Roseau, Dominica – September 16, 2021 – Dominica’s Prime Minister, Hon.Roosevelt Skerrit has issued a call for Small Island Developing States (SIDS) to consider a complete structural transformation to more diversified economies, which are no longer commodity dependent.

Hon. Skerrit participated in a virtual Round Table Discussion of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) on Wednesday, September 15, 2021 on the topic: ‘Strengthening Resilience in Commodity Dependent Countries.’

The Prime Minister highlighted the challenges faced by small states, attributable to disaster impacts and external shocks that constrain growth and set back the pace of development.

“In transitioning to countries that are more resilient to both climate related impacts and economic shocks, we must consider not only the imperative of institutionalizing resilience and building infrastructure that can withstand natural disasters, but also a complete structural transformation to more diversified economies, that are no longer commodity dependent,” Prime Minister Skerrit said.

The Prime Minister told the forum Dominica, in building resilience, has created the Climate Resilience Agency for Dominica (CREAD), which leads and coordinates strategic initiatives across sectors and developed the Climate Resilience and Recovery Plan to 2030 (CRRP), which promotes the development of a robust economy sufficiently diversified to better withstand adverse events.