the principal climate finance mechanisms under active development within the CVF-V20. Session one provided a comprehensive overview of the post-2025 climate finance landscape and the CVF-V20 Climate Prosperity Agenda, contextualising the structural financing challenges facing Small Island Developing States.
Subsequent sessions offered a detailed walk-through of the Vulnerability to Viability (V2V) Compact, a four-pillar structural financing initiative designed to address the longer-term economic vulnerabilities of climate exposed nations, and the CVF-V20 Lifeline Fund, presented by former Central Bank Governor of Trinidad and Tobago Jwala Rambarran, which aims to provide rapid, trigger-based liquidity support to member countries immediately following a major climate event.
The delegation also participated in a dedicated session on Climate and Disaster Risk Finance and Insurance (CDRFI), led by Isaac Anthony, Chief Executive Officer of the Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility (CCRIF SPC), which examined coverage trends, basis risk, and insurance solutions for micro and small enterprises.
Sessions on Loss and Damage finance, including an introduction to the Global Shield against Climate Risks and the Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage, and on mobilising private capital through blended finance and carbon market access completed the technical programme.
The workshop also covered the establishment of a Regional Adaptation Training Hub for the Caribbean, a planned initiative forming part of the USD $5.3 million GEF-UNIDO-V20 Adaptation Support Program, which will improve Caribbean access to affordable climate adaptation technologies and services. On the afternoon of 29 May, the delegation participated in a field visit to coastal and fisheries sites across Barbados under the Roofs to Reefs Programme. Stops included the Barbados Fisheries Division in Bridgetown, Paynes Bay and Folkstone marine reserve in St. James, and the fishing village of Six Men’s in Saint Peter.
The visit offered direct exposure to community-based fisheries management, coastal biodiversity conservation, and marine ecosystem protection, all areas of direct relevance to Antigua and Barbuda’s own coastal and blue economy priorities.
The delegation departed with a clearer understanding of the financing instruments and multilateral mechanisms available to Antigua and Barbuda as the country continues to strengthen its climate resilience architecture. Antigua and Barbuda was one of nine Caribbean nations represented at the workshop, reinforcing the region’s collective engagement with the global climate finance agenda.
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