Development in small island nations focus of Caribbean meeting - UN

More than 150 representatives of Caribbean nations, regional and international agencies, and the private sector are in Trinidad and Tobago this week to discuss plans for the development of the Caribbean region, a United Nations spokesman said today.

The meeting in the capital, Port of Spain, is in preparation for next year's International Conference on Small Island Developing States (SIDS). The August 2004 meeting will be a 10-year review of the implementation of the 1994 Barbados Global Conference on the Sustainable Development of SIDS.

The UN spokesman, Fred Eckhard, said the participants at the Port of Spain meeting are discussing 15 priority areas for the Caribbean region, including coastal and marine resources, natural and environmental disasters, land resources, waste management and trade.

According to the UN definition, SIDS also include low-lying coastal countries that share similar sustainable development challenges, including small population, lack of resources, remoteness, susceptibility to natural disasters, excessive dependence on international trade and vulnerability to global developments. In addition, they suffer from lack of economies of scale, high transportation and communication costs, and costly public administration and infrastructure.