Sustainable Economic Development Unit (SEDU)
[for Small and Island Developing States (SIDS)]

SEDU and CSEDNet

At a SEDU conference in January 2000, a decision was taken to form the Caribbean Sustainable Economic Development Network (CSEDNet) for which SEDU serves as Secretariat. The objectives of CSEDNet are:

1. Provide a permanent forum for an exchange of ideas on Sustainable Economic Development in the Caribbean;
2. Debate & seek to influence the research policy agenda of regional institutions with respect to SD in the Caribbean;
3. Debate & seek to influence public & private sector policy on SED in the Caribbean;
4. Ensure participation of all stakeholders including grassroots communities and NGOs in the Network;Encourage and facilitate training in the field of SED in the Caribbean.

 

At another SEDU Conference in October, 2000, co-organized with UNDP and UN ECLAC, the decision to form the Network was reinforced Additionally, it was decided that the initial work programme of CSEDNet should focus on the following three(3) issue areas:

• Participatory processes/stakeholder empowerment:
• Policy interventions particularly through the use of Economic Policy Instruments for Sustainable Economic Development;
• Technical research inputs to policy formulation and stakeholder empowerment in priority areas including coastal zone management and tourism, disaster management, planning, land/water management and environmental/sustainable development economics.
  

In 2001, the UNDP and Capacity 21 provided financial support for CSEDNet to move forward with its work programme, linking this to preparations of civil society for the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) Rio+10 Conference in Johannesburg, South Africa. This initial support was for two related activities. First, a workshop of a representative cross-section of NGOs in the region with the objective of reviewing the main issues of concern to them. This Workshop was held in Trinidad on July 16-17, 2001 and was co-organized by CANARI and the UNDP. The second activity, which built on the first, was to conduct a survey of NGOs and selected CBOs in the Caribbean, beginning with an initial six (6) Caricom countries. The results of which informed the design and expansion of the survey to six (6) further Caricom countries. This activity constituted the core of the UNDP supported project “Assessing Caribbean Sustainability Processes and Advocating Strategies for Sustainable Development” conducted by SEDU on behalf of CSEDNet.

Further information on the CSEDNet Project can be obtained from SEDU or by visiting the website at: www.csednet.org