Minister for Finance, Honourable Dennis Cornwall, departed the state on Sunday, 21 June 2026, to represent Grenada at the 2026 OPEC Fund Development Forum in Vienna, Austria.
Minister Cornwall is accompanied by Tonia Adams Samuel, Head of the Macroeconomic Policy Unit within the Ministry of Finance.
The forum, held on 23 June at the historic Hofburg Palace, brings together heads of state, ministers, policymakers, development finance institutions and private-sector leaders to explore practical solutions to some of the most pressing development challenges facing vulnerable countries.
Convened under the theme A Transition That Empowers Our Tomorrow, the forum focuses on strengthening global partnerships, mobilising capital for priority development needs and advancing sustainable, inclusive and climate-resilient development.
A major area of discussion is the growing financing gap affecting climate-vulnerable developing countries, particularly in critical sectors such as water, education and health. Many of these countries continue to face high borrowing costs, limited fiscal space, unsustainable debt burdens and financing arrangements that do not adequately reflect their vulnerability to climate-related shocks.
The forum will also advance discussions surrounding the Vulnerability to Viability Compact, a joint initiative involving the OPEC Fund for International Development, the Government of Barbados, as Chair of the Climate Vulnerable Forum, V20 Finance Ministers, and participating development finance institutions.
The compact is intended to improve the availability, affordability, predictability and effectiveness of development financing for the 74 countries represented by the CVF-V20. Its work is centred on 4 key pillars: increasing access to concessional financing; mobilising private and philanthropic capital; strengthening country ownership of development priorities; and expanding shock-responsive debt and financing instruments.
Attention will also be given to blended financing, guarantees, local-currency solutions, political-risk mitigation, debt suspension clauses, emergency liquidity facilities and other mechanisms that can help vulnerable countries maintain essential public services following natural disasters and other economic shocks.
Grenada’s participation provides an important opportunity to contribute the perspective of Small Island Developing States, which remain highly exposed to climate-related disasters while operating within narrow fiscal and borrowing constraints.
The engagement also supports the Government’s continued efforts to secure affordable and sustainable financing for national development, strengthen fiscal and climate resilience and build partnerships capable of supporting investments in essential services and productive sectors.
The Ministry of Finance remains committed to advocating for a more responsive international financial architecture that recognises the unique vulnerabilities of small states and provides fairer access to long-term development financing.
Ministry of Finance
