Civil society actors in Trinidad and Tobago are urging accelerated action on climate change for sustainable development and COVID-19 recovery, with 30 priorities delivered as part of the newly launched report, Spotlight on Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 13 Climate Action.

The Trinidad and Tobago Civil Society Report, which highlights inadequate progress and the critical need for ramping up efforts to address climate change, was released on June 15, at a virtual launch event hosted by the Caribbean Natural Resources Institute (CANARI).

Developed with inputs from 53 civil society organisations (CSOs) working across the sustainable development goals (SDGs) and in diverse sectors, the report comes as the Trinidad and Tobago Government prepares to present its Voluntary National Review (VNR) on progress in implementing the SDGs at the United Nations High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development next month.

“While the Government is reporting on a number of other SDGs in addition to SDG 13, climate change is a cross-cutting sustainable development issue which warrants increased attention and urgent integrated action across sectors to address,” she added.

Key recommendations from the CSOs’ analysis include the need for improving coordinated climate action and mechanisms for engaging civil society; updating the Climate Change Policy (2011); reformation of the Green Fund to improve access to climate financing; placing increased focus on local adaptive capacity, especially of the poor and most vulnerable groups; and updating the national development monitoring framework to take into account and effectively track progress on SDG 13 across sectors.