Date: January 6th, 2025

Subject: Re: Call for Written Statements to ICCPR – Antigua and Barbuda

Organization: EcoShores Sustainable Futures Network 

Organization Background:
EcoShores Sustainable Futures Network (ESFN) is a registered non-profit organization based in Antigua and Barbuda. We were formed at the intersection of climate change action, conservation, technology innovation and community development, which impacts Antigua and Barbuda and other Small Island Developing States within the Caribbean Region. The organization focuses on connectivity with technology and how innovation impacts development for women and girls, youth, and other vulnerable groups at the nexus of climate justice interventions. While our mandate is broad for the communities we serve, ESFN is targeted in the pillars of approach, which include: Education, Experience, Expression, Economy, Engagement, Empowerment, Environment, and Equity. 

In the the wider Caribbean and Antigua and Barbuda, there is still concern over human rights in the following areas that the organization has identified and will aim to receive support in addressing in Antigua and Barbuda: Freedom of Speech and Expression, Equality Under the Law, Non-discrimination, Liberty and Security of Persons, Environmental Justice, and Protections available to vulnerable groups. While there are programs which work to address these items, they remain insufficient given the multifaceted nature of the disproportionate impact on the vulnerabilities faced. This is not exclusively an issue for Antigua and Barbuda, but a factor of being a Small Island Developing State, and the limitations of the landscape to support correction action in alignment with these rights and its enforcement.