Honorable Prime Minister,
Excellencies,
Distinguished Delegates,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is a great pleasure and an honor for me to participate in what is the first in a series of three regional preparatory meetings held in each of the regions of Small Island Developing States (SIDS) to prepare input to the 4th International Conference on SIDS, to be held in Antigua and Barbuda in May next year.
I would like to thank the Government and peoples of Mauritius for hosting this important meeting and for their warm welcome and reception.
Excellencies,
The SIDS Accelerated Modalities of Action (SAMOA) Pathway was adopted nine years ago as a stand-alone, overarching framework that sets out the sustainable development priorities of SIDS, building on the Barbados Programme of Action and the Mauritius Strategy for Implementation.
It is consistent with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that were adopted by the global community just one year later in 2015.
Dear colleagues,
Today’s meeting is taking place at a very challenging time. Recent analysis, including that by UN DESA, presents a sobering picture of overall global development that is severely impacted by cascading and closely interlinked crises, including the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine and other conflicts, climate disasters and rising food and energy prices.
At the midpoint of the Sustainable Development Goals, only about 15 per cent of SDG targets with data are on track to be reached by 2030; more than half are moderately or severely off track and over 30 per cent have either seen no movement or regressed below the 2015 baseline.
The effects of the global crisis are felt particularly acutely in SIDS, which despite three decades of sincere efforts, remain a special case for sustainable development, given their inherent peculiarities and vulnerabilities.
Excellencies,
While long-standing cooperation and support provided by the international community has played an important role in helping SIDS make progress, it has nevertheless fallen short.
We need continued and enhanced efforts by all, including the United Nations system to assist SIDS address the multiple ongoing and emerging challenges they confront.
To provide immediate relief to developing economies, including SIDS, the Secretary-General has proposed an SDG Stimulus of $500 billion per year for investments in sustainable development and climate action.
The Secretary-General has also called for the redesign the global financial architecture so that it operates as a global safety net for all countries and provides access to affordable long-term finance.
As we look ahead, we should take advantage of the willingness to develop a wider analysis of new measures, building on existing experiences with eligibility exceptions, for concessional finance and multidimensional assessments, to address the limitations of an income-only assessment of development and graduation readiness.
Dear colleagues,
As you deliberate in the next few days, let me recall that the General Assembly has decided that the 4th International Conference on SIDS should assess the progress to date and the remaining gaps and challenges in the implementation of the outcomes of the previous Conferences on SIDS, and seek a renewed political commitment by all to effectively address their special needs and vulnerabilities by focusing on practical and pragmatic actions.
The Assembly also decided that the Conference should identify new and emerging challenges, opportunities and priorities for the sustainable development of SIDS and ways and means to address them, including through the strengthening of collaborative partnerships.
As the Secretary-General of the Conference, I will do my utmost to ensure that the work of the preparatory process and to the Conference itself receives the support it needs.
I will work closely with Madam Rabab Fatima, Under-Secretary-General and High Representative for LDCs, LLDCs and SIDS, in her capacity as Special Advisor for the Conference, as well as with the entire UN system to ensure that the Conference will be the watershed moment that the SIDS need.
I am pleased that so many UN entities have worked tirelessly with our host and DESA to support this regional preparatory meeting, including UN country teams and Resident Coordinator Offices who have contributed to many of the background notes for the various sessions. Your deliberations are also informed by findings by the Economic Commission for Africa of the implementation of the SAMOA Pathway in the region.
Moreover, earlier this summer, UN DESA and OHRLLS also conducted a global online consultation to seek the views and inputs of diverse stakeholders in SIDS.
A total of 170 inputs were received, among them 42 inputs from stakeholders working in the AIS region. I invite you to take a look at the synthesis of the findings for the AIS region that has been made available on the website.
We will be preparing similar summaries for the other regional preparatory meetings and a global report for the inter-regional meeting.
I look forward to a productive meeting and wish you all very successful deliberations.
Thank you.