UNIDO to Launch Global SIDS Hub in Barbados: Historic Collaboration to Address Island Nations' Challenges

Barbados has been selected as the home for a pioneering global Small Island Developing States (SIDS) hub, 30 years after a landmark conference here first brought global attention to island nations’ peculiar issues and challenges.

The hub is to be set up in collaboration with the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO). The announcement was made during a signing ceremony at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Conference Centre on the sidelines of the two-day inaugural United Nations Global Supply Chain Forum.

According to Ambassador Elizabeth Thompson, the move holds profound historical significance as the venue where the inaugural SIDS conference convened in 1994. Thompson, who was instrumental in developing the project, explained that the new agreement is twofold. “It signifies a cooperation pact between Barbados and UNIDO. Additionally, it entails the establishment of the SIDS hub here in Barbados, aimed at facilitating information dissemination, knowledge exchange, technical cooperation, and collaboration among diverse SIDS,” she said.

Envisioned as a pivotal global nexus for SIDS, the hub is poised to address the unique challenges faced by small island nations while fostering synergistic partnerships. Thompson noted the personal involvement of UNIDO Director General Gerd Müller in this initiative, highlighting synchronicity with the upcoming fourth international UN SIDS conference in Antigua, building upon the groundwork laid by the April 1994 Barbados conference.

She also announced the appointment of Stein Hanson to spearhead the Barbados office, citing his extensive UNIDO experience and profound insights into the region. “Stein Hanson’s appointment underscores our commitment to leveraging expertise and familiarity with the region,” she added, heralding Hanson’s capacity to seamlessly integrate into the role.

With SIDS being susceptible to climate change and the socioeconomic impacts of COVID-19, the establishment of the hub assumes paramount importance in catalysing economic activity and job creation. “This hub will play a pivotal role in addressing these challenges,” the environment envoy said.

The UNIDO Global SIDS Office in Barbados will act as a hybrid entity, offering the usual services of a UNIDO field office while being promoted externally as a “Global SIDS Hub” to attract donor support and maintain neutrality among SIDS governments. It will also advocate for industrial issues and solutions at the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) level and other regional forums.