Climate change was the main focus of talks when Minister of State in Foreign Trade and Business Development, Sandra Husbands, met with Apostolic Nuncio of the Holy See, The Most Reverend Santiago de Wit Guzmán.
During a recent courtesy call, at the Ministry’s Culloden Road, St. Michael office, Minister Husbands and Apostolic Nuncio de Wit Guzmán spoke about the impact of climate change on small island developing states (SIDS) and Spain.
Minister Husbands emphasised that the increasing weather events, as a result of climate change, could have dire consequences for SIDS.
She pointed out that one major event, such as a Category Three Hurricane, could “devastate” a SIDS’ gross domestic product and set back the country’s development.
Apostolic Nuncio de Wit Guzmán noted that the encyclical letter on environmentalism, of the Bishop of Rome and leader of the Roman Catholic Church, Pope Francis, speaks to engaging and pushing the international community “to look for and find ways to engage everybody into doing something tangible and visible” that help reduce the impacts of climate change.
The two officials also engaged in talks about the Bridgetown Initiative, Barbados’ Roofs to Reefs programme; migration; food security and agriculture; energy; ethics and values, and the effects of COVID-19 on church attendance.
Also present at the courtesy call were: Senior Foreign Officer, Trecia King; Foreign Service Officer II, Shireifa Joseph; Secretary and Deputy Head of Mission, Rev. Fr. Josué Frédéric Ilboudo; and Roman Catholic Bishop of Bridgetown, His Lordship Bishop Neil Sebastien Scantlebury.
The Most Reverend de Wit Guzmán is based in Trinidad.