FAO expands opportunities for green financing of the Caribbean aquaculture sector

Bridgetown, Barbados- December 2022- The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), along with the fund of the Government of Mexico, and supported by CARICOM through the "Mexico, CARICOM, FAO Initiative Cooperation for Adaptation and Resilience to Climate Change in the Caribbean," is supporting countries to increase farmers' access to credit and financing for their aquaculture enterprises.

This effort is developed through the initiative "Resilient aquaculture for food security and well-being in the Caribbean, which seeks to build capacities for those who need access to funds and those who can finance these interventions.

Currently, countries in the Caribbean have much to gain from developing their aquaculture sector. However, access to finance continues to be a significant constraint for aquaculture and aquaponics farmers and other key stakeholders in the Caribbean, where financial institutions need more experience in developing targeted financial products that promote these nature-based solutions to tackle climate change.

With financial institutions being important stakeholders in achieving this, a virtual inception workshop on Green Finance was held for eight financial intermediaries across Dominica, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Grenada, and Trinidad and Tobago. These financial institutions will receive support in developing targeted financial products for nature-based solutions and recommendations on engaging in green financing.

FAO's Policy Officer for Environment and Climate Change, Jacinto Buenfil declared: "Financial institutions in many cases lack tools to assess risks related to climate change, as well as strategies and experience to engage in green finance. Participating institutions will enhance their capacity to finance climate change adaptation products and receive recommendations to develop a green strategy".

The workshop covered several areas, including an introduction to aquaponics and aquaculture and an understanding of climate-related risk in agricultural finance. The project is also facilitating business plan development training for aquaponics farmers.

Workshop facilitator, Hannes Gräf, noted, "Financial institutions can be agents of change in the area of climate action, and these workshops aim to help them achieve this."

Realizing the full potential of aquaculture for the region demands that farmers in this sector, particularly small-scale producers, receive the necessary technical and financial support to expand their operations, meet growing demands and enter new markets. 

The project will host a series of follow-up training in the New Year focusing on risk assessment, development of financial products, and marketing.