Latin America & the Caribbean

Photo: Colombian Amazon. Credit: Indigenous organization OPIAC

Environmental Risks Behind Peace Accords in Colombia

By Fabíola Ortiz

CARTAGENA, Colombia (IDN) – The peace deal with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) – signed in November 2016 and ratified early December by the Colombian Congress – ending five decades of conflict now poses enormous threats for the environment, according to scientists and experts at the International Congress for Conservation Biology (ICCB 2017) held in Cartagena July 23-27.

The global forum gathered almost 2,000 scientists to address ecological challenges and present new research in conservation science and sustainable practices.

Colombia, a country with 40 million people, is one of the 17 world’s megadiverse nations concentrating 10 percent of biodiversity with 59 national parks and other protected sites covering an area of 23 million hectares.

: Fabiola Ortiz; THE WORLD; Latin America & the Caribbean; 31 July 2017

Photo: Alicia Bárcena, Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, who believes that the region “must equalise to grow and grow to equalise, fostering investment and gender equality”. Credit: ECLAC Public Information Unit

Caribbean Must Equalise to Grow and Grow to Equalise - ECLAC

By Desmond Brown

KINGSTON | NEW YORK (ACP-IDN) – If they are to meet commitments agreed under the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its sustainable development goals (SDGs), the countries of the Caribbean must focus on closing the structural gaps they still have – particularly with regard to gender equality and financial and fiscal sustainability (due to their high debt level) – and mitigating the effects of climate change, .

Alicia Bárcena, Executive Secretary for the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), spoke in this regard during the 'African-Caribbean Cross-Regional Exchange' at the High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) which ended July 19 at United Nations headquarters in New York.

: Desmond L. Brown; THE WORLD; Latin America & the Caribbean; 23 July 2017

Photo: St Kitts and Nevis' Prime Minister Dr Timothy Harris wants urgent action to reduce the economic burden on Caribbean countries posed by chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Credit: St Kitts and Nevis Government Information Service.

Caribbean Calls for Reducing Economic Burden of NCDs

By Desmond Brown

ST GEORGE’S, Grenada (ACP-IDN) – Chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs) make a significant contribution to mortality and morbidity in the Caribbean and continue to represent an economic burden for most of the region's countries.

Addressing the latest meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) held here from July 4-6, St Kitts and Nevis Prime Minister Dr Timothy Harris – who has responsibility for health in the organisation's Quasi-Cabinet – called for urgent action to reverse the situation.

Citing the findings of a 2016 study on the economic dimensions of NCDs in Trinidad and Tobago, Harris noted that an estimated 5 percent of that country’s gross domestic product (GDP) is being lost through the impact of preventable diabetes, hypertension and cancer.

: Phil Harris; THE WORLD; Latin America & the Caribbean; 15 July 2017

Photo: President Juan Manuel Santos; Special Representative of the Secretary-General Jean Arnault; and head of the FARC-EP Secretariat Timoleon Jimenez at a ceremony for the final laying down of weapons in Colombia. Photo: UN Mission in Colombia

Security Council Pledges Support to Colombia in Transition

By Santo D. Banerjee

NEW YORK (IDN) – The Security Council has greeted the handover of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia-People's Army’s (FARC-EP) remaining weapons to a United Nations-backed team as a “true example” of courage and commitment to peace, and pledged to support Colombia as it transitions out of its five-decades-long civil conflict.

Briefing the Council on those recent developments, Jean Arnault, Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Mission in Colombia, said on June 30 that, with the June 27 handover of its remaining weapons, the FARC‑EP had officially met its obligations under the May 29 road map.

: Santo D. Banerjee; SUSTAINABILITY; Peace & Justice; 01 July 2017

Photo: Deputy Premier of the British Virgin Island, Dr. Kedrick Pickering (left), with President of the UN General Assembly, Peter Thomson (centre), and Director of the BVI London Office, Benito Wheatley (right). Credit: BVI London Office

British Virgin Islands Leads International Advocacy for Islands

By Desmond Brown

TORTOLA, British Virgin Islands (IDN) – On the heels of the UN Ocean Conference held in New York between June 5 and 9, the British Virgin Islands (BVI) – a tiny British overseas territory – is highlighting the common challenges faced by islands as it calls on international partners to support the efforts of islands to address their unique challenges.

As co-Chair of the Global Islands Partnership (GLISPA), the British Virgin Islands has been at the forefront of United Nations efforts to raise awareness about the challenges faced by islands.

“I take great pride as a GLISPA leader in lending my voice to the cause of islands and the sustainability of the ocean in which islands must exist,” Deputy Premier and Minister for Natural Resources & Labour Dr. Kedrick Pickering told IDN.

: Phil Harris; UN INSIDER; 23 June 2017

To kick-start the ambitious next phase of Hub and Spokes, an aid for trade initiative, 40 of the programme’s main stakeholders including 16 trade advisers met in Bridgetown, Barbados, between May 22 and 23, 2017. Credit: Desmond Brown

Hubs and Spokes Initiative for Promoting ACP Trade Extended

By Desmond Brown

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados (ACP-IDN) – The Hubs and Spokes Programme, an innovative trade initiative for expanding opportunities for business, employment and prosperity in African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries, is to be extended until February 2019.

Through the Programme, which is a joint initiative of the European Union (EU), ACP Group Secretariat, Commonwealth Secretariat and Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie (OIF), trade advisers are placed in government ministries and regional organisations to provide support and build local capacity to develop trade policies.

: Phil Harris; THE WORLD; Latin America & the Caribbean; 18 June 2017

Across Latin America, thousands of girls under the age of 15 suffer from sexual violence and are forced to become mothers against their wishes. Credit: YouTube

Where Forced Child Pregnancy is Not Fiction

By Phil Harris

ROME (IDN) - She is 10-years-old when she is raped by her mother’s companion and becomes pregnant. Extremely ill, undernourished and underweight during her pregnancy, her mother requests an abortion and although the law permits termination of a pregnancy if authorities deem the carrier’s health is in danger, the request is denied by the State.

The girl’s mother is arrested and temporarily imprisoned for failing in her duty of care to her daughter, despite having previously reported the abuse to the police, who did not act.

Meanwhile, the State sends the girl to an institution against her wishes, where she is made to stay until the birth of her child. She is not allowed any visitors, apart from an aunt who is allowed to come once a week for two hours.

: Phil Harris; THE WORLD; Latin America & the Caribbean; 09 June 2017

Photo: Participants at the 2017 Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction conference held in Cancun, Mexico, from May 22 to 26. Credit: Ek Soria

Disaster Risk Reduction Must Take Account of People’s Lives

This is the second of two reports from the 2017 Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction conference held in Cancun, Mexico, from May 22 to 26.

By Ek Soria

MEXICO CITY (IDN) – Over the last century, population growth and unplanned urbanisation, overexploitation of natural resources and the effects of climate change have dramatically increased the economic, social and cultural costs of disasters.

A disaster should be understood as a correlation between natural phenomena such as earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanic eruption or phenomena caused by industry and people, such as deforestation, environmental pollution, and economic, social and cultural and physical conditions in vulnerable communities, including poor health, poorly constructed homes, unstable soils, poor location of dwellings through ignorance or territorial displacement caused by extractive projects, apathy and indifference, and lack of organisation and popular participation.

: Phil Harris; UN INSIDER; 31 May 2017

Caribbean policy makers get practical options for establishing and enhancing their national institutional framework for implementation of the SDGs

ECLAC Promotes Caribbean Implementation of SDGs

By Desmond Brown

PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad (ACP-IDN) – While there have been several activities at sub-regional level aimed at stimulating Caribbean countries to position themselves for successfully implementing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the pace of implementation has remained slow.

Specifically, the lack of national institutional frameworks for SDG implementation in most Caribbean countries constitutes a major obstacle to effective implementation of the goals.

The SDGs are the cornerstone of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which became effective on January 1, 2016, and is supposed to shape sustainable development efforts globally.

: Phil Harris; UN INSIDER; 24 May 2017

Photo: The CAITISA report being presented to the President. Credit: CAITISA.

Ecuador Annuls 16 Investment Treaties To Duck Costly Disputes

By Daniel Uribe*

GENEVA (IDN | SOUTHNEWS) - Ecuador has unilaterally withdrawn from its remaining 16 bilateral investment treaties (BITs). With this decision, Ecuador has concluded the termination of 26 BITs signed by the country since 1968.

The 16 BITS which Ecuador is withdrawing from had been signed with the Netherlands, Germany, Great Britain, France, Spain, Italy, Sweden, Switzerland, Canada, the United States, China, Argentina, Bolivia, Peru, Venezuela, and Chile.

The Ecuadorian move is part of similar measures taken in recent years by a growing number of developing countries to withdraw from their bilateral investment treaties. These include South Africa, Bolivia, Indonesia and India.