Barbados is the Climate-Smart Country of the Year.
The title was awarded at the inaugural Climate Smart Awards, presented during the Caribbean Climate-Smart Accelerator (CCSA) Summit, held recently at the Hilton Barbados Resort.
In accepting the award, Minister of Finance, Ryan Straugh, stated: “This award belongs to every Barbadian who put solar on their roof, every young person building a career in the green and blue economies, and all public and private officials who did the work quietly and consistently.
“It is a testament to Prime Minister Mottley, who took our climate story to the world and refused to let it be ignored. And it belongs to this region. To see Barbados recognised alongside our National Hero Rihanna’s Clara Lionel Foundation, on the same stage and for the same cause, says everything about what Barbados stands for.”
The CCSA’s Chief Executive Officer, Racquel Moses, in presenting the award, outlined that it was determined by the island’s performance across five critical areas: the strength and ambition of Barbados’ Nationally Determined Contributions under the Paris Agreement: how quickly the renewable energy sector has grown; the boldness of clean energy targets; the scale of climate finance secured, and scores from the ND-GAIN Country Index, which assesses both climate vulnerability and national readiness to respond. She noted that Barbados excelled in all five areas.
According to a press release from the Ministry of Finance, this transformation was built on deliberate, sustained policy. “Duty-free concessions made clean energy equipment affordable. The Renewable Energy Rider programme allowed households and businesses to sell power back to the grid. The Accelerated Investment Premium Programme drove larger commercial installations. None of this happened by default. Each step was a choice made by a Government committed to a different energy future for Barbados, and a people prepared to embrace it.”
On the international stage, Barbados has set benchmarks that the world is now following. In December 2024, Barbados completed the world’s first debt-for-climate resilience swap, a landmark US$410 million transaction that redirected capital directly into water infrastructure, food security, and environmental protection, without adding a cent to the public debt burden.
“The Green Climate Fund described the deal as a new standard for climate adaptation financing. “It was conceived, structured, and delivered here. What Barbados proved is that small island states can access climate finance at record scale and on their own terms.”
Mr. Straughn noted in the release that the achievement sat within a larger story of global climate leadership driven by Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley and the Government of Barbados. He said that the Bridgetown Initiative, launched by Prime Minister Mottley at COP27 in 2022, pushed the World Bank to reform its mission and operations, and helped drive the creation of the IMF’s Resilience and Sustainability Trust.
“It gave voice to nations that the old financial architecture had left behind. Barbados did not wait to be helped. Instead, we built the argument, made the case, and changed the system.”
The Government of Barbados also congratulated the Clara Lionel Foundation, founded by Barbadian National Hero The Right Excellent Robyn Rihanna Fenty, on receiving both the People’s Choice Award and Philanthropist Recognition at the awards ceremony.
“The Foundation’s commitment to protecting the world’s most climate-vulnerable communities reflects the same values that drive Barbados’ own international advocacy. To see a daughter of Barbados also honoured here is a source of immense national pride,” the Ministry stated.
