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Small Island Developing States: Ready, Set, Action

The OPEC Fund is ramping up its support with a new facility and strategy that will deliver tailored solutions

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Launching a strategic new initiative, the OPEC Fund is ramping up its support for Small Island Developing States (SIDS). At a two-day conference in May at its Headquarters in Vienna the institution unveiled a new Islands Resilience Facility which has been designed to deliver strategic and tailored solutions to enhance climate resilience across these countries. 

The SIDS Summit was attended by high-level representatives of countries for whom climate change is often an existential threat: Kerryne Z. James, Minister for Climate Resilience, Grenada, Michael Joseph, Minister of State for the Environment, Antigua and Barbuda, and Dhananjay Ramful, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mauritius. OPEC Fund President Abdulhamid Alkhalifa warned: 

“For SIDS the impact of climate change is not a future warning – it is a daily reality.” 

Austria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Beate Meinl-Reisinger, promised support – not only financially, but also in awareness raising: “We advocate an effective, rules-based multilateral order where every voice is heard.” She also engaged in bilateral meetings with the SIDS representatives, reiterating Austria’s commitment to national and global green targets. 

Embedded in the OPEC Fund’s new SIDS strategy, the Islands Resilience Facility is a tool that goes beyond traditional financing by combining funding with capacity building and knowledge sharing. To date, the OPEC Fund has provided more than US$2 billion to SIDS in Asia, Africa and the Caribbean. In the spirit of transforming commitment into action the second day of the event was dedicated to working in small groups to develop a step-by-step approach from initial project ideas to bankable proposals. 

More than 60 participants from around the world benefited from an exchange of views on subjects such as building resilience, access to concessional financing, harnessing nature for disaster preparedness and more. Participants included representatives from the World Bank, ADB, OECD, UNIDO, SEforALL and the Austrian Development Agency. The OPEC Fund also signed a memorandum of understanding with the Pacific Islands Forum, an organization comprising 18 countries and territories, to deepen partnership and cooperation.