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Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley says rising insurance costs are making it harder for businesses to survive and prepare for climate change. She says this is a big problem, especially for tourism businesses.
Speaking at a recent meeting in Barbados, Ms. Mottley said she had talked with small hotel owners about the high cost of insurance. These businesses need money to upgrade their buildings and stay competitive, but the high insurance costs are causing losses. That makes it hard to get loans or new investment.
She explained that this is a serious risk for Barbados. If a business or country can’t get insurance, then it also becomes hard to get investors. She said this issue has been a concern since 2019.
To help, the government created a new Resilience and Regeneration Fund. This replaces the old Catastrophe Fund and was announced in the 2025 Budget. The new fund builds on earlier steps, like natural disaster clauses in government bonds. These clauses let Barbados pause debt payments after a disaster so it can use the money for recovery instead.
Ms. Mottley said these changes gave Barbados extra room in the budget—equal to 17 to 18 percent of its GDP over two years.
She said the country often has to plan economic activities like festivals around the risk of disasters because it cannot afford to cancel them.
The Prime Minister also said the Loss and Damage Fund, created after COP27, is vital. It gives financial help to poor countries hit hardest by climate change.
She added that if rich donors and world leaders are needed to move the fund forward, Barbados would be glad to host those talks. But she warned that without cooperation and new ideas, countries like Barbados could suffer because others do not support their cause.
Source: Barbados GIS.
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