T&T gets US$3.5million to Mitigate Land Degradation

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Caption: Participants and facilitators of a BioResilience workshop on February 25 held at the University of the West Indies’ St Augustine Campus. Photo: Courtesy the Ministry of Planning, Economic Affairs and Development

By Alicia Chamely

TRINIDAD and Tobago is set to receive US$3.5million from the Global Environmental Facility (GEF) over the next four years to mitigate land degradation, through the project ‘Nature based solutions for resilient landscapes in Trinidad and Tobago or BioResilience’ announced the Ministry of Planning, Economic Affairs and Development

The project was to be spearheaded by the Environmental Policy and Planning Division (EPPD) of the Ministry of Planning, Economic Affairs and Development in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the Ministry announced in a press release on Sunday.

A part of the GEF’s Blue and Green Islands Integrated Programme in the Caribbean, the Ministry stated the Project’s expected outcomes were:

Support for the rehabilitation of riversides in the Caroni watershed.
Capacity strengthening to incorporate nature into the agricultural and tourism sectors.
Support nature positive development and livelihood opportunities within the agro and ecotourism sectors with a gender perspective.
Land cover and carbon assessment, valuation and accounting.
Sustainable soil management (SSM) and soil decarbonisation.
A roadmap for national capital accounting to support integrated national decision making.

Discussing the project, the Ministry stated, “the BioResilience Project will work towards nature positive development while reducing ecosystem degradation by applying nature-based solutions to the food and tourism sectors. This will benefit the government’s drive towards increased food security, enhanced tourism and biodiversity management, while providing long term resilience against the effects of climate change at the national level.”

The Ministry stated a BioResilience Project Inception Meeting was held on February 25 at the University of the West Indies’ St Augustine Campus to discuss coordination, the projects overview, work plan and budgetary allocations.

A second meeting, it stated, was held on February 26 in Tobago at the Division of Food Security, Natural Resources, the Environment and Sustainable Development.

The Ministry stated, “This project marks the government’s commitment to Trinidad and Tobago’s environmental well-being through nature-positive action and development.”

Quoting Minister of Planning, Economic Affairs and Development Kennedy Swaratsingh, the release read, “the Ministry of Planning, Economic Affairs and Development is proud to be a part of the BioResilience Project which also helps to fulfil the environment and climate change mandate of the Ministry.”