IDB will help Barbados increase coastal resilience to climate risk

The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has approved a 50-million dollars loan to Barbados, with the objective to help improve the resilience of the country’s coastal zones against climate risks and promote climate-resilient economic development.

The program consists of the construction of integrated infrastructure to reduce the climate risk along the country’s coasts, such as offshore breakwaters, drainage, sidewalks, walkways and groynes. Beach regeneration works will also be carried out.

Moreover, it will strengthen the institutional capacity to implement public policies for the integrated management of climate-resilient coastal zones. To this end, it will include measures such as improving the “National Coastal Risk Information and Planning Platform” to enhance the capacity to analyze climate risk information.

The IDB loan has a 23.5-year repayment term, a 7-year grace period and an interest rate based on the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR).