BVI Special Envoy and Head of UN ECLAC Hold Bilateral Meeting on Sustainable Development Agenda

SANTIAGO, CHILE. Ahead of the upcoming 8^th Meeting of the Forum of the Countries of Latin America and the Caribbean, the British Virgin Islands (BVI) Special Envoy Mr. Benito Wheatley and Executive Secretary H.E. Jose Manuel Salazar-Xirinachs, the Head of the United Nations (UN) Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), have held a high-level bilateral meeting on sustainable development in which they discussed productive development policy in the Americas, regional efforts to deliver on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, ECLAC engagement with the Associate Members of the regional commission, and bilateral engagement between the BVI and UN ECLAC.

In particular, the pair discussed the importance of productive development polices to boosting the productivity of Latin America and the Caribbean and acceleration of the region’s economic transformation. They also highlighted the importance of continuing to engage Caribbean countries and territories on how productive development policies can be best applied in their specific context as Small Island Developing States (SIDS) whose size, climate vulnerability, and small open economies present challenges to sustained economic growth and development.

The special case of the Associate Members of ECLAC was also highlighted. They noted that, among other things, the Associate Members were not included in the internationally agreed Multi-Dimensional Vulnerability Index (MVI) despite their high vulnerability as SIDS. They also noted that Associate Members cannot participate in the High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) on sustainable development and remained locked out of development finance and climate finance, despite significant gaps in financing for development and climate finance. Mr. Xirinachs affirmed the commitment of UN ECLAC to the Associate Members to which development assistance is being provided in the form of technical assistance to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). He also reaffirmed that the Forum of the Countries of Latin America and the Caribbean on Sustainable Development will remain a platform in which Associate Members can engage on their sustainable development.

Mr. Wheatley thanked the Executive Secretary for UN ECLAC’s technical assistance to the British Virgin Islands and restated his commitment to Latin America and the Caribbean in his capacity as Vice Chair of UN ECLAC and Vice Chair of the Caribbean Development and Cooperation Committee (CDCC).