(CNS): Premier Wayne Panton has said his government’s goal is for the Cayman Islands to be held up as one of the most sustainable countries in the world. However, two years into the PACT administration, very limited progress has been made on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that he wants to be the basis of his government’s policies.
PricewaterhouseCoopers has been hired to conduct an audit to raise awareness and understanding of these goals across the civil service.
In a press release, Panton said the SDGs offer a holistic framework for sustainable development that balances social, economic and environmental considerations.
“These ‘Global Goals’ are broad-reaching and lofty. They call for peace and prosperity for people and planet, now and into the future,” the premier said. “When my administration came into office it was with a clear understanding of the values that guide us and a vision for a Cayman Islands that is held up as one of the most sustainable countries in the world. The SDGs offer a holistic framework for achieving sustainable development that benefits current and future generations.”
He explained that the project “aims to map existing efforts to the SDGs, identify areas of strategic alignment and recommend local targets under the goals for government to focus on for the next two years”.
Currently, there is very little in Cayman that can be described as sustainable. Runaway coastal development too close to the ocean, traffic chaos, an unmanaged growing population, continued dependence on fossil fuels for power, unattainable homeownership for local people and persistent threats to the environment and bio-diversity are just some of the critical unsustainable problems the country faces.
Nevertheless, Jennifer Ahearn, the chief officer at the Ministry of Sustainability and Climate Resiliency, said that this project with PwC will formalise “existing sustainability initiatives”. She said, “We believe there is increasing understanding within the civil service of the importance and relevance of the SDGs to the Cayman Islands.”
When CNS asked officials what initiatives are already considered part of the progress in making Cayman at all sustainable and what this project hoped to identify, we were told that the Sexual Harassment Bill aligns with the goal of gender equality, and the National Food and Nutrition Security Policy aligns with the goal of zero hunger. However, the point of this project was to map other existing efforts and identify what else is needed.
The lack of tangible issues relating to sustainability was illustrated in the release when Ahearn said that the “premier wears the SDG colour wheel pinned on his lapel and there are SDG posters in several offices throughout the Government Administration Building”.
She added that the SDG analysis project would “bring structure and cohesion to these efforts, help us raise greater awareness about the goals within the civil service and, ultimately, identify priority areas of focus for enhancing sustainable development and better outcomes in the Cayman Islands”.
Local activists Amplify Cayman welcomed government’s investment in the analysis of the SDGs in government and hopes the results will see the Cayman Islands efficiently achieve the UN’s SDGs before 2030.
“Amplify Cayman is ready to see CIG more consistently align its commitments to sustainability with its actions, and [we] are committed to doing our part to assist in the delivery of those outcomes as a community advocacy group that prioritises sustainable development,” the local non-profit said.
“It is no easy feat to shift the mindsets of a country or civil service to a new direction, but we feel that all in Cayman should support this project, as the outcomes will deliver equitable socioeconomic justice to our climate change-prone shores in ways that balance environmental conservation with community investment.”
The NPO pointed to the importance of protecting the environment and heritage for future generations, strengthening sustainability initiatives such as the enforcement of the National Conservation Law and investments into the Environmental Protection Fund.
Meanwhile, Sustainable Cayman another local non-profit doing what it can to raise awareness about the need for Cayman to embrace sustainability, also offered its support to what it said was a positive sustainability exercise.
The 12-week analysis will begin with a series of indepth stakeholder engagement sessions. It will include a survey to all civil servants, training for key civil service leaders, analysis to map ongoing efforts against the SDGs, a gap analysis and final recommendation on five to seven goals that should be considered as priorities. The final report is expected at the end of May 2023.
PwC Partner Kelli Koutney said the UN goals are seen as a global blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all.
“Aligning the SDGs to the Cayman Islands Government ministries, portfolios and offices’ initiatives is an important step in focusing stakeholders on achieving sustainability targets by 2030. We are honoured to have been selected as the partner for this project and to be part of the foundation of a more sustainable vision for the Cayman Islands,” she said.
More information on the project will be shared on the ministry’s webpage and through the its Facebook and LinkedIn pages.
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