Grenada’s Prime Minister Calls for Action on Climate Finance at COP29

Grenada’s Prime Minister, Dickon Mitchell, urged world leaders at COP29 taking place in Baku, Azerbaijan, to take immediate, practical action on climate finance and loss and damage funding. He said that while donor countries claim funds are available, the process to access them is “painful and difficult,” with a significant gap between available finance and what is actually accessible for small island nations like Grenada.

Mitchell, speaking after Grenada’s recent experience with Hurricane Beryl, stressed that the climate crisis is real and urgent. “We are experiencing it, and it is just a matter of time before others begin to experience what we’re experiencing,” he said.

He called for a more streamlined, transparent approach to accessing climate funds and a significant scaling up of the loss and damage fund. “How are the funds going to be made available and for what purposes? It’s simple,” he said, urging that funds be made immediately accessible and not in the form of loans.

Mitchell also advocated for greater private sector involvement and innovative financial solutions, citing the faster, more flexible processes used in investment banking as a potential model for climate finance.

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