PM Warns Caribbean Could Face ‘Climate Refugees’ Without Urgent Global Emissions Cuts

Prime Minister Gaston Browne has warned that the Caribbean risks facing a future of widespread displacement unless major polluting nations move decisively to curb greenhouse-gas emissions and provide the financing needed for climate adaptation.

Speaking on the Browne and Browne show, the Prime Minister described climate-induced migration as a “real issue,” noting that rising temperatures and increasingly destructive storms could make parts of the region uninhabitable. He said the phenomenon is often discussed in diplomatic terms, but the potential outcome is stark.

Browne pointed to Hurricane Irma’s devastation of Barbuda in 2017 as an example of how quickly entire communities can be displaced. He recalled that Barbudans became internally displaced persons for months after the island was rendered uninhabitable. He added that Jamaica’s recent experience with Hurricane Melissa—described as a storm of “historic ferocity”—demonstrated the widening scale of climate-driven destruction across the region.

He argued that without stronger global action, small island states may eventually see citizens forced to move abroad in search of safety. Browne said major polluters must recognise that climate finance is not charity, but “climate justice,” and that those most responsible for global emissions should lead efforts to support vulnerable countries.

According to Browne, the risk of displacement underscores the urgency of funding for adaptation, mitigation, and resilient development. He said large emitters should be “more empathetic” and warned that continued environmental damage could ultimately drive climate-displaced Caribbean people toward the very countries most responsible for the crisis.

The Prime Minister reiterated that the Caribbean has already experienced the human cost of climate change, and called for international partners to match their rhetoric with action to prevent a future defined by forced migration and loss.

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