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Saint Lucia’s Prime Minister the Honourable Allen Chastanet will lead a special event at the World Economic Forum’s Davos Agenda 2021, which engages heads of state and government, business, cultural and other leaders of society to shape global, regional and industry agendas.

The Davos Agenda, an annual event for world leaders, is being held virtually this year from January 25-29 with 1,500 global leaders under the theme of “A crucial year to rebuild trust.” Prime Minister Chastanet will head the Devex Session on Wednesday January 27th 2021 at 8:00AM and provide leadership and insight on “Catalyzing a new future: From Small Islands to Great Ocean States.”

The event, headlined by Prime Minister Chastanet, is being held in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and against the back drop of calls to capitalize on the opportunity to reset the economic system and build one that incentivizes sustainable and inclusive economic growth with strong private sector participation. Prime Minister Chastanet has been a champion for Small Island Developing States (SIDS) on a range of issues including renewable energy, innovative financing and resilience mechanisms to assist Small Island Developing States in the pursuit of sustainable and thriving economies.

In a piece published ahead of the event, Prime Minister Chastanet explains that Saint Lucia is paving the way for scalable local solutions to raise funds towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.

“Ambitious targets are necessary to ignite change that supports Small Island Developing States and other emerging economies to adopt new and innovative funding mechanisms. Sustainable development and long-term resilience will require regional cooperation and integration to amplify our collective impact,” Prime Minister Chastanet explained. “The start of 2021 on one hand shines a ray of possibility and hope for positive change in many areas of global concern. On the other hand, there is an intensified feeling of urgency and a growing imperative to develop and enact sustainable development solutions across thematic areas. In Saint Lucia and beyond, the existing consequences of COVID-19 have carried over, hand in hand with reports of a new and threatening coronavirus variant, reiterating the importance of identifying needs for post-pandemic survival and preparing for unexpected changes.”

The session’s participants also include H.E. Lord Ahmad, Minister for South Asia and the Commonwealth at the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) United Kingdom, Mr. Zarak Khan, Director of Programmes and Initiatives, Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat, Mr. Jorge Moreira da Silva, Director-OECD Development Co-operation Directorate, Marine de Bazelaire, Group Advisor on Natural Capital, HSBC, Dr. Graham Turnock, Chief Executive, UK Space Agency. The session will be moderated by President and Editor-in-Chief, Devex Raj Kumar.

The Prime Minister will also participate in an afternoon session at 1:00PM on Shaping a New Ocean Economy.

Saint Lucia has established a significant and meaningful relationship with the World Economic Forum having partnered over the last year to design and develop the Saint Lucia Country Financing Roadmap (CFR) – an actionable and evidence-based blueprint towards long-term development financing.

The virtual Davos Agenda aims to inform the global public and the Forum’s 25,000,000+ social media followers on the key issues shaping the year ahead. It will also engage over 430 cities in 150 countries that host Global Shapers, a network of young people driving dialogue, action and change.

For live updates and to watch the Prime Minister’s presentation: https://www.weforum.org/partners/live-updates/

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