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STORY: UN / BARBUDA HURRICANE RECOVERY
TRT: 02:47
SOURCE: UNIFEED
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 20 NOVEMBER 2017, NEW YORK CITY / FILE
FILE – RECENT, NEW YORK CITY
1. Wide shot, exterior United Nations headquarters
20 NOVEMBER 2017, NEW YORK CITY
2. Wide shot, presser
3. Med shot, journalists
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Gaston Alfonso Browne, Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda:
“We are the injured party. We are not the ones who are emitting these greenhouse gases into the earth’s atmosphere. In fact, the level of emissions coming out of the Caribbean collectively, would be less than 0.1 percent of total global emissions. That means therefore that the developed countries have an obligation to assist, because we are suffering disproportionally from the effects of climate change.”
5. Med shot, photographer
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Gaston Alfonso Browne, Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda:
“The estimated cost to restore the properties in Barbuda was conservatively estimated by the World Bank at about 80 million US dollars. We are pretty confident that it will be in excess of 100 million US dollars. That in itself is a daunting task for our government. In fact, the overall recovery cost will be in the region of 222 million US dollars. And again, that was a conservative estimate by the World Bank. And to put that in context, that’s approximately 100 percent of our annual earnings.”
7. Med shot, journalists
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Gaston Alfonso Browne, Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda:
“Unfortunately, in the case of Antigua and Barbuda, we are considered to be a high-income country, in that we have a per capita income in excess of 15 thousand US. That means therefore that we have not been eligible for developmental assistance, and ordinarily you would have had to depend on borrowings. But we have another problem. Antigua and Barbuda is also a very highly leveraged country in that our debt to GDP stands at about 76 percent, and therefore if we had to borrow now the 200 million US dollars, clearly, we would not be able to pay back that loan, or those loans, if there are several loans. So, borrowing clearly is not a sustainable option.”
9. Wide shot, end of presser
07 OCTOBER 2017, CODRINGTON, BARBUDA
10. Various shots, Browne and Secretary-General António Guterres walking through hurricane damaged streets
Ahead of a CARICOM-UN High-Level Pledging Conference to be held at the UN Headquarters, the Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, Gaston Browne, said “developed countries have an obligation to assist, because we are suffering disproportionally from the effects of climate change.”
Browne told reporters in New York that Caribbean island nations are “injured party” and that while developed nations continue to emit greenhouse gases into the earth’s atmosphere, “the level of emissions coming out of the Caribbean collectively, would be less than 0.1 percent of total global emissions.”
The Prime Minister noted that the overall recovery cost for Barbuda will be “in the region of 222 million US dollars,” as estimated by the World Bank.
To put that in context, he said “that’s approximately 100 percent of our annual earnings.”
Browne pointed out that Antigua and Barbuda is considered to be “a high-income country,” which means that it is not eligible for developmental assistance.
He said “ordinarily you would have had to depend on borrowings. But we have another problem. Antigua and Barbuda is also a very highly leveraged country in that our debt to GDP stands at about 76 percent, and therefore if we had to borrow now the 200 million US dollars, clearly, we would not be able to pay back that loan, or those loans, if there are several loans. So, borrowing clearly is not a sustainable option.”
The Conference, taking place on Tuesday 21 November at UN Headquarters in New York, is aimed at rebuilding the CARICOM Members devastated by Hurricanes Irma and Maria as the first climate resilient countries in the world and at helping the wider CARICOM Region improve its resilience.
