Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, June 3-5, 2025:  A delegation from the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) traveled to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines to engage government and private sector stakeholders on advancing resilient housing and strengthening other sustainable development initiatives, including roof-top solar energy.

During the mission, GGGI held discussions with key stakeholders in the housing sector, including Minister Orando Brewster and Permanent Secretary Neva Phillips-Cordice from the Ministry of Housing, Informal Human Settlement, Youth and Sports, as well as General Manager Kenyatta Alleyne from the Housing and Land Development Corporation. The meeting explored challenges and opportunities for delivering resilient, green and affordable housing, for enhance policy levers to strengthen coordination and actions in the country’s housing sector

These activities are part of GGGI’s Scaling-Up Resilient, Green, and Affordable Housing in the Eastern Caribbean project which is supported by IrishAid and Agence Française de Développement. The project is designed to help Eastern Caribbean countries build resilience in the housing sectors in response to climate change such as increasingly frequent and severe weather occurrences.  According to the World Bank, Hurricane Beryl, which hit Saint Vincent and the Grenadines in July 2024 impacted 56% of the population, destroying 90% of buildings and critical infrastructure across the Southern Grenadines.

[https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2024/10/18/world-bank-to-support-hurricane-beryl-affected-communities-in-st-vincent-and-the-grenadines]

The GGGI delegation also met with Permanent Secretary Tamira Browne of the Ministry of Tourism, Civil Aviation, Sustainable Development and Culture to discuss other sustainable development needs in the country and opportunities to access international funds that support environmental and climate actions.

The mission also included a visit to Solife Solar, a green enterprise that participated in GGGI’s Eastern Caribbean Green Entrepreneurship Initiative. Through the program, the company received a USD 50,000 repayable grant, which has since sparked a wave of positive change. Over the past year, this support has enabled Solife Solar to expand its operations, improve its service delivery, and make renewable energy solutions more accessible to local households and businesses.

Looking ahead

In the coming months, GGGI and housing sector stakeholders in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines will discuss and plan in detail the technical assistance that GGGI will deliver, which will aim to enhance policy levers to strengthen coordination and actions to enhance housing resilience.

To read more on the Scaling-Up Resilient, Green, and Affordable Housing in the Eastern Caribbean project click here: https://gggi.org/project/scaling-up-resilient-green-affordable-housing-in-the-eastern-caribbean/