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Caribbean Development Bank, CDB, sounded the alarm on Tuesday on the need for climate-resilient infrastructure across the region, citing the increasing frequency and severity of extreme weather events.
“We cannot continue to rebuild our infrastructure after every hurricane season,” said CDB President Daniel Best, while speaking at the Africaribbean Trade and Investment Forum 2025 held in Grenada.
“It is not a nice-to-have for the Caribbean. This is our survival,” he said.
Best’s remarks come against the backdrop of a staggering climate reality: In 2017 alone, the region experienced four one-in-a-hundred-year events within just six weeks. Seven of the world’s most vulnerable countries to climate change are located in the Caribbean, he said.
It underscores the region’s exposure to hurricanes, flooding and rising sea levels.
To address these threats, the CDB is ramping up its climate finance initiatives. Between 2017 and 2023, the bank invested some US$347.4 million in climate-related projects, allocating 16 per cent of its development financing to climate action. These investments span sectors such as agriculture, water, energy, and transportation, with a focus on integrating disaster risk management and climate adaptation into national development planning.
Best indicated that the CDB board approved a new facility to offer “cover” to commercial banks to further derisk small and medium enterprise to conduct trade in the region. Best said the CDB was keen on “developing innovative financing solutions for our private sector actors”.
The CDB developed a US$250 million pipeline for the Green Climate Fund to support resilient infrastructure. It also signed a US$700 million facility for infrastructure development across the region.
“Access to affordable financing at pace is critical,” Best emphasised, noting that delays in funding can leave countries vulnerable and unprepared.
CDB’s strategy includes partnerships with international institutions, such as the Central American Bank for Economic Integration, the Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean, and the European Investment Bank.
Despite increased climate finance efforts, Best emphasized that current levels remain far from sufficient. The CDB estimates that small island economies globally require US$212 billion annually in development financing through 2030. Yet, only about one-quarter of that is being met.
“Our people cannot survive if we breach the 1.5-degree threshold,” Best warned, alluding to the tipping point of climate action. “The game changes entirely, globally, but especially for small island states. We do not have a Plan B. We have to survive this,” he said.
Meanwhile, CDB announced on Thursday that Barbados, Belize and Jamaica will benefit from US$26.7 million in funding from the Green Climate Fund to support energy transformation programmes.
Its intended to accelerate the adoption of distributed renewable energy, energy efficiency, and other clean energy technologies.
It is the first CDB programme approved by the Green Climate Fund “and signals a joint commitment to expand access to sustainable, affordable, and resilient renewable energy, particularly as the Caribbean faces intensifying climate risks including storms, floods, and rising temperatures,” the Barbados-based development bank said in a press release.
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