A credit line from the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) for economic development and resilience in the Caribbean basin

Island Developing States (SIDS), is their vulnerability to the effects of climate change, with a high incidence of natural disasters due to their geography (tropical climate, topography), size and insular nature. In 2018, the installed renewable energy capacity accounted for only 11% of the total installed capacity for countries in the Caribbean, reflecting the region’s heavy dependence on fossil fuels. 

At the same time, there is a need to facilitate the development of infrastructure projects in the region by increasing the capacities of national governments to prepare and implement projects through support in defining sectoral strategies and appropriate institutional frameworks. 

The Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) is a multilateral financial institution that is active in 18 countries in the region. It serves as a bridge between the region and institutions such as the IDB, World Bank, or the EIB, which only intervene in certain regions, such as OECS countries, through concessional credit lines allocated to the CDB. The bank also receives grant resources from partner institutions (DFID, the Canadian International Development Agency), countries and regions (European Union, United States, Sweden). 

This line of credit to the CDB for €33 million is aimed at developing infrastructure, in accordance with regional cooperation mandates, in the energy, tourism, transport, water and sanitation sectors, and to help the region adapt to climate risks. A second component of the project aims to increase the implementation capacities of national agencies for initiating and supervising new projects. More specifically, the project will seek to resolve challenges in maintaining a strong pipeline of quality projects in borrowing member countries of the CDB. 

The project’s general goal is to contribute to the economic development of the Caribbean region and improve the resilience of national economies. The technical assistance activities financed by the European contribution will support national authorities in structuring and implementing new projects. The resulting investment will have a significant impact on the general competitiveness of local economies.