Colleagues, we are at an inflection point in our planet’s history.
As we mark the 10th anniversary of the Paris Agreement, we have a choice. Advance ambitious climate action plans for the sake of people and our planet, or retreat – sacrificing lives, livelihoods, cultures, and biodiversity.
Six days ago, on leaving my country, we were being threatened by a hurricane called Gabrielle. Thankfully, we were spared.
As I stand here, at this very moment, there are two systems that are threatening my country – AL93 and AL94. Each of them have been predicted to be impacting my islands.
The frequency and intensity of hurricanes is real. It’s no hoax. It is not a con job.
The 1.5 degree Paris Temperature goal is on life support, and our actions ahead of COP30 and beyond will give it the opportunity to either survive, or we accept that we have come to the end of a single call for the hope of humanity.
It is clear that some of the most ambitious, nationally determined contributions in the world are from developing countries – particularly small island developing states, and notably in the Caribbean region.
And while small island developing states emit less than 0.01% of greenhouse gases, the ambitious climate action goals we set out in our NDCs are being proposed, not only to curb emissions, but to build in adaptation, climate resilience, and sustainable development co-benefits.
However, the means of implementing our NDCs are largely conditionally based on the availability of financial resources, largely from international partners.
And despite limited finances, we in The Bahamas have taken the approach to be solution-oriented in the fight against climate change.
In our pre-2030 NDCs, The Bahamas established a goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 30% by 2030. This goal is being driven by increasing the provision of renewable energy sources by 30%, and addressing technological advancements in the transportation sector by setting a target of electric vehicles to represent 35% and hybrid vehicles representing 15% of vehicle sales by the year 2030.
Our preliminary data has shown that my government’s efforts via our New Energy Era policy – which focuses on energy efficiency, upgrades, utility scale, solar power in our nation’s capital, new hybrid grids in our family of islands, and deployment of modern technology – will result in our country exceeding our 2030 renewable energy goal by 2%, with 32% renewable energy penetration across our archipelago.
The Bahamas is keen to accelerate its new trajectory in the energy and transportation sectors through robust and ambitious measures for NDC 3.0.
We have taken steps to support these advancements with policy and legislative measures that clearly outline the need for sustainable development, resilient infrastructure, and provision of government-driven incentives to support private sector investments.
And while these efforts are notable, our updated 2022 NDC has shown an imbalance in climate finance inflows into The Bahamas. Nearly $155 million was received between 2010 and 2020, with $140 million earmarked for mitigation actions, and $15 million for adaptation.
We have shown a willingness to document our priorities, outline our plans, secure partnerships, and make legislative and policy changes, but adaptation has to be better supported by international partners, and it must be balanced.
We are a small country, but we punch above our weight because we know that protecting our climate will ensure a future for our islands and our people.
We not only have a moral duty, but a legal imperative to address climate action as a global community.
The Bahamas remain committed to the Paris Agreement, to advancing ambitious climate action plans, and submitting our NDC 3.0 ahead of COP 30 in Brazil. And we call on other parties to do the same.
As I’ve said before, the time for business as usual is over. The time for bold, transformative action is now.
So let us seize this moment together to save our planet and our humanity.
Thank you.