Canadian support for economic growth in the Caribbean

The Government of Canada is committed to helping build a more prosperous and integrated Caribbean community.  To this end, on October 22, 2012, Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced support for two initiatives that will promote sustainable economic growth and increase resilience against natural disasters in the region.

The initiatives announced today represent $39 million in new support to the Caribbean, and will be delivered through the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA)’s Caribbean Program.

These initiatives are part of Canada’s commitment – announced by Prime Minister Harper in 2007 – to deliver $600 million in development assistance for the Caribbean region over a 12-year period.

Promotion of Regional Opportunities for Produce through Enterprises and Linkages (PROPEL) Project
Implementing partner: Canadian Hunger Foundation (CHF)
Timeframe: Over five years (2012-2017)
Cost: $19 million

This initiative aims to increase the quality and quantity of fresh, regionally grown produce and to build links to expanding high value food markets in the Caribbean, thereby increasing employment and incomes for Caribbean farmers and contributing to economic growth in the region.

In conjunction with a local partner, the Caribbean Farmers Network, the Canadian Hunger Foundation will provide technical assistance to farmers to help them achieve internationally accepted food quality and safety standards, and to help them access the required credit from financial institutions.

The project’s initial focus will be on Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, St. Lucia, Grenada,

St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Dominica, Barbados and Guyana. An expansion to other countries in the region would be possible in years three to five of the project.

The Community Disaster Risk Reduction Project
Implementing partner: The Caribbean Development Bank (CDB)
Timeframe: Over five years (2012-2017)
Cost: $20 million

Natural disasters, of increasing frequency and strength are having a negative economic impact on the Caribbean, particularly in some of the region’s most vulnerable communities. This initiative will enhance community resilience in the face or natural disasters, by implementing local demonstration projects across the region to help determine which preventative measures are most effective, while also producing tangible results in pilot communities.

The Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) will implement the demonstration projects in fifteen to seventeen communities across the Caribbean, with a focus on high-risk, areas.

The CDB will also train and inform government agencies, local officials, community workers and community-based organizations on the resources and the approaches available for reducing natural hazard impacts at the community level.

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