News

Santa Marta, Colombia, 11 May 2026 — The Association of Caribbean States (ACS) participated in the Extended Bureau Meeting of the United Nations High-level Committee on South-South Cooperation (HLC), held 6–8 May 2026 in Santa Marta, Colombia, with the support of the UN Office for South-South Cooperation (UNOSSC).

At a moment of constrained development financing, accelerating climate risks, and rapid digital transformation, the ACS positioned the Greater Caribbean’s priorities—especially those of Small Island Developing States (SIDS)—at the center of discussions on how South-South and triangular cooperation can deliver more practical, measurable, and equitable development results.

The meeting provided an early platform for substantive inputs to the BAPA+40 review process, aimed at shaping thematic focus and emerging priorities for the next phase of global South-South and triangular cooperation.

As part of the official programme, Lisa Douglas Paul, Director of Cooperation and Resource Mobilization of the Association of Caribbean States, contributed to the session on “Perspectives from LDCs, LLDCs, SIDS, MICs”, which focused on structural vulnerabilities, development financing gaps, and resilience challenges—areas that directly define the Greater Caribbean context.

Across the meeting’s thematic discussions, the ACS aligned its engagement with priorities that resonate strongly in the region: advancing climate resilience, addressing financing constraints, strengthening responsible digital transformation, and reinforcing data and measurement frameworks that make cooperation more effective and accountable.