OAS Funds US$125,000 CED Climate Change Project targeting Women

The Organization of American States (OAS), through its Development Cooperation Fund (DCF), has approved a US$125,000 project for the Centre for Enterprise Development (CED) that focuses on the impact of climate change on women and under-served communities in St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG).

The ‘Unlocking Opportunities through Climate Change Initiatives (UOCCI) Project’ will be implemented during the OAS/DCF 2024-2027 programming cycle to support, recognize and foster the contributions of women and under-served communities to create a more inclusive and effective approach to climate action that benefits everyone, CED said in a release.

The goal of the OUCCI Project is to reduce the impact of climate change, to enhance livelihoods, and increase economic opportunities for women and vulnerable communities. The project encapsulates a number of training sessions, fora, and grant funding for climate action projects developed by groups/organizations.

The OUCCI Project was signed at a ceremony on August, 12, 2025 at the conference room of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the presence of staff from the Ministry of Finance, Economic Planning and Information Technology; the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade; the local OAS office; and CED .

The OUCCI Project is funded from US$1.8 million in seed funding that was approved for the 2024-2027 DCF Programming Cycle dedicated to climate action, and guided by four thematic areas: Circular Economy (CE); Climate and Environmental Education; Development of Climate-Smart Skills; and the Impact of Climate Change on Women and Under-served Communities. St Vincent and the Grenadines is among 15 countries that are eligible to participate in the 2024–2027 OAS/DCF programming cycle under the four approved programmes.

Between 2014 and 2024 the OAS/DCF has funded a number of projects in SVG, including the US$83,000 Comprehensive Early Childhood Care project entitled “Restructuring the Early Childhood Curriculum in SVG” during the 2017-2021 cycle; and the US$100,000 CED ‘Resilience through Innovation and Technology (RIT) MSME Recovery Programme’ during the 2021-2024 cycle.

The Development Cooperation Fund (DCF) of the OAS is supported by the annual voluntary contributions of OAS Member States and is geared towards addressing their most urgent development needs, particularly among those with smaller and more vulnerable economies. In its programming, the Fund emphasizes institutional and human resource capacity building as the basis for sustainable development.