Projects announced at COP29 focus on strengthening resilience of key infrastructure sectors including transport, power, telecommunications, water, health, and education

Baku, Azerbaijan, 18 November 2024: The Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI) today announced US$ 8 million of funding for 12 projects across 18 Small Island Developing States under its Infrastructure for Resilient Island States initiative.

Amit Prothi, Director General, CDRI said, “Small Island Developing States are vulnerable due to their geographic location and small size. Giving due consideration to the need for urgent action, we are announcing 12 new projects as part of CDRI’s commitment to make infrastructure resilient and protect lives and livelihoods, in line with the ambition outlined in the Antigua and Barbuda Agenda for SIDS.”

CDRI is committed to support SIDS to develop resilient infrastructure through technical assistance, interventions in policies and regulatory frameworks, project proposal development, resource mobilization, enhancing capacities for project management and implementation, and strengthening data systems.

The 12 projects announced today will support Antigua & Barbuda, Bahamas, Belize, Comoros, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Haiti, Jamaica, Kiribati, Maldives, Mauritius, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Seychelles, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Timor-Leste, Tonga, and Vanuatu.

CDRI’s Infrastructure for Resilient Island States initiative is funded by Australia, India, the UK, and the EU through donations totalling US$ 40 million to CDRI’s IRAF Multi-Partner Trust Fund.  This announcement brings the total number of SIDS projects funded by CDRI under this initiative to 23.

Philip Green, Australian High Commissioner to India said, “The Australian Government is committed to addressing the climate challenges facing our region and amplifying the voices of Small Island Developing States, the custodians of our world’s oceans. This is why Australia is committing $10 million over 10 years to the Infrastructure for Resilient Island States Initiative which will support projects in the Pacific and other vulnerable regions and strengthen their resilience to climate change and infrastructure risks.”

Leena Nandan, Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Govt. of India said, “Small Island Developing States are at the frontlines of the climate crisis, impacted by extreme climate events that they are least responsible for. Their efforts to build resilience and thrive in the face of existential challenges posed by extreme weather events requires decisive collective action and multilateral cooperation at the international level for stronger climate action. India remains committed to partnering with SIDS to enable access to climate finance and technical assistance in the face of increasing disaster risks. CDRI’s Infrastructure for Resilient Island States is a special programme for the resilient prosperity of all SIDS that emerged from the Government of India’s efforts to leave no one behind.” 

Lindy Cameron, British High Commissioner to India said, “I welcome the announcement of projects selected for support under the second cohort of the Infrastructure for Resilient Island States as part of COP29. From its launch at COP26, the programme has made a great start in protecting vulnerable nations from climate change. I hope that CDRI can build on this momentum and accelerate its global efforts to make infrastructure more resilient. The UK is proud to partner with CDRI and India in this programme and to support nations where lives and livelihoods are threatened due to the climate crisis.”

Herve Delphin, Ambassador of the European Union to India said, “Sea levels are rising while natural disasters like hurricanes or typhoons are becoming more frequent and intense. Besides damaging the critical infrastructure, climate change and disaster risks have domino, far-reaching effects, especially for the Small Island Developing States, often severely impacting the public, including their livelihood. Through the IRIS program, global partners are working closely with SIDS to accelerate climate action. We're supporting resilient, sustainable, and inclusive infrastructure projects through IRIS to ensure the continuity of essential public services and protect the livelihoods of vulnerable communities who are at the forefront of the climate impact. Our goal is to build a better tomorrow for these communities, and we're committed to making it happen.”

About CDRI:
Launched by Hon. Prime Minister of India at the UN Climate Action Summit, New York in September 2019, the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI) is a partnership of national governments, UN agencies and programmes, multilateral development banks and financing mechanisms, the private sector, and academia that aims to promote the resilience of new and existing infrastructure systems to climate and disaster risks in support of sustainable development.

Notes to the Editors:

• The Infrastructure for Resilient Island States (IRIS) initiative aims to achieve sustainable development through a systematic approach to resilient, sustainable, and inclusive infrastructure in SIDS.
• IRIS was co-curated with SIDS, and works with SIDS representatives to identify opportunities for partnerships and technical collaborations to strengthen infrastructure systems for resilient development in these countries.
• IRIS was awarded the 2024 UN SIDS Partnership Award in the Environment category during the conference. The award highlights IRIS's innovative partnerships promoting sustainable development in SIDS through advocacy, funding, workshops and capacity building programmes focusing on disaster resilience of infrastructure systems.

• This funding announcement follows a Call for Proposals open to all 57 UN recognised SIDS with the objective to equip them with the knowledge, tools and partnerships needed to achieve disaster and climate resilient infrastructure.
• A total of 57 proposals were received in response to the Second Call for Proposals from 34 SIDS across the Caribbean, Pacific, Atlantic and the Indian Ocean regions.

 

List of Projects:

Country(ies)	Proposal	Implementing Partner
Antigua & Barbuda  Dominican Republic  St. Lucia	Socially inclusive strengthening of climate resilient infrastructure and action in Caribbean SIDS. (focuses on strengthening resilience of education infrastructure to increase school and education continuity post-disaster)	Integrated Health Outreach (IHO)
Bahamas   Belize   Jamaica   St. Vincent and the Grenadines	Boosting the resilience of infrastructure assets and planned large-scale infrastructure investments in four Caribbean SIDS through risk-informed infrastructure asset management policies and practices (aims to strengthen infrastructure asset management capacity of national and local government officials through a whole-of-government approach)	Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA)
Comoros	Improving schools’ resilience to natural disasters and climate adaptation in Comoros  (seeks to enhance resilience of existing school building stock and integrate climate adaptation in the national school resilience strategy)	Build Change
Haiti	Strengthening Haiti's health facilities for disaster resilience  (supports strengthening resilience of health infrastructure through vulnerability assessments, resilience action plans and capacity strengthening of personnel)	GeoHazards International (GHI)
Kiribati  Maldives  Timor-Leste	Enhancing availability, quality, and use of risk information for critical infrastructure to reduce disaster risk, increase resilience and strengthen early warning systems in Kiribati, Maldives and Timor-Leste (supports capacities to collect, manage and utilize disaster loss and damage data for critical infrastructure enabling risk-informed decision-making, planning and investments)	United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR)
Mauritius	Ensuring a sustainable and climate-resilient water supply in the Northern part of Mauritius  (will assess groundwater resources potential and develop a decision support tool for informed water allocation decisions to support resource diversification and business continuity)	United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
Maldives	Guidelines and tools to enhance the resilience of schools in the Maldives  (focuses on strengthening education infrastructure through enhanced guidelines for design and construction of new schools and development of a resilience schools toolkit)	Build Change
Saint Kitts and Nevis	Disaster Resilient Utility Infrastructure – St. Kitts and Nevis (aims to strengthen resilience of critical infrastructure by mapping and assessing vulnerabilities, developing a comprehensive vulnerability atlas, and enhancing coordination)	Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre (CCCCC)
Seychelles	The Blue Economy and Climate Change: Risk Assessment and Adaptive Strategies for Improved Seaport Resilience to Climate Change in Seychelles (supports strengthening resilience of port infrastructure through risk assessment, development of climate adaptation strategy, disaster management plan and capacity strengthening)	Nature Seychelles
Grenada St. Lucia   St. Kitts   St. Vincent & the Grenadines	Strengthening power sector resilience in Caribbean Island states (will develop and implement a pooled procurement business model and a virtual warehouse platform for improved post-disaster recovery of power infrastructure)	Caribbean Electric Utility Services Corporation (CARILEC)
Tonga	Enhancing resilience of critical subsea telecommunications connections for Tonga, Palau and other South Pacific Small Island Developing States (SIDS)  (undertakes risk assessment and valuation of socioeconomic services provided by subsea cables, generating evidence base for resilient digital communications strategy development)	National Oceanography Centre (NOC)
Vanuatu	Strengthening the resilience of the Vanuatu energy sector against climate-induced disasters  (aims to enhance the resilience of energy sector by implementing renewable energy solutions, strengthening infrastructure, and improving disaster preparedness and response)	United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)

 

Mallika Srinivasan | (M): +91 9818094372 | mallika.srinivasan@cdri.world

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