Anthony Smith, the newly sworn-in Minister of Agriculture, Lands, and the Blue Economy, represented Antigua and Barbuda at a pre-COP meeting in the Bahamas.

The meeting was held from 8-9.

During the meeting, strategies to achieve Land Degradation Neutrality among member states were formulated and discussed.

“While there are those who continue to spread lies, engage in character assassination, preach hate and incite violence, I remain steadfast and focused on what truly matters, working for the people of All Saints West and the people of Antigua and Barbuda. We’re building a stronger, sustainable future for our nation,” Smith wrote on social media

The meeting served as a Preparatory Conference of Parties, ahead of the sixteenth session of the Conference of Parties (COP16) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from 2 to 13 December 2024.

Calvin James, the Executive Director of PISLM, noted the devastation experienced by Caribbean Small Island Developing States (CSIDS) from Hurricane Beryl.

He mentioned that the Pre-COP provides a platform for ministers to advance efforts that can improve Land Degradation Neutrality by crafting policies to guide the negotiations at COP16.

This COP enabled CSIDS to solidify their collective stance on critical issues such as sand and dust storms, drought, and other thematic areas ahead of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) COP16.

The forum allowed leaders to discuss the vulnerabilities and necessary changes for mitigation and adaptation, particularly SIDS, whose economies are heavily dependent on climate-vulnerable sectors such as agriculture, tourism, and fisheries, and which have limited adaptive capacity.