The election of Jamaica as President and Saint Kitts and Nevis as Vice-President of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA 8) Bureau marks a significant milestone for the UNEP Cartagena Convention and for the Wider Caribbean Region, reinforcing the region’s growing influence in global environmental governance.
For the UNEP Cartagena Convention Secretariat, this leadership outcome reflects increasing international recognition of Caribbean States as credible, solutions-driven contributors—particularly in addressing marine pollution, biodiversity protection, and strengthening ocean resilience.
Jamaica’s election to serve as President of UNEA 8 carries particular strategic importance. As host country of the Cartagena Convention Secretariat, Jamaica has consistently demonstrated regional and international leadership. Most recently, it successfully hosted the 18th Conference of the Parties (COP-18) to the Cartagena Convention, widely regarded as the most integrated COP to date.
COP-18 advanced a holistic approach that aligned environmental protection with economic resilience, sustainable financing, and implementation at scale. During the Conference, Minister Matthew Samuda delivered feature remarks articulating a clear vision for strengthened regional cooperation, results-oriented action, and the protection of the Caribbean Sea as a shared and productive resource—messages that now resonate at the highest level of the UN environmental system.
Equally significant is the election of Saint Kitts and Nevis as Vice-President of UNEA. As the most recent country to ratify both the Land-Based Sources of Marine Pollution (LBS) Protocol and the Specially Protected Areas and Wildlife (SPAW) Protocol, Saint Kitts and Nevis has demonstrated strong commitment to addressing marine pollution at source and conserving marine and coastal biodiversity.
Saint Kitts and Nevis will also serve on the Bureau of the SPAW Protocol for the upcoming biennium, further strengthening alignment between global environmental decision-making and regional implementation under the Cartagena Convention framework.
Together, the leadership roles of Jamaica and Saint Kitts and Nevis on the UNEA 8 Bureau send a clear signal that Caribbean perspectives—grounded in lived experience, regional cooperation, and practical action—are shaping the global response to the triple planetary crisis.
“The election of Jamaica as President and Saint Kitts and Nevis as Vice-President of UNEA 8 is a strong affirmation of Caribbean leadership,” said Christopher Corbin, Coordinator of the Cartagena Convention Secretariat. “It ensures that the priorities of Small Island and coastal States—pollution reduction, biodiversity protection, climate resilience, and sustainable ocean governance—are firmly reflected in global environmental decision-making.”
As the Cartagena Convention Secretariat, continues to support Contracting Parties in translating global commitments into regional and national action, the presence of two Parties in UNEA leadership positions reinforces the vital bridge between global policy leadership and on-the-ground implementation in the Wider Caribbean Region.
