Abinader asks the UN to accelerate aid to stop the sargassum.
Dominican President Luis Abinader highlighted in New York, before the United Nations General Assembly, that, at the Dominican Republic’s initiative, the first global resolution on Sargassum was adopted, and called for faster delivery of climate financing to Caribbean countries.
Abinader explained that Sargassum, which affects the region’s coasts every year and impacts tourism, has gone from being considered a regional problem to being recognized as a global challenge. “At the initiative of the Dominican Republic, the UN Environment Assembly adopted the first global resolution on Sargassum, a regional problem recognized as a global challenge,” he stated.
Following this recognition, Abinader emphasized the need for vulnerable countries to have timely access to resources to address the effects of climate change. “That is why we will not tire of demanding that climate finance arrive as quickly as storms reach the Caribbean,” he stated.
In that context, he welcomed the Declaration on Sea Level Rise and emphasized the importance of maintaining the stability of maritime zones in the face of climate change impacts. The document also includes Sargassum seaweed among the challenges requiring international attention.
The president stated that addressing the effects of climate change requires strengthening international cooperation and facilitating access to resources for countries that, despite having less capacity to respond, directly face phenomena that threaten their coasts, economies, and communities.
A few days ago, it was learned that the Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources (Semarnat), Alicia Bárcena Ibarra, launched the call and official registration for the 4th EU-Caribbean Global Gateway Conference on Sargassum, which will take place from October 1 to 2 at the Emporio Hotel, in the Hotel Zone of Cancun.
According to the invitation, the objective is “to move from pilot projects towards a competitive regional Sargassum value chain at an industrial scale. The program will address practical experience and market opportunities, as well as the financing conditions, public policies and partnerships needed to consolidate a regional industry.”
During the meeting, under the slogan “Towards a Sargassum value chain in the Caribbean”, pilot projects and the results of the Expressions of Interest from Mexico, Grenada, and the Dominican Republic will be presented, along with investment opportunities within the framework of the Global Gateway program.
In addition to the projects, technologies and solutions related to the sustainable use of Sargassum will be presented. The call for proposals is issued jointly by the Delegation of the European Union in Mexico, the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (Semarnat), the Ministry of Science, Humanities, Technology and Innovation (Secihti), and the Government of Quintana Roo, in coordination with the governments of Grenada and the Dominican Republic, as well as with the Member States of the European Union.
