| United Nations | A/CONF.167/9 |
General Assembly
Distr. GENERAL
October 1994
ORIGINAL:
ENGLISH
UNITED
NATIONS
Global Conference on the
Sustainable Development of
Small Island Developing States
REPORT OF THE GLOBAL CONFERENCE ON THE SUSTAINABLE
DEVELOPMENT OF SMALL ISLAND DEVELOPING STATES
Bridgetown, Barbados, 25 April-6 May 1994
CONTENTS
Page
I. RESOLUTIONS ADOPTED BY THE CONFERENCE ............................. 1
Resolution 1. Adoption of texts on the sustainable development of
small island developing States ..................... 1
Annexes
I. Declaration of Barbados ...................................... 2
II. Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of
Small Island Developing States ............................... 6
Resolution 2. Expression of gratitude to the people and Government
of Barbados ........................................ 56
Resolution 3. Credentials of representatives to the Global
Conference on the Sustainable Development of Small
Island Developing States ........................... 57
Resolution 4. Elections in South Africa .......................... 57
II. PROCEEDINGS OF THE CONFERENCE ..................................... 58
A. Attendance and organization of work ........................... 58
B. General debate ................................................ 63
C. Report of the Main Committee and action taken by the Conference 67
D. Report of the Credentials Committee ........................... 70
E. High-level segment of the Conference .......................... 72
F. Adoption of the report of the Conference ...................... 73
G. Closure of the Conference ..................................... 74
Annexes
I. List of documents before the Conference ........................... 75
II. Opening statement by H.E. Mr. L. Erskine Sandiford, Prime Minister
of Barbados and President of the Conference ....................... 78
III. Presidential summary of the high-level segment of the Conference .. 82
IV. List of participating non-governmental organizations .............. 88
Chapter I
RESOLUTIONS ADOPTED BY THE CONFERENCE
Resolution 1
Adoption of texts on the sustainable development of small
island developing States
The Global Conference on the Sustainable Development of Small Island
Developing States,
Having met in Bridgetown, Barbados, from 25 April to 6 May 1994,
1. Adopts the Declaration of Barbados and the Programme of Action for
the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States, which are
annexed to the present resolution;
2. Recommends to the General Assembly of the United Nations at its
forty-ninth session that it endorse the texts referred to in paragraph 1
above.
Annex I
DECLARATION OF BARBADOS
We the States participating in the Global Conference on the Sustainable
Development of Small Island Developing States,
Having met in Bridgetown, Barbados from 25 April to 6 May 1994,
Reaffirming the principles and commitments to sustainable development
embodied in the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, 1/
Agenda 21 2/ and the Non-legally Binding Authoritative Statement of Principles
for a Global Consensus on the Management, Conservation and Sustainable
Development of All Types of Forests, 3/ which were adopted by the nations of
the world at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development on
14 June 1992, as well as in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate
Change 4/ and the Convention on Biological Diversity, 5/
Recognizing that the Global Conference on the Sustainable Development of
Small Island Developing States translates Agenda 21 into specific policies,
actions and measures to be taken at the national, regional and international
levels to enable small island developing States to achieve sustainable
development,
Part One
Affirm that:
I
1. The survival of small island developing States is firmly rooted in
their human resources and cultural heritage, which are their most significant
assets; those assets are under severe stress and all efforts must be taken to
ensure the central position of people in the process of sustainable
development.
2. Sustainable development programmes must seek to enhance the quality
of life of peoples, including their health, well-being and safety.
3. Full attention should be given to gender equity and to the important
role and contribution of women, as well as to the needs of women and other
major groups, including children, youth and indigenous people.
II
Small island developing States have sovereign rights over their own
natural resources. Their biodiversity is among the most threatened in the
world and their ecosystems provide ecological corridors linking major areas of
biodiversity around the world. They bear responsibility for a significant
portion of the world's oceans and seas and their resources. The efforts of
small island developing States to conserve, protect and restore their
ecosystems deserve international cooperation and partnership.
III
1. Small island developing States are particularly vulnerable to
natural as well as environmental disasters and have a limited capacity to
respond to and recover from such disasters.
2. While small island developing States are among those that contribute
least to global climate change and sealevel rise, they are among those that
would suffer most from the adverse effects of such phenomena and could in some
cases become uninhabitable. Therefore, they are among those particularly
vulnerable States that need assistance under the United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change, including adaptation measures and mitigation
efforts.
3. Small island developing States share with all nations a critical
interest in the protection of coastal zones and oceans against the effects of
land-based sources of pollution.
4. Limited freshwater resources, increasing amounts of waste and
hazardous substances, and limited facilities for waste disposal combine to
make pollution prevention, waste management and the transboundary movement of
hazardous materials critical issues for small island developing States.
IV
Small island developing States are limited in size, have vulnerable
economies and are dependent both upon narrow resource bases and on
international trade, without the means of influencing the terms of that trade.
V
To enhance their national capacities and self-reliance, small island
developing States, with the assistance and support of the international
community, should actively promote human resources development programmes
including education, training and skills development. Their institutional and
administrative capacity to implement the programme of action must be
strengthened at all levels by supportive partnerships and cooperation,
including technical assistance, the further development of legislation and
mechanisms for information sharing.
VI
There is an urgent need in small island developing States to address the
constraints to sustainable development, including scarce land resources, which
lead to difficult land and agriculture use decisions; limited fresh water;
education and training needs; health and human settlement requirements;
inordinate pressures on coastal and marine environment and resources; and
limited means available to exploit natural resources on a sustainable basis.
VII
1. The special role of non-governmental organizations and the
importance of a partnership between Governments, intergovernmental
organizations and agencies, non-governmental organizations and other major
groups in implementing Agenda 21 and the programme of action at the national,
subregional, regional and international levels should be recognized.
2. That partnership should include efforts to increase public awareness
of the outcomes and follow-up of the Global Conference on the Sustainable
Development of Small Island Developing States through all available means of
communication.
Part Two
Declare that:
I
Based on the principle of the right to development, small island
developing States should, in accordance with their own priorities, endeavour
to achieve the goals of sustainable development by, inter alia, formulating
and implementing policies, strategies and programmes that take into account
development, health and environmental goals, strengthening national
institutions, and mobilizing all available resources, all of which are aimed
at improving the quality of life.
II
Through regional and subregional cooperation, small island developing
States and the international community should encourage strong functional
cooperation in the promotion of sustainable development by sharing information
and technology, strengthening institutions and building capacity.
III
1. The international community should cooperate with small island
developing States in the implementation of the Programme of Action for the
Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States by providing
effective means, including adequate, predictable new and additional financial
resources in accordance with chapter 33 of Agenda 21; facilitating the
transfer of environmentally sound technology, including on concessional and
preferential terms as mutually agreed, taking into account the need to protect
intellectual property rights as well as the special needs of developing
countries; and promoting fair, equitable and non-discriminatory trading
arrangements and a supportive international economic system.
2. The international community has a responsibility to facilitate the
efforts of small island developing States to minimize the stress on their
fragile ecosystems, including through cooperative action and partnership.
3. To achieve sustainable development and a higher quality of life for
all people, including people of small island developing States, all States
should reduce and eliminate unsustainable patterns of production and
consumption, and should promote appropriate demographic policies.
4. The international community should build new and equitable
partnerships for the sustainable development of small island developing States
through the implementation of the Programme of Action and should send a
powerful message to the world's peoples on the possibilities of joint action
undertaken with a sense of common purpose and partnership.
Notes
1/ Report of the United Nations Conference on Environment and
Development, Rio de Janeiro, 3-14 June 1992, vol. I, Resolutions Adopted by
the Conference (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.93.I.8 and
corrigendum), resolution 1, annex I.
2/ Ibid., annex II.
3/ Ibid., annex III.
4/ A/AC.237/18 (Part II)/Add.1, annex I.
5/ See United Nations Environment Programme, Convention on Biological
Diversity (Environmental Law and Institutions Programme Activity Centre),
June 1992.
Annex II
PROGRAMME OF ACTION FOR THE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF
SMALL ISLAND DEVELOPING STATES
CONTENTS
Chapter
Page
PREAMBLE ......................................................... 7
I. CLIMATE CHANGE AND SEALEVEL RISE ................................. 10
II. NATURAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL DISASTERS .............................. 13
III. MANAGEMENT OF WASTES ............................................. 15
IV. COASTAL AND MARINE RESOURCES ..................................... 18
V. FRESHWATER RESOURCES ............................................. 21
VI. LAND RESOURCES ................................................... 23
VII. ENERGY RESOURCES ................................................. 25
VIII. TOURISM RESOURCES ................................................ 27
IX. BIODIVERSITY RESOURCES ........................................... 28
X. NATIONAL INSTITUTIONS AND ADMINISTRATIVE CAPACITY ................ 31
XI. REGIONAL INSTITUTIONS AND TECHNICAL COOPERATION .................. 33
XII. TRANSPORT AND COMMUNICATION ...................................... 35
XIII. SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY ........................................... 37
XIV. HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT ....................................... 39
XV. IMPLEMENTATION, MONITORING AND REVIEW ............................ 42
PREAMBLE
1. In 1992, at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development,
the world community adopted Agenda 21. 1/ Agenda 21 reflects a global
consensus and political commitment at the highest level on development and
environment cooperation. The cooperation of all States is a prerequisite for
the fulfilment of the objectives of Agenda 21. Such cooperation must also
respond to the special circumstances and particular vulnerabilities of
countries through adequate and specific approaches.
2. The Global Conference on the Sustainable Development of Small Island
Developing States is the first global conference on sustainable development
and the implementation of Agenda 21. Agenda 21 represents a comprehensive
document, carefully negotiated and wherever referred to in the present
Programme of Action should be looked to as a whole.
3. The Rio Declaration on Environment and Development 2/ identifies human
beings as being at the centre of concerns for sustainable development.
Development initiatives in small island developing States should be seen in
relation to both the needs and aspirations of human beings and their
responsibility towards present and future generations. Small island
developing States have valuable resources, including oceans, coastal
environments, biodiversity and, most importantly, human resources. Their
potential is recognized, but the challenge for small island developing States
is to ensure that they are used in a sustainable way for the well-being of
present and future generations. Although they are afflicted by economic
difficulties and confronted by development imperatives similar to those of
developing countries generally, small island developing States also have their
own peculiar vulnerabilities and characteristics, so that the difficulties
they face in the pursuit of sustainable development are particularly severe
and complex.
4. There are many disadvantages that derive from small size, which are
magnified by the fact that many island States are not only small but are
themselves made up of a number of small islands. Those disadvantages include
a narrow range of resources, which forces undue specialization; excessive
dependence on international trade and hence vulnerability to global
developments; high population density, which increases the pressure on already
limited resources; overuse of resources and premature depletion; relatively
small watersheds and threatened supplies of fresh water; costly public
administration and infrastructure, including transportation and communication;
and limited institutional capacities and domestic markets, which are too small
to provide significant scale economies, while their limited export volumes,
sometimes from remote locations, lead to high freight costs and reduced
competitiveness. Small islands tend to have high degrees of endemism and
levels of biodiversity, but the relatively small numbers of the various
species impose high risks of extinction and create a need for protection.
5. The small size of small island developing States means that development
and environment are closely interrelated and interdependent. Recent human
history contains examples of entire islands rendered uninhabitable through
environmental destruction owing to external causes; small island developing
States are fully aware that the environmental consequences of ill-conceived
development can have catastrophic effects. Unsustainable development
threatens not only the livelihood of people but also the islands themselves
and the cultures they nurture. Climate change, climate variability and
sealevel rise are issues of grave concern. Similarly, the biological
resources on which small island developing States depend are threatened by the
large-scale exploitation of marine and terrestrial living resources.
6. Many small island developing States are entirely or predominantly coastal
entities. Due to the small size, isolation and fragility of island
ecosystems, their renowned biological diversity is among the most threatened
in the world. This requires that in pursuing development special attention be
paid to protecting the environment and people's livelihoods. It also requires
the integrated management of resources.
7. In some small island developing States, the rate of population growth
exceeds the rate of economic growth, placing serious and increasing pressure
on the capacity of those countries to provide basic services to their people
and placing a heavy burden on women in particular as heads of households.
Although their population density may be high, many small island developing
States have small populations in absolute terms, insufficient to generate
economies of scale in several areas, and they therefore have limited scope for
the full utilization of certain types of highly specialized expertise. They
experience high levels of migration, particularly of skilled human resources,
which not only places an undue burden on training facilities but also forces
them to import high-cost foreign expertise.
8. The lack of opportunities for achieving economies of scale, together with
their narrow resource base, tends to limit the total production of small
island developing States to a narrow range of crops, minerals and industries,
both manufacturing and services. Any adverse development concerning those
productive sectors, whether arising from market factors, natural or
environmental constraints, is likely to lead to significant reductions in
output, a fall in foreign-exchange earnings and increased unemployment.
9. Partly because of their small size and partly because of their
vulnerability to natural and environmental disasters, most small island
developing States are classified as high-risk entities, which has led to
insurance and reinsurance being either unavailable or exorbitantly expensive,
with adverse consequences for investment, production costs, government
finances and infrastructure.
10. Because the per capita income of many small island developing States
tends to be higher than that of developing countries as a group, they tend to
have limited access to concessionary resources. However, analysis of the
economic performance of small island developing States suggests that current
incomes are often facilitated by migrant remittances, preferential market
access for some major exports and assistance from the international community,
sources which are neither endogenous nor secure. Furthermore, those incomes
have generally been unstable over time: natural and man-made disasters,
difficulties in the international market for particular commodities and
recession in some developed economies often reduce incomes in small island
developing States dramatically, sometimes by as much as 20 to 30 per cent of
gross domestic product (GDP) in a single year.
11. Because small island development options are limited, they present
special challenges to planning for and implementing sustainable development.
To meet that challenge, the most valuable asset of small island developing
States is their human resources, which need to be given every opportunity to
fulfil their potential and contribute meaningfully to national, regional and
international development consistent with the Rio Declaration on Environment
and Development and Agenda 21. Small island developing States will be
constrained in meeting those challenges without the cooperation and assistance
of the international community. The sustainable development of small island
developing States requires actions that address the above constraints to
development. Those actions should integrate environmental considerations and
natural resource conservation objectives and gender considerations consistent
with the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development and Agenda 21, into
the development of social and economic development policies in international,
regional, subregional and/or bilateral cooperative programmes related to
islands.
12. Within small island developing States the critical contribution of women
to sustainable development and the involvement of youth to the long-term
success of Agenda 21 should be fully recognized. Accordingly, youth should be
encouraged to contribute to the decision-making process and all obstacles to
the equal participation of women in this process should be eliminated to allow
both youth and women to participate in and benefit from the sustainable
development of their particular societies.
13. Sharing a common aspiration for economic development and improved living
standards, small island developing States are determined that the pursuit of
material benefits should not undermine social, religious and cultural values
or cause any permanent harm to either their people or their land and marine
resources, which have sustained island life for many centuries. In Agenda 21,
the international community committed itself to:
(a) Adopt and implement plans and programmes to support the sustainable
development and utilization of the marine and coastal resources of small
island developing States, including meeting essential human needs, maintaining
biodiversity and improving the quality of life for island people;
(b) Adopt measures that will enable small island developing States to
cope effectively, creatively and sustainably with environmental change, as
well as to mitigate impacts on and reduce threats posed to marine and coastal
resources.
Those commitments were later incorporated into General Assembly resolution
47/189 of 22 December 1992, which called for a global conference on the
sustainable development of small island developing States.
14. In establishing the basis for a new global partnership for sustainable
development, States have acknowledged their common but differentiated
responsibilities in respect of global environmental degradation as stated in
Principle 7 of the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development. Principle
6 states that the special situation and needs of developing countries,
particularly the least developed and those most environmentally vulnerable,
shall be given special priority. Under chapter 17, section G of Agenda 21,
small island developing States and islands supporting small communities are
recognized as a special case for both environment and development, because
they are ecologically fragile and vulnerable and their small size, limited
resources, geographic dispersion and isolation from markets all place them at
a disadvantage economically and prevent economies of scale.
15. It is in that context that the present Programme of Action addresses the
special challenges and constraints facing small island developing States.
Because sustainable development is a process and not a phenomenon, the
Programme of Action focuses on the next steps that can be taken along the
comprehensive path to sustainable development which will follow the principles
endorsed by Governments at the United Nations Conference on Environment and
Development. The Programme of Action contains a synopsis of actions and
policies that should be implemented over the short, medium and long terms.
The reports of the regional technical meetings, held in preparation for the
Global Conference, remain an important point of reference since they contain a
broad collection of recommended actions for the pursuit of sustainable
development in small island developing States.
16. The Programme of Action presents a basis for action in 14 agreed priority
areas and defines a number of actions and policies related to environmental
and development planning that should be undertaken by small island developing
States with the cooperation and assistance of the international community. In
general, financing for the implementation of the Programme of Action will come
from countries' own public and private sectors. National elements, for
inclusion in the medium- and long-term sustainable development plans of small
island developing States, are recommended, along with the measures necessary
for enhancing their endogenous capacity. Regional approaches to sustainable
development/environment problems and technical cooperation for endogenous
capacity-building are proposed. And the role of the international community
is outlined, including its role in providing access to adequate, predictable,
new and additional financial resources; optimizing the use of existing
resources and mechanisms in accordance with chapter 33 of Agenda 21; and
adopting measures for supporting endogenous capacity-building, in particular
for developing human resources and promoting the access of small island
developing States to environmentally sound and energy-efficient technology for
their sustainable development. In that context, non-governmental
organizations and other major groups should be fully involved.
17. The Programme of Action identifies priority areas and indicates the
specific actions that are necessary to address the special challenges faced by
small island developing States. In fulfilling those actions, several cross-
sectoral areas are identified, for example, capacity-building, including human
resource development; institutional development at the national, regional and
international levels; cooperation in the transfer of environmentally sound
technologies; trade and economic diversification; and finance.
I. CLIMATE CHANGE AND SEALEVEL RISE
Basis for action
18. Small island developing States are particularly vulnerable to global
climate change, climate variability and sealevel rise. As their population,
agricultural land and infrastructure tend to be concentrated in the coastal
zone, any rise in sealevel will have significant and profound effects on their
economies and living conditions; the very survival of certain low-lying
countries will be threatened. Inundation of outlying islands and loss of land
above the high-tide mark may result in loss of exclusive economic rights over
extensive areas and in the destruction of existing economic infrastructure as
well as of existing human settlements. Global climate change may damage coral
reefs, alter the distribution of zones of upwelling and affect both
subsistence and commercial fisheries production. Furthermore, it may affect
vegetation and saline intrusion may adversely affect freshwater resources.
The increased frequency and intensity of the storm events that may result from
climate change will also have profound effects on both the economies and the
environments of small island developing States. Small island developing
States require all available information concerning those aspects of climate
change, as it may affect their ability to enable appropriate response
strategies to be developed and implemented.
19. The process established by the United Nations Framework Convention on
Climate Change 3/ and the ongoing negotiations of its Intergovernmental
Negotiating Committee are important international actions aimed at addressing
the threat of climate change, mitigating its adverse impacts on small island
developing States and assisting them in adapting to its adverse consequences.
It is becoming clear that the commitments contained in Article 4.2 (a) and (b)
of the Framework Convention, in particular those related to emissions of
greenhouse gases, should be considered inadequate for the long term and
further action may be required to make satisfactory progress towards achieving
the objective of the Framework Convention. In that regard, the consideration
at the first meeting of the Conference of the Parties of the adequacy of those
and all other relevant commitments under the Convention, in particular those
aimed at achieving effective adaptive response measures, is of the utmost
importance to small island developing States and the international community.
The development and use of renewable sources of energy and the dissemination
of sound and efficient energy technologies are seen as having a central role
in mitigating the adverse impact of climate change.
A. National action, policies and measures
(i) Ensure early ratification of or accession to the United Nations
Framework Convention on Climate Change, the Montreal Protocol on
Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer 4/ and other related legal
instruments.
(ii) Monitor, survey and collect data on climate change and sealevel
rise.
(iii) Formulate comprehensive adjustment and mitigation policies for
sealevel rise in the context of integrated coastal area management.
(iv) Assess the effects and the socio-economic implications of the impact
of climate change, climate variability and sealevel rise on small
island developing States.
(v) Map areas vulnerable to sealevel rise and develop computer-based
information systems covering the results of surveys, assessments and
observations as part of the development of adequate response
strategies, adaptation policies and measures to minimize the impact
of climate change, climate variability and sealevel rise.
(vi) Improve public and political understanding of the potential impacts
of climate change.
(vii) Formulate comprehensive strategies and measures (including the
preparation, facilitation and collection of information) on
adaptation to climate change that would contribute to a better
understanding of the range of issues associated with the development
of methodologies to facilitate adequate adaptation to climate
change.
(viii) Promote a more efficient use of energy resources in development
planning and use appropriate methods to minimize the adverse effects
of climate change on the sustainable development of those resources.
(ix) Increase participation in the bilateral, regional and global
research, assessment, monitoring and mapping of climate impacts,
including the adoption of oceanographic and atmospheric measures and
policies and the development of response strategies.
B. Regional action
(i) Create and/or strengthen programmes and projects to monitor and
improve predictive capacity for climate change, climate variability
and sealevel rise, and to assess the impacts of climate change on
marine resources, freshwater and agricultural production, including
pests.
(ii) Develop and/or strengthen mechanisms to facilitate the exchange of
information and experiences among small island developing States,
and to promote technology transfer and training in those States in
response to climate change, including preparedness response.
(iii) Provide technical assistance for ratification or accession to the
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and assist
those Parties that have ratified the Framework Convention in
assuming their major responsibilities under it.
(iv) Support national efforts aimed at developing strategies and measures
on adaptation to climate change as well as the development of
technical guidelines and methodologies to facilitate adequate
adaptation to climate change.
C. International action
(i) Implement immediately the prompt-start resolution agreed to by the
Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee for a Framework Convention
on Climate Change.
(ii) Support small island developing States in responding to the call by
the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change for vulnerable coastal
nations to develop integrated coastal zone management plans,
including measures for responding adaptively to the impacts of
climate change and sealevel rise.
(iii) Provide improved access to financial and technical resources for
monitoring variability and change of climate and sealevel rise, for
assessing the impacts of climate change, and for developing and
implementing response adaptation strategies in a timely manner,
recognizing the specific vulnerabilities and disproportionate cost
borne by small island developing States.
(iv) Provide improved access to information from the activities carried
out to reduce uncertainties of climate change and assist the
inter-island exchange of this information.
(v) Provide access to environmentally sound and energy-efficient
technology to assist small island developing States in conserving
energy.
(vi) Support the activities of intergovernmental, regional and
subregional organizations aimed at assisting small island developing
States in coping effectively and creatively with climate change,
climate variability and sealevel rise, including providing systems
for systematic and continuous research, monitoring, surveying and
data collection, as well as assessment, in the areas of climate
change, climate variability and sealevel rise, coral reefs, the role
of oceans in the world climate, tidal variations and the salt water
intrusion of freshwater.
(vii) Provide improved access to financial and technical resources to
assist small island developing States, which are particularly
vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change, in meeting the
costs associated with the development of national and regional
strategies, measures and methodologies to facilitate adequate
adaptation to climate change.
II. NATURAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL DISASTERS
Basis for action
20. Small island developing States are prone to extremely damaging natural
disasters, primarily in the form of cyclones, volcanic eruptions and
earthquakes. In some islands, the range of these disasters includes storm
surges, landslides, extended droughts and extensive floods. A recent study by
the former Office of the United Nations Disaster Relief Coordinator (currently
the Department of Humanitarian Affairs of the United Nations Secretariat) has
shown that at least 13 of the 25 most disaster-prone countries are small
island developing States. Due to climate change, such events, including
drought, are perceived to be occurring with increasing frequency and
intensity. Natural disasters are of special concern to small island
developing States because of their small size; their dependence on agriculture
and tourism which are particularly vulnerable to natural and environmental
disasters; their narrow resource base; and the pervasive impact of such events
on their people, environment and economies, including the loss of insurance
coverage. For countries affected by such natural disasters, those particular
characteristics mean that the economic, social and environmental consequences
are long-lasting and that the costs of rehabilitation are high as a percentage
of gross national product (GNP). For similar reasons the impact of oil-spills
and other environmental disasters can also be severe.
A. National action, policies and measures
(i) Establish and/or strengthen disaster preparedness and management
institutions and policies, including building codes and regulatory
and enforcement systems, in order to mitigate, prepare for and
respond to the increasing range and frequency of natural and
environmental disasters and promote early warning systems and
facilities for the rapid dissemination of information and warnings.
(ii) Strengthen the capacity of local broadcasting to assist remote rural
and outer island communities within countries and among neighbouring
countries during disaster events.
(iii) Establish a national disaster emergency fund with joint private and
public sector support for areas where insurance is not available in
the commercial market, taking into account the relevant experience
to be gained from the operation of similar funds.
(iv) Integrate natural and environmental disaster policies into national
development planning processes and encourage the development and
implementation of public and private sector pre- and post-disaster
recovery plans, drawing on the capacity of the United Nations
Department of Humanitarian Affairs and bearing in mind the
International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction.
(v) Strengthen cultural and traditional systems that improve the
resilience of local communities to disaster events.
B. Regional action
(i) Establish and/or strengthen, where appropriate, regional
institutions to complement and support national efforts in disaster
mitigation, preparedness and management.
(ii) Establish and/or strengthen, where appropriate, mechanisms for
sharing experience, information and resources, including expertise,
among small island developing States.
(iii) Increase access to telecommunication links and satellite facilities
for disaster monitoring, assessment and information exchange.
(iv) Establish and/or strengthen existing regional mechanisms and
communication systems for rapid response to disasters.
(v) Facilitate, as appropriate, the setting up of necessary regional
committees for the International Decade, which could serve as a
platform for the exchange of ideas, information and strategies for
natural disaster reduction in each region.
(vi) Support the operation of a national disaster emergency fund, taking
into account the relevant experience to be gained from the operation
of similar funds, as well as the enactment of standardized building
codes and relevant legislation.
C. International action
(i) Assist small island developing States in establishing and/or
strengthening national and regional institutional mechanisms and
policies designed to reduce the impacts of natural disasters,
improve disaster preparedness and integrate natural disaster
considerations in development planning, including through providing
access to resources for disaster mitigation, preparedness, response
and recovery.
(ii) Improve access to technology and relevant training to assist with
hazard and risk assessment and early warning systems, and to assist
with the protection of islands from environmental disasters
consistent with national and regional strategies for disaster
management.
(iii) Provide and facilitate technical support and training for disaster
preparedness (including early warning) and relief programmes through
the offices of the Department of Humanitarian Affairs of the United
Nations Secretariat, the World Meteorological Organization, the
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations
Environment Programme (UNEP), the International Maritime
Organization, the International Telecommunication Union and other
relevant international organizations.
(iv) Encourage the International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction
and the World Conference on Natural Disaster Reduction, which will
be held in May 1994, to give special recognition to small island
developing States so that their unique characteristics will be taken
into account in developing natural disaster reduction management
programmes.
(v) Through the offices of the Department of Humanitarian Affairs,
support and facilitate the collection, storage, exchange and
dissemination of information useful for pre-disaster planning, as
well as disaster preparedness (including early warning), response
and recovery, and facilitate the exchange of cooperation between
regions.
III. MANAGEMENT OF WASTES
Basis for action
21. The shortage of land areas and resources available for safe disposal,
population growth and the increase in imports of polluting and hazardous
substances combine to make pollution prevention and the management of wastes a
critical issue for small island developing States. Wastes in those States
tend to be highly visible, but due to their limited capacity to monitor the
waste stream the true extent of the problem remains poorly understood. For
small island developing States, the disposal of wastes is a serious constraint
to sustainable development: both land and sea-based sources of pollution
require urgent attention.
22. All small island developing States share the problem of how to safely
dispose of solid and liquid wastes, particularly the wastes generated by
urbanization, which otherwise result in the contamination of groundwater and
lagoon areas. Point source pollution from industrial wastes and sewage,
inappropriately sited and poorly managed garbage dumps and the disposal of
toxic chemicals are significant contributors to marine pollution and coastal
degradation. Limited land area makes the option of landfill disposal
unsustainable in the long term. Incineration, while reducing the volume of
wastes, is prohibitive in terms of cost and still requires the disposal of ash
containing potentially hazardous substances in high concentrations. Pressure
on forests to provide fuelwood and to expand agricultural development together
with heavy use of agricultural chemicals also aggravate downstream pollution
and sedimentation problems.
23. There is also growing concern about the transboundary movement of toxic
and hazardous waste, including the use of small island developing States for
the disposal of waste generated by other countries. The isolation and oceanic
location of small island developing States and their dependence on a marine
and limited terrestrial resource base make them highly vulnerable to
contamination by toxic and hazardous wastes and chemicals, and radioactive
materials. The passage of ships carrying toxic and hazardous wastes,
chemicals and radioactive materials is of international concern and of
priority concern to small island developing States. There is a need to
develop and enhance the emergency response capacities necessary to protect
marine and coastal environments from accidents and incidents relating to
marine transport. Emergency response capabilities and any damage compensation
arrangements must not impose an unreasonable burden on small island developing
States.
24. Given that long-term disposal options are limited and will constrain
sustainable development, small island developing States will need to look for
ways of minimizing and/or converting wastes, such as sewage, into a resource
(e.g., fertilizer for agriculture). This will include action ranging from
limiting imports of non-biodegradable and hazardous substances to changing
community attitudes to the disposal and use of sewage. In the short term,
existing wastes require effective disposal, but at the same time incentives to
continue waste generation should be avoided.
A. National action, policies and measures
(i) Develop fiscal and policy incentives and other measures to encourage
environmentally sustainable imports and local products with low
waste or degradable waste content.
(ii) Develop and implement appropriate regulatory measures, including
emission discharge and pollution standards, for the reduction,
prevention, control and monitoring of pollution from all sources;
for the safe and efficient management of toxic, hazardous and solid
wastes, including sewage, herbicides, pesticides and industrial and
hospital effluent; and for the proper management of disposal sites.
(iii) Ratify and implement relevant conventions, including the Basel
Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous
Wastes and Their Disposal 5/ and the Convention on the Prevention of
Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and Other Matter (London
Convention of 1972), 6/ as well as relevant regional conventions.
(iv) Formulate and implement public awareness and education campaigns
designed to gain local recognition of the need to control wastes at
the source; of the value of reuse, recycling and appropriate
packaging; and of the possibilities for converting wastes to
resources in culturally appropriate ways.
(v) Introduce clean technologies and treatment of waste at the source
and appropriate technology for solid waste treatment.
(vi) Develop information systems and baseline data for waste management
and pollution control, monitoring the types and quantities of
wastes, for both sea- and land-based sources of pollution.
(vii) Establish port reception facilities for the collection of waste in
accordance with annex V of the International Convention for the
Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL 73/78). 7/
(viii) In conformity with the Basel Convention and relevant decisions taken
by the parties to that Convention, formulate and enforce national
laws and/or regulations that ban the importation from States that
are members of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and
Development (OECD) of hazardous wastes and other wastes subject to
the Basel Convention, including hazardous wastes and other wastes
destined for recycling and recovery operations.
B. Regional action
(i) Develop regional pollution prevention programmes, including regional
centres for pollution prevention that would conduct demonstration
projects, workshops and multimedia presentations tailored to
specific groups; the development of economic incentives to further
pollution prevention and waste management; relevant legislation; a
coordinated and focused monitoring programme; and, where
appropriate, the development of waste management and prevention
trust funds.
(ii) Remove and dispose of existing hazardous wastes, such as
polychlorinated biphenyls, with the technical assistance of
developed countries.
(iii) Establish clearing-houses and increase the collection and synthesis
of data and information on the sources, levels, amounts, kinds,
trends and effects of pollution and waste on marine and coastal
systems, as well as on processes and technologies for addressing
pollution control from land and sea-based sources.
(iv) Establish regional mechanisms, including conventions where
appropriate, to protect the oceans, seas and coastal areas from
ship-generated wastes, oil spills and the transboundary movement of
toxic and hazardous waste, consistent with international law.
(v) Examine ways to resolve disputes concerning waste disposal practices
affecting small islands and encourage a collaborative examination of
the issues of liability and redress in the context of the Basel
Convention.
(vi) Facilitate the formulation and implementation of public awareness
and education campaigns designed to gain local recognition of the
need to control wastes at the source; the value of reuse, recycling
and appropriate packaging; and of the possibilities for converting
wastes to resources in culturally appropriate ways.
(vii) Establish, where appropriate, regional centres for the training and
transfer to cleaner production technologies and the management of
hazardous wastes generated at the national level.
C. International action
(i) Support the strengthening of national and regional capabilities to
carry out pollution monitoring and research and to formulate and
apply pollution control and abatement measures.
(ii) Support the strengthening of institutions to provide assistance to
Governments and industry in the adoption of clean production
technologies as well as in the prevention of pollution and the
handling, treatment and disposal of hazardous wastes.
(iii) Accept the right of small island developing States to regulate,
restrict and/or ban the importation of products containing
non-biodegradable and/or hazardous substances and to prohibit the
transboundary movement of hazardous and radioactive wastes and
materials within their jurisdiction, consistent with international
law.
(iv) Ensure that the international conventions and arrangements and
related negotiations on marine pollution, in particular any
amendments to the London Convention of 1972 but also in relation to
land-based sources of marine pollution, take into account the
interests and capacities of small island developing States.
(v) Support measures to assist small island developing States in
improving their capacity for the negotiation, follow-up and
implementation of international conventions or arrangements, as well
as for related negotiations on marine pollution, in particular any
amendments to the London Convention of 1972 but also in relation to
land-based sources of marine pollution.
(vi) Assist in the implementation of monitoring and pollution prevention
programmes and the establishment of port reception facilities for
the collection of wastes in accordance with annex 5 of MARPOL 73/78.
(vii) Enhance international cooperation in the establishment of waste
management facilities, the control of toxic chemicals and pollution
prevention as components of international investment projects,
whether funded by multilateral or private sources.
(viii) Assist small island developing States in assessing the impact of
land-based sources of marine pollution and to develop mechanisms to
eliminate or minimize the pollution source.
(ix) Improve the access to resources of national and regional efforts to
formulate and implement public awareness and education campaigns
that are designed to gain local recognition of the need to control
wastes at the source; the value of reuse, recycling and appropriate
packaging; and of the possibilities for converting wastes to
resources in culturally appropriate ways.
(x) Ensure that the Basel Convention group of experts developing
guidelines for monitoring the effects of the management of hazardous
wastes on human health and the environment takes into account the
concerns of small island developing States.
(xi) Provide improved access to financial and technical resources to
assist small island developing States in establishing regional
centres for the training and transfer of cleaner production
technologies and the management of hazardous wastes, and in
developing inventories to register the training and technical
activities of international organizations related to waste
management and cleaner production.
IV. COASTAL AND MARINE RESOURCES
Basis for action
25. Sustainable development in small island developing States depends
largely on coastal and marine resources, because their small land area means
that those States are effectively coastal entities. Population and economic
development - both subsistence and cash - are concentrated in the coastal
zone. The establishment of the 200-mile exclusive economic zone has vastly
extended the fisheries and other marine resources available to small island
developing States. Their heavy dependence on coastal and marine resources
emphasizes the need for appropriate and effective management.
26. The development and management of programmes designed to achieve the
ecologically and economically sustainable utilization of coastal and marine
resources are major challenges for small island developing States. The lack
of an integrated approach to coastal and marine area management has limited
the effectiveness of past and present management measures which is
increasingly resulting in coastal habitats being degraded through pollution,
natural resources being overexploited and growing conflicts between competing
resource uses. Development patterns have also had an adverse impact on
traditional management systems, an impact in many cases exacerbated by the
effects of natural hazards and extreme events, such as
hurricanes/cyclones/typhoons, storm surges and abnormally high tides.
A. National action, policies and measures
(i) Establish and/or strengthen, where appropriate, institutional,
administrative and legislative arrangements for developing and
implementing integrated coastal zone management plans and strategies
for coastal watersheds and exclusive economic zones, including
integrating them within national development plans.
(ii) Design comprehensive monitoring programmes for coastal and marine
resources, including wetlands, in order to determine shoreline and
ecosystem stability, and also document and apply, as a basis for
integrated coastal zone planning and decision-making, traditional
knowledge and management practices that are ecologically sound and
include the participation of local communities.
(iii) Develop and/or strengthen national capabilities for the sustainable
harvesting and processing of fishery resources and provide training
and awareness programmes for the managers (Government and local
communities) of coastal and marine resources.
(iv) Ratify and/or adhere to regional and international conventions
concerning the protection of coastal and marine resources and combat
unsustainable fishing and related practices.
B. Regional action
(i) Develop and/or strengthen the capacity of regional organizations to
undertake activities in coastal and marine areas, including research
into commercial and non-commercial fisheries with a view to
sustainable harvesting and utilization, as well as surveys on reef,
estuary, wetland and lagoon resources. Also monitor and promote
innovative ways to sustainably develop territorial waters and
exclusive economic zones, including providing support for
aquaculture, mariculture, coral reef and mangrove programmes.
(ii) Develop a methodology for integrated coastal zone management
appropriate to small island developing States, particularly very
small, low elevation and coral islands.
(iii) Develop and/or strengthen regional clearing-houses for coastal and
marine environmental information to facilitate the collection,
synthesis and sharing of relevant information, knowledge and
experience among small island developing States in a structured and
systematic way.
(iv) Develop programmes to enhance negotiating and related skills for the
management and exploitation of coastal and marine resources,
including the negotiation of fisheries agreements.
(v) Develop and/or strengthen regional capabilities for the effective
surveillance and monitoring of activities in the exclusive economic
zones of small island developing States.
(vi) Harmonize policies and strategies for the coordination of the
sustainable management and utilization of coastal and marine
resources.
C. International action
(i) Develop mechanisms for the gathering and sharing of information and
expertise, particularly interregionally among small island
developing States, including geographic information systems (GIS)
techniques and facilities for the assessment of coastal and marine
resources, including the regional nodes of the UNEP Global Resource
Information Database.
(ii) Cooperate in facilitating mutually advantageous fishing agreements
between small island developing States and foreign fishing groups;
take account of the concerns and characteristics of those States
within the United Nations Conference on Straddling Fish Stocks and
Highly Migratory Fish Stocks; and encourage and facilitate the full
participation of small island developing States in the Conference
and in the implementation of the Conference outcomes.
(iii) Assist with the establishment and/or strengthening, where necessary,
of new institutional and administrative arrangements for the
development of integrated coastal zone management plans and their
implementation.
(iv) Support small island developing States in establishing national and
regional capabilities for the effective surveillance and monitoring
of activities within their exclusive economic zones, setting up
regional and other joint-venture fishing enterprises, developing
inventories of marine resources and regional approaches to the
sustainable management of their exclusive economic zones, and
strengthening regional marine research centres.
(v) Use the relevant results of the World Coast Conference 1993, held at
Noordwijk, the Netherlands, from 1 to 5 November 1993 as well as the
ongoing work within the UNEP Regional Seas Programme to assist small
island developing States with the development and implementation of
integrated coastal zone management plans, to improve international
coordination in that field and to develop strategies to prevent
further marine and coastal degradation.
(vi) Monitor the results of the Meeting of Government-designated Experts
Focusing on the 1985 Montreal Guidelines for the Protection of the
Marine Environment Against Pollution from Land-Based Sources, to be
held in Montreal from 6 to 10 June 1994, which are expected to be
useful for assisting small island developing States in that area.
(vii) Include, in means of building capacity for integrated coastal zone
management planning and implementation, strengthening regional and
international networks, including South-South relationships;
increasing public awareness and participation; enhancing relevant
education and increasing training activities; ensuring the
involvement and participation of non-governmental organizations and
other major groups; supporting the development of concepts,
methodologies and tools; and supporting and strengthening
international research and improvements in monitoring, the results
of which should be integrated into policy development, planning and
decision-making.
V. FRESHWATER RESOURCES
Basis for action
27. Freshwater resources are vital for meeting basic needs and the
inadequate protection of the quality and supply of freshwater resources can
set important limits to sustainable development. Many health hazards in
developing countries are related to poor water quality and limited water
quantity. Because of their small size and particular geological,
topographical and climatic conditions, many small island developing States
face severe constraints in terms of both the quality and quantity of
freshwater. This is particularly the case for low-lying coral-based islands,
where groundwater supplies are limited and are protected only by a thin
permeable soil. Even where rainfall is abundant, access to clean water has
been restricted by the lack of adequate storage facilities and effective
delivery systems.
28. Inadequate action to safeguard watershed areas and groundwater resources
poses a further long-term threat, while in urban areas rapid population
growth, changes in economic strategies and a growing per capita use of
freshwater are significant challenges. In that context, sound long-term
management strategies for water catchment and storage areas, including the
treatment and distribution of limited water supplies, are of particular
economic and environmental importance. Such strategies may involve
substantial capital investment and ongoing maintenance programmes, which may
affect the real cost of water. A common threat to the freshwater resources of
small island developing States is the contamination of supply by human and
livestock waste, industry-related pollution and, in some cases, pesticides and
other agricultural chemicals. All strategies need to take account of the
possible constraints to water supply from low groundwater recharge in times of
drought, salt-water intrusion, and inundation as a result of climate change
and sealevel rise. Such intrusions are made even more likely as a result of
over-abstraction, particularly during times of extended drought. In that
regard, due consideration must be paid to the primacy of the need to supply
water for sanitation purposes.
29. The Political Statement and Action Programme, adopted at the
International Ministerial Conference on Drinking Water and Environmental
Sanitation, held in the Netherlands in 1994 (E/CN.17/1994/12, annex), could
serve as one of the important bases for small island developing States in
implementing relevant portions of chapter 18, programme area D, of Agenda 21.
A. National action, policies and measures
(i) Develop, maintain and protect watershed areas, irrigation systems,
distribution networks and appropriate catchment systems and promote
effective programmes for water conservation and prevention of water
contamination through, inter alia, the development of integrated
national water plans, the use of appropriate incentives and
regulatory measures, community involvement in management and
conservation, forest management and reforestation and investment
strategies.
(ii) Adopt appropriate standards for the management of freshwater
resources, and develop and strengthen low-cost monitoring and
assessment capabilities, linked to water resource databases, for
relevant decision-making tools, including forecasting models for
water management, planning and utilization.
(iii) Strengthen procedures to monitor and respond to the impacts on water
resources of natural and environmental hazards, in particular the
impacts of climate change and climate variability, including drought
and sealevel rise.
(iv) Encourage the development and acquisition of appropriate technology
and training for cost-effective sewage disposal, desalination and
rainwater collection to provide sufficiently high quality potable
freshwater, including opportunities for technology interchange among
small island developing States.
(v) Strengthen national capacities to make decisions among competing
demands for the allocation of limited water resources.
B. Regional action
(i) Develop and strengthen initiatives for regional cooperation in
training and research to assist Governments in the development and
implementation of integrated water resource plans, including the
conservation and rehabilitation of watersheds, the protection of
groundwater, setting standards for the management of those
resources, fostering public awareness and water quality monitoring.
(ii) Provide technical assistance for the assessment and/or development
and transfer of appropriate technology for water collection,
distribution and protection, in particular sewage disposal
technology.
C. International action
(i) Improve access to environmentally sound and energy efficient
technologies for the catchment, production, conservation and
delivery of freshwater, including rainwater catchment, water
treatment systems and desalination, and also foster the exchange of
information on water treatment methods.
(ii) Enhance the capacity of small island developing States to develop
and implement integrated water resource plans, including water
resource allocation and management, the conservation and
rehabilitation of watersheds, the protection of groundwater,
fostering public awareness and water quality monitoring.
(iii) Assist training and public awareness campaigns in building up an
endogenous capacity relating to water management and conservation,
and appropriate rainwater catchment systems.
(iv) Support the establishment of methodologies aimed at assessing the
adverse impact of climate change on freshwater resources and develop
appropriate response and mitigation measures.
VI. LAND RESOURCES
Basis for action
30. The small size of most small island developing States, coupled with land
tenure systems, soil types, relief and climatic variation, limit the area
available for urban settlement, agriculture, mining, commercial forestry,
tourism and other infrastructure, and create intense competition between land
use options. Most aspects of environmental management in small island
developing States are directly dependent on, or influenced by, the planning
and utilization of land resources, which in turn are intimately linked to
coastal zone management and protection in those States.
31. For human requirements to be met in a sustainable manner, competing
demands for the use of land resources must be resolved and more effective and
efficient ways of using those natural resources must be developed and adopted.
As populations grow in small island developing States, there is a need for
resolution of competing demands, particularly where land is limited and where
commercial development of comparatively large tracts of land can result in
shifts in small scale and subsistence agriculture to marginal lands.
32. The major long-term land management issue in small island developing
States is the degradation of the limited land area due to a variety of
factors, including overuse because of high population pressure on a limited
resource base; deforestation due to unsustainable commercial logging or
permanent conversion to agricultural or grazing pursuits; and other episodic
events, such as fire. Natural events, such as catastrophic cyclones, are also
major contributors. Land degradation of that kind results in accelerated
erosion and a resultant decline in fertility and productivity, a deterioration
in water quality and the siltation of rivers, lagoons and reefs.
Deforestation is also linked to a decline in the continuity and quality of
village water supply, the depletion of genetic, wood and non-wood plant
resources, and the fading away of traditional forest, lagoon and reef-based
subsistence life systems.
33. The search for an improved quality of life, with its increased demands
for cash income, has led to greater production of export cash crops,
increasing areas of cultivation and resulting in more mechanized production
systems. In the past, unsustainable agricultural practices in those areas
have contributed to deforestation, the loss of multiple purpose trees from the
rural landscape and the agrochemical pollution of soils, freshwater and
coastal resources. There is, however, much that can be learned from
traditional systems of food production and the use of plants to promote
sustainable agriculture and land management.
34. The conclusions and recommendations of the Interregional Conference of
Small Island Countries on Sustainable Development and Environment in
Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, held in Barbados from 7 to
10 April 1992, 8/ contain the consensus position of small islands in the
agricultural sector. The Bridgetown Declaration 9/ emanating from that
ministerial Conference affirmed the determination and commitment of those
countries to pursue sustainable development policies that ensure the long-term
viability of their agriculture, forestry and fisheries sectors.
A. National action, policies and measures
(i) Develop and improve national databases and the dissemination of
information to relevant groups, especially local communities, youth
and women, for land-use planning and management, including estimates
of the carrying capacity, economic and environmental value of land
resources, along with appropriate decision-making tools, such as
land/geographic information systems.
(ii) Prepare and/or review land-use plans in conjunction with
agricultural, forestry, mining, tourism, traditional land-use
practices and other land-use policies, with a view to formulating
comprehensive land-use plans and zoning so as to protect land
resources, ensure sustainable and productive land-use and guard
against land degradation, pollution and exceeding island carrying
capacity.
(iii) Encourage appropriate forms of land tenure, improved land
administration and a greater appreciation of the integrated nature
of land development in order to facilitate sustainable land-use.
(iv) Formulate and enforce laws, regulations, and economic pricing and
incentives in order to encourage the sustainable and integrated use,
management and conservation of the land and its natural resources.
(v) Support appropriate afforestation and reforestation programmes, with
appropriate emphasis on natural regeneration and the participation
of land owners, in order to ensure watershed and coastal protection
and reduce land degradation.
(vi) Improve the availability, affordability and environmental quality of
shelter in human settlements, in accordance with chapter 7 of
Agenda 21.
(vii) Increase attention to national physical planning in both urban and
rural environments, focusing on training to strengthen physical
planning offices, including the use of environmental impact
assessments and other decision-making tools.
B. Regional action
(i) Provide appropriate training and other capacity-building
opportunities for small island developing States, including systems
for providing a continuous surveillance of the rate and extent of
land-use changes and monitoring adverse environmental effects, in
order to facilitate the implementation of national actions.
(ii) Collect, synthesize and share among small island developing States,
in a structured and systematic way, relevant information, knowledge
and experience on sustainable land-use practices and policies,
including issues pertaining to environmental, agricultural,
forestry, mining and other land-based sectors, market intelligence
information, and the assessment of potential interested overseas
investors.
C. International action
(i) Support the improved availability of shelter and the improved
economic and environmental quality of human settlements for small
island developing States in accordance with chapter 7 of Agenda 21.
(ii) Facilitate the development and improvement of national databases and
the dissemination of information to relevant groups, especially
local communities, youth and women, for land-use planning and
management, including estimates of the carrying capacity, economic
and environmental value of land resources, along with appropriate
decision-making tools such as land/geographic information systems.
(iii) Facilitate more effective international and interregional
cooperation, coordination, collaboration and technical exchanges in
the fields of agriculture, forestry and other land-use, through
international and interregional networks and training programmes.
VII. ENERGY RESOURCES
Basis for action
35. Small island developing States are currently heavily dependent on
imported petroleum products, largely for transport and electricity generation,
energy often accounting for more than 12 per cent of imports. They are also
heavily dependent on indigenous biomass fuels for cooking and crop drying.
36. Small island developing States will continue to be heavily dependent on
petroleum fuels and biomass both in the short and medium term. However, the
current uses of those fuels tend to be highly inefficient. Increased
efficiency through appropriate technology and national energy policies and
management measures will reap both financial and environmental benefits for
small island developing States.
37. The renewable energy resources endowments of small island developing
States vary greatly. All have substantial solar resources, which have still
not been developed to their full potential. Wind potential is highly variable
with location, both within and between countries. Hydroelectric power is a
possibility only for some islands. Biomass endowment is common but unequal.
Studies of the potential for geothermal, ocean thermal energy conversion and
wave energy are continuing.
38. Several constraints to the large-scale commercial use of renewable
energy resources remain, including technology development, investment costs,
available indigenous skills and management capabilities. Small-scale
application for rural electrification has been sporadic. The use of renewable
energy resources as substantial commercial fuels by small island developing
States is dependent on the development and commercial production of
appropriate technologies.
A. National action, policies and measures
(i) Implement appropriate public education and awareness programmes,
including consumer incentives to promote energy conservation.
(ii) Promote the efficient use of energy and the development of
environmentally sound sources of energy and energy-efficient
technologies, paying special attention to the possibilities of
using, where appropriate, economic instruments and incentive
structures and the increasing economic possibilities of renewable
sources of energy.
(iii) Establish and/or strengthen, where appropriate, research
capabilities in the development and promotion of new and renewable
sources of energy, including wind, solar, geothermal, hydroelectric,
wave and biomass energy, and ocean thermal energy conversion.
(iv) Strengthen research capabilities and develop technologies to
encourage the efficient utilization of non-renewable sources of
energy.
B. Regional action
(i) Establish or strengthen research and policy capabilities in the
development of new and renewable sources of energy, including wind,
solar, geothermal, hydroelectric, wave and biomass energy.
(ii) Assist, where appropriate, in the formulation of energy policies,
standards and guidelines for the energy sector that are applicable
to small island developing States, and enhance national capacity to
effectively plan, manage and monitor their energy sectors.
(iii) Gather and disseminate information, and promote regional cooperation
and technical exchanges among small island developing States on
energy-sector issues, including new and renewable sources of energy.
C. International action
(i) Support the research, development and utilization of renewable
sources of energy and related technologies and improve the
efficiency of existing technologies and end-use equipment based on
conventional energy sources.
(ii) Formulate and ratify international agreements on energy-sector
issues in relation to sustainable development in such areas as
carbon emissions and the transportation of petroleum (for example,
the use of double-hulled tankers).
(iii) Develop effective mechanisms for the transfer of energy technology
and establish databases to disseminate information on experience in
the use of new and renewable sources of energy as well as on the
efficient use of non-renewable energy sources.
(iv) Encourage international institutions and agencies, including public
international financial institutions, to incorporate environmental
efficiency and conservation principles into energy-sector-related
projects, training and technical assistance, and, where appropriate,
to provide concessionary financing facilities for energy-sector
reforms.
(v) Develop effective and efficient ways of utilizing, disposing of,
recycling and reducing the by-products and waste of energy
production.
VIII. TOURISM RESOURCES
Basis for action
39. Tourism has contributed much to the development of small island
developing States and, as one of only a few development options for those
small States, will continue to be very important for their future growth. It
could also stimulate the development of other sectors. However, if not
properly planned and managed, tourism could significantly degrade the
environment on which it is so dependent. The fragility and interdependence of
coastal zones and the unspoilt areas on which eco-tourism depends calls for
careful management. One of the special tourist attractions of small island
developing States is the distinctiveness of their cultures. The diversity and
fragility of their environments are reflected in the diversity and fragility
of their cultures. The protection of the former is an important condition for
the protection of the latter.
40. Capital investment in tourism, particularly for the necessary
infrastructure, is costly. There is usually great competition for land
resources among tourism, agriculture and other land uses. Large increases in
tourism and the overdevelopment of tourism in particular areas or in whole
islands could be environmentally and culturally disruptive and detrimental to
other valuable sectors, such as agriculture. It is imperative, therefore,
that the development of tourism be carefully planned, particularly in relation
to compatible land uses, water management, coastal zone management and the
development of parks and protected areas. Tourism, like all forms of
development in the coastal zone, needs to be carefully integrated within the
existing cultural and environmental constraints and opportunities present
within small island developing States. Eco-tourism, linking areas of high
ecological value to low-impact tourism, may present important and
environmentally sustainable opportunities for tourism development in small
island developing States.
A. National action, policies and measures
(i) Ensure that tourism development and environmental management are
mutually supportive.
(ii) Adopt integrated planning and policies to ensure sustainable tourism
development, with particular attention to land-use planning and
coastal zone management, requiring environmental impact assessments
for all tourism projects; the continuous monitoring of the
environmental impact of all tourism activities; and the development
of guidelines and standards for design and construction taking into
account energy and water consumption, the generation and disposal of
wastes and land degradation, the proper management and protection of
eco-tourism attractions, and the carrying capacity of areas for
tourism.
(iii) Identify and develop facilities to meet specific niche markets,
particularly in eco-tourism, nature and cultural tourism, and
involve local populations in the identification and management of
natural protected areas set aside for eco-tourism.
(iv) Adopt measures to protect the cultural integrity of small island
developing States.
B. Regional action
(i) Ensure that tourism and the environment are mutually supportive in
cooperation schemes at the regional level including, where
appropriate, through harmonizing standards and regulations.
(ii) Encourage the assessment and development of potential
complementarities among small island developing States, including
the development of packaged options covering several islands and
joint marketing and training programmes.
(iii) Establish or strengthen regional mechanisms for the exchange of
information on the development of a safe and sustainable tourism
sector, using, as appropriate, the capacities of regional tourism
organizations.
C. International action
(i) Promote the recognition by the international community of both the
value of tourism in small island developing States and the fragility
of the resources on which it depends, and of the resulting need for
international support to encourage its sustainable development.
(ii) Facilitate efforts, at the national and regional levels, to assess
the overall impact of the economic, social and ecological aspects of
tourism, plan sustainable tourism and to develop eco- and cultural
tourism.
IX. BIODIVERSITY RESOURCES
Basis for action
41. Small island developing States are renowned for their species diversity
and endemism. However, due to the small size, isolation and fragility of
island ecosystems, their biological diversity is among the most threatened in
the world. Deforestation, coral reef deterioration, habitat degradation and
loss, and the introduction of certain non-indigenous species are the most
significant causes of the loss of biodiversity in small island developing
States.
42. In the past, there has been a strong emphasis on the collection of more
information. In small island developing States where limited and biologically
precious resources are being threatened, while the lack of sufficient
information is often cited as a rationale for inaction, there is often enough
information to identify areas requiring in situ conservation. Although more
information will be required in order to develop appropriate management plans,
information collection should no longer be a prior condition for in situ
conservation projects.
43. The nature of traditional, often communal land and marine resource
ownership in many island countries requires community support for the
conservation effort. Without that local support and commitment and the
opportunity to integrate sustainable income generation into the conservation
effort, even the most highly studied and well planned conservation area will
not be sustainable.
44. Some of the most precious biological resources for islanders,
environmentally, economically and culturally, are marine and coastal rather
than terrestrial. This requires a conservation focus that takes into account
customary land and reef tenure systems and practices, which may differ from
that usually found in the larger developed countries. Other considerations
include the adequacy of basic institutional support for conservation efforts
(staff, vehicles etc.) and access to financial resources to help start
innovative projects.
45. A number of international and regional conventions exist concerning the
conservation and sustainable utilization of biological resources, which are
expected to provide a sound legal framework of potential benefit to the
sustainable development of small island developing States.
A. National action, policies and measures
(i) Formulate and implement integrated strategies for the conservation
and sustainable use of terrestrial and marine biodiversity, in
particular endemic species, including protection from the
introduction of certain non-indigenous species and the
identification of sites of high biological significance for the
conservation of biological diversity and/or for eco-tourism and
other sustainable development opportunities, such as sustainable
agriculture, training and research.
(ii) Ratify and implement the Convention on Biological Diversity, 10/ the
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild
Fauna and Flora 11/ and other relevant international and regional
conventions.
(iii) Promote community support for the conservation of biological
diversity and the designation of protected areas by concentrating on
educational strategies that increase awareness of the significance
of biodiversity conservation, in particular the fundamental
importance to resource-owning communities of a diverse biological
resource base.
(iv) Generate and maintain buffer stocks or gene banks of biogenetic
resources for reintroduction into their natural habitat, especially
in the case of post-disaster restoration and rehabilitation.
(v) Develop or continue studies and research on biological resources,
their management and their intrinsic socio-economic and cultural
value, including biotechnology.
(vi) Conduct detailed inventories of existing flora, fauna and ecosystems
to provide basic data needed for the preservation of biodiversity.
(vii) Ensure that the ownership of intellectual property rights is
adequately and effectively protected. Ensure, subject to national
legislation and policies, that the technology, knowledge, and
customary and traditional practices of local and indigenous people,
including resource owners and custodians, are adequately and
effectively protected, and that they thereby benefit directly, on an
equitable basis and on mutually agreed terms, from any utilization
of such technologies, knowledge and practices, or from any
technological development directly derived therefrom.
(viii) Support the involvement of non-governmental organizations, women,
indigenous people and other major groups, as well as fishing
communities and farmers, in the conservation and sustainable use of
biodiversity and biotechnology.
B. Regional action
(i) Encourage countries to give priority to known, existing sites of
biological significance - while recognizing that there are many
important sites whose biological significance remains unknown - and
to build up community support for the protection of those areas
including their protection from the introduction of non-indigenous
species.
(ii) Promote regional studies of the socio-economic and cultural value of
biological resources, including genetic engineering, intellectual
property rights and access to biotechnology, with the participation
of existing or strengthened scientific institutions, relevant
international agencies and non-governmental organizations.
(iii) Promote the establishment of regional gene-bank centres for
research, seeking the development and introduction of more resistant
and productive varieties of species, and provide the appropriate
legal and technical procedures for the use of those biological
resources.
(iv) Coordinate information exchange, training and technical assistance
in support of national efforts to establish and manage conservation
areas and for species conservation, including the identification and
use of traditional knowledge and techniques for resource management
that assist the conservation of biological resources and diversity.
(v) Promote and/or strengthen already existing regional scientific
institutions that can operate as reference centres for problems
related to the conservation and sustainable management of
biodiversity.
(vi) Strengthen the capacity of regional organizations to provide
technical support and coordination in the development of inventories
of flora, fauna and ecosystems and, where feasible, to establish
regional databases and gene banks.
(vii) Support the development of adequate and effective legal mechanisms
for the protection of intellectual property rights.
C. International action
(i) Provide improved access to financial and technical resources for the
conservation of biological diversity, including funds for basic
institutional and logistic support for the conservation and
management of biological diversity, with priority to be accorded to
terrestrial as well as coastal and marine biodiversity, such as
coral reef ecosystems.
(ii) Improve access to environmentally sound biotechnology, including
know-how and delivery mechanisms.
(iii) Ensure that the activities of relevant international organizations,
agencies and programmes of the United Nations as well as relevant
non-governmental organizations are closely coordinated with and
supportive of identified regional small island developing States
centres or ongoing programmes in the conservation and sustainable
use of biodiversity and biotechnology.
(iv) Make greater use of import restrictions under the Convention on
International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora on
products from endangered species endemic to small island developing
States.
(v) Support national and regional actions for developing inventories of
flora, fauna and ecosystems, including training and technical
assistance.
(vi) Support strategies to protect small island developing States from
the introduction of non-indigenous species.
(vii) Promote the full involvement of non-governmental organizations,
women, indigenous people and other major groups, as well as fishing
communities and farmers, in the conservation and sustainable use of
biodiversity and biotechnology.
X. NATIONAL INSTITUTIONS AND ADMINISTRATIVE CAPACITY
Basis for action
46. To address the environmental resource management priorities essential to
the sustainable development of small island developing States, national
institutional and administrative arrangements are increasingly embracing the
interrelated nature of activities in their limited land area. The integration
of environmental considerations into the national decision-making processes is
considered to be the single most important step to be taken by small island
developing States to ensure that those problems are addressed and that the
principles of sustainability guide all future development.
47. Economic imperatives must be evaluated from the perspective of
socio-environmental considerations if the natural resource base is to be
preserved for the benefit of present and future generations and social and
cultural values safeguarded. Economic development must become sustainable
development by incorporating environmental and resource management. This
requires the adoption of interdisciplinary approaches to both planning and
decision-making, as well as, to the extent possible, the encouragement of
public participation in the process.
48. Formal integration of economic and environmental considerations will
necessitate a series of institutional adjustments within government
administrations, accompanied by across-the-board strengthening of
environmental administrative capacity. This must happen at all levels of
government, including at the local level. Many forms of institutional
adjustment are conceivable and should be tailored to specific country needs.
It is recognized that that process would benefit from public participation.
49. Many countries have prepared environmental strategies and plans that
integrate environment and development; they are seen as the first step in a
process leading to the wide application of sustainable development principles.
For those plans to promote sustainable development, however, they must be
utilized for national decision-making, including at all appropriate levels of
government, in order that environment and development policy can be carefully
integrated.
A. National action, policies and measures
(i) Strengthen institutional arrangements and administrative capacity,
including cross-sectoral/inter-ministerial committees and task
forces, in order to integrate environment and economic policy into
national planning and across sectors and ensure the capacity to
implement Agenda 21 and the decisions of the Global Conference.
(ii) Develop implementation strategies and schedules, including
financing, for both regional and national activities.
(iii) Establish or strengthen environmental agencies with adequate
financial and staff resources.
(iv) Increase the awareness and involvement of non-governmental
organizations, local communities and other major groups in public
education, national planning and the implementation of sustainable
development programmes.
(v) Improve public education in order to familiarize local,
provincial/State and national bodies with environmental laws already
in existence, facilitate discussion of the value of environmental
legislation and standards to local communities and open wider
discussion on more culturally appropriate penalties for the
contravention of laws and regulations.
(vi) Develop appropriate national, provincial/State and local
environmental regulations that reflect the needs and incorporate the
principles of sustainability, create appropriate environmental
standards and procedures, and ensure their integration into national
planning instruments and development projects at an early stage in
the design process, including specific legislation for appropriate
environmental impact assessment for both public and private sector
development.
(vii) Give sustainable development task forces or their equivalent the
official authority and validity to permit their continued meeting as
interdisciplinary and communally representative advisory bodies.
(viii) Provide adequate resources for the enforcement of environmental
regulations.
(ix) Enact the domestic legislation required for the implementation of
the wide range of international environmental conventions and
agreements directly relevant to small island developing States.
(x) Establish national information nodes on the sustainable development
of small island developing States in order to encourage, at the
international level, the development of a small islands' sustainable
development information network to facilitate the exchange of
experience among small island developing States.
B. Regional action
(i) Assist, where appropriate, with the preparation and implementation
of national environmental strategies and plans.
(ii) Provide appropriate research, training and information dissemination
in order to facilitate the mainstreaming of environment in
development planning and decision-making and coordination among
sectors.
C. International action
(i) Improve access to financial and technical assistance in order to
strengthen national institutions and administrative and operational
capacity.
(ii) Support the development of a small islands' sustainable development
information network to facilitate the exchange of experience among
small island developing States.
(iii) Assist in providing training and capacity-building services to
facilitate the ratification and implementation of appropriate
international instruments.
(iv) Promote closer cooperation to improve national and international
measures to combat illicit drug trafficking and money laundering.
XI. REGIONAL INSTITUTIONS AND TECHNICAL COOPERATION
Basis for action
50. The limited human resources and small size of small island developing
States makes it especially important to pool those resources through regional
cooperation and institutions. It is essential that effective support for
regional projects be coordinated through regional bodies. This is desirable
to avoid duplication and achieve complementarity of assistance.
51. Regional organizations, both United Nations and non-United Nations, can
play a key role in facilitating efficient and effective assistance to small
island developing States. Regional organizations are also useful vehicles, in
many instances, for the implementation of regional programmes. The
programming, administrative and implementation capacities of those bodies can
further be improved with the support of member nations and other donors.
52. Currently, multilateral and bilateral donors undertake their own
regional programming exercises through regular dialogue with small island
developing States and relevant bodies. Non-governmental organizations also
deliver services at the national and regional level in support of regional
programmes.
A. National action, policies and measures
(i) Support regional organizations through membership and budgetary
contributions.
(ii) Encourage improved coordination and collaboration among regional
bodies and between the international community and regional
programmes.
B. Regional action
(i) Improve coordination among regional bodies for the sustainable
development of small island developing States as outlined in
Agenda 21.
(ii) Formulate regional programmes and strategies jointly between
regional bodies and national authorities consistent with Agenda 21.
(iii) Develop a small island developing States technical assistance
programme to promote inter- and intraregional cooperation on
sustainable development in small island developing States.
(iv) Establish, where appropriate, and support regional sustainable
development centres to facilitate the sustainable development of
small island developing States in the areas of research, training,
the development of endogenous technology, the transfer of technology
and the provision of legal and technical advice, taking into account
the work of existing relevant institutions, including universities.
(v) Draft model environmental provisions as a guide for countries,
leaving to each small island developing State the incorporation of
country-specific provisions to reflect the variety and diversity of
national and customary laws and procedures, and encourage, where
appropriate, the harmonization of environmental legislation and
policies within and among small island developing States with a view
to ensuring a high degree of environmental protection.
(vi) Prepare environmental law training manuals for both lawyers and
others working in the environmental field.
(vii) Conduct regional and in-country workshops on environmental law
subjects, including environmental conventions and treaties,
environmental impact assessment, heritage, pollution, civil
enforcement, prosecution and environmental mediation.
(viii) Assess and inform small island developing States about the content,
notification processes, financial and legal implications of relevant
international environmental instruments and conventions in order to
encourage small island developing States to accede to and implement
them.
C. International action
(i) Support environmental law offices within regional and subregional
organizations to implement regional approaches, including the
development of relevant expertise.
(ii) Improve access to financial and technical resources for the
development and/or strengthening of regional bodies in order to
respond to the sustainable development needs of small island
developing States.
(iii) Improve coordination with relevant regional/subregional bodies to
implement Agenda 21 and the decisions of the Global Conference.
(iv) Strengthen regional bodies in order to improve their capacity to
respond to the sustainable development needs of small island
developing States.
XII. TRANSPORT AND COMMUNICATION
Basis for action
53. Transport and communications are the lifelines linking small island
developing States with the outside world, with each other and within their own
countries, and are an important means of achieving sustainable development.
Distance and isolation have resulted in relatively high transport costs,
including high transport insurance costs, for many small island developing
States. The quality and frequency of international shipping and air services
are largely beyond the control of island States. Domestic markets are too
small to provide economies of scale and the remoteness of many rural and
outer-island communities constrains options and increases costs. While
national airlines are necessary to serve the local market, especially in
archipelagic States, they tend to fragment the regional market. The
constraining influence of those factors on the sustainable development of
island countries cannot be underestimated.
54. The environmental uses associated with transport and communications
development, including quarantine, also need to be properly addressed. Such
issues include land transport, which has been found to be one of the greatest
degraders of the urban environment, at both national and regional levels and
which appears to have lagged behind improvements and major changes in
transport services.
55. Devising innovative approaches to resolving transport and communications
problems, such as the development of low-cost high-tech methods for the moving
of cargo, and improving community access to telephone, radio and related
services are major challenges. Improving the management and maintenance of
existing transport and communications infrastructure is a further challenge.
In building new infrastructure, particular consideration needs to be given to
maintenance and recurrent cost issues.
A. National action, policies and measures
(i) Continue efforts to strengthen transport services and facilities at
both the national and local levels, paying particular attention to
environmental protection, safety, and innovative energy-efficient
and low-cost transport solutions.
(ii) Upgrade domestic communication facilities, including radio and
telephone coverage, to remote rural and outer island communities,
and continue efforts to improve international telecommunications
links.
(iii) Address quarantine problems and requirements stemming from changing
transport situations and longer-term climatic changes.
B. Regional action
(i) Foster increased cooperation in civil aviation, shipping and
telecommunications, including exploring possibilities for the
consolidation of national airline services, recognizing the
important contribution that could be made through the regional
planning of transport and telecommunications facilities and
networks.
(ii) Develop effective quarantine services, including through upgrading
existing plant protection and related programmes.
(iii) Encourage the application of appropriate communications technologies
to promote sustainable development in areas such as education,
health, eco-tourism and other areas critical to sustainable
development, including the promotion of greater public awareness.
C. International action
(i) Develop innovative energy-efficient transport solutions to move
people and cargo to and from island ports without the need to
establish high-cost infrastructure.
(ii) Cooperate with national and regional bodies in designing and
enforcing effective quarantine systems.
(iii) Improve access to financial and technical resources in support of
regional organizations that are coordinating and advising small
island developing States in the fields of transport and
communications.
(iv) Promote research and development in telecommunications and
transportation that is relevant to the sustainable development of
small island developing States.
(v) Promote improved international telecommunications at the lowest
possible cost for small island developing States, while recognizing
the need to create an environment conducive to investment in
telecommunications infrastructure and service to benefit local
business and people.
XIII. SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Basis for action
56. Science and technology are crucial for the achievement of sustainable
development. There would be considerable benefit if all countries
incorporated environmentally friendly technologies to a greater extent.
However, in small island developing States, science and technological capacity
remains underdeveloped both in terms of research and development institutions
and of the availability of scientists to serve such institutions on a
sustained basis. At the same time, some island peoples survive on traditional
knowledge and its application, which is being threatened in small island
developing States increasingly driven to adopt modern technologies and
scientific understanding. A better integration of contemporary and
traditional knowledge could also prove beneficial.
57. Many new environmentally sound technologies relevant to economic
activities in small island developing States are becoming available,
information concerning which and the ability to assess which are crucial for
technological change to achieve sustainable development. Science and
technological capacity require trained people to serve in production
enterprises, to engage in training and to help in the assessment and
adaptation of imported technologies.
58. Small island developing States will benefit from increased access to
imported technologies to facilitate their sustainable development. However,
an improved capacity to tap local knowledge and to develop environmentally
sound endogenous technologies is also an important step towards sustainable
development in a number of areas, including agriculture, agricultural
processing, construction, communications and the marine sciences.
59. Trained people are needed in a wider range of fields in order to ensure
adequate training and capacity for environmental impact and technology
assessment. Limited national capacities mean that in a number of those areas,
emphasis will have to be given to regional and subregional approaches and
joint ventures with the international community. Encouragement of private
sector involvement could also be very important because of limited
governmental capacity to undertake both training and research and development.
A. National action, policies and measures
(i) Ensure that science and technology policy is closely linked to
national environmental strategies and sustainable development plans
and is responsive to local and sectoral sustainable development
needs, emphasizing self-sufficiency and the minimization of import
dependency.
(ii) Give greater emphasis to research and development, as well as to
training for science and technology and economic development
generally, and for environmental and technology assessment in
particular; refine analytical tools for natural resource accounting;
and encourage the development and use of information and
communications technology to overcome size and isolation problems.
(iii) Promote research and development in areas where endogenous
technologies and traditional practices have great relevance,
including agriculture, agricultural processing, waste-recycling,
ethnobiology and biotechnology, construction and renewable energy,
ensuring that mechanisms are in place for the appropriate protection
of intellectual property rights in accordance with relevant
international conventions.
(iv) Encourage the use of endogenous, environmentally friendly
technologies by establishing regulations, standards and economic
incentives.
(v) Develop or ensure access to databases on environmentally sound
technologies of local relevance and collect consistent time-series
data for monitoring the performance of sustainable development.
(vi) Promote and strengthen the role of women in science and technology
disciplines.
B. Regional action
(i) Develop or strengthen efforts, through relevant regional
organizations and institutions, to assist small island developing
States in assessing technology, developing databases on
environmentally sound technologies, conducting relevant research and
development and training, and developing appropriate information
systems to share experience within and among small island developing
States.
(ii) Encourage appropriate regional standards and the standardization of
analytical methods as well as scientific inter-calibration exercises
in order to facilitate the exchange of data.
(iii) Develop and strengthen regional ocean sciences networks, with
particular reference to data collection and the dissemination of
information relevant to small island developing States.
C. International action
(i) Facilitate the access to and development of environmentally sound
technologies that are relevant to small island developing States,
including coastal zone management and marine and ocean sciences,
using, inter alia, joint ventures, joint research and development
programmes and financial mechanisms.
(ii) Strengthen the coordination and networking of the various national
centres, regional organizations and institutions, and international
organizations working in areas of science and technology in order to
facilitate information flows, database creation and access, and
greater collaboration and technical cooperation in programmes.
(iii) Encourage development within the international community, including
the United Nations system, of appropriate programmes in support of
regional and national efforts to build the science and technology
capacities of small island developing States, including those that
increase the output and range of their limited human resources,
taking into account relevant activities of the Commission on
Sustainable Development and the Commission on Science and Technology
for Development.
(iv) Take account of the needs of small island developing States in the
action plan for training in integrated coastal zone management being
developed cooperatively by UNDP and the Division for Ocean Affairs
and the Law of the Sea of the United Nations Secretariat.
(v) Facilitate the full involvement of scientists and other experts from
small island developing States in marine scientific research.
(vi) Promote the free flow of, and access to, data and information
resulting from marine scientific research, particularly as it
relates to monitoring in small island developing States.
(vii) Accelerate the development of the coastal module of the Global Ocean
Observing System, due to its particular importance to small island
developing States.
XIV. HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT
Basis for action
60. Human beings are at the centre of concerns for sustainable development
and thus significant attention must be given to projects that will enhance the
quality of human life in small island developing States. Projects should be
undertaken with a view to not only the contribution that individuals, groups,
communities and nations can make towards sustainable development but more
importantly how those projects will ultimately affect the well-being of those
living in small island developing States.
61. The smallness and vulnerability of small island developing States
necessitates that special attention be paid to population issues, education
and training, and health for effective human resource development. The need
for attention to human resource development issues is demonstrated by poor
health and social services; poor nutrition and housing; low levels of female
participation in development; the current insufficiency of education,
information and means, as appropriate, for the responsible planning of family
size; and inadequate family planning services. In addition, the uncounted
costs of drug abuse include rising health costs, increased unemployment and
the diversion of scarce human resources. High population densities and
growth, as well as depopulation in some areas, are constraints to achieving
sustainable development in many small island developing States. Increasing
attention must be given to the concept of island carrying capacity and
environmental health, especially for fragile and highly populated environments
in urban areas, coastal zones and hillsides.
62. It is a matter of high priority to strengthen national educational and
training mechanisms in order to facilitate the flow of information on
sustainable development issues, enhance public awareness of the environment
and encourage participation in the implementation of effective solutions. A
key requirement is to promote access to and improve the quality of basic
education.
63. Environmental education and science training, particularly on issues
specific to small island developing States, are essential to developing
environmental awareness. Training in environmental management and sustainable
development are needed at all levels of the education system. For
professional training, multidisciplinary approaches are needed. There is a
demand for knowledge on the environment to meet both educational and
professional needs. Areas in which more training is greatly needed are
science and technology generally; technology assessment; environmental impact
assessment; environmental management and sustainable development;
environmental chemistry; environmental engineering; physical planning and the
development of geographic information systems; and information and
communications technology.
64. Chapter 6 of Agenda 21 recognizes the close dependency of human health
on a healthy environment and provides a list of priority actions. Although
some small island developing States have implemented relevant activities, the
overall improvement in the health of their populations continues to slow down.
Furthermore, in many cases the health conditions of vulnerable groups, such as
poor women and children, have actually deteriorated.
A. National action, policies and measures
(i) Infuse sustainable development ideas into education curricula at all
levels and promote participation by all groups, emphasizing the link
between environment and social and economic issues, and continue to
improve access to scientific, mathematics and technical training.
(ii) Incorporate population issues into the mainstream of decision-making
and planning mechanisms of government, including developing
comprehensive population policies consistent with sustainable
development objectives while respecting and promoting the dignity
and the fundamental rights of the human person and of the family.
(iii) Improve urban/rural settlements, in consultation with local
communities, by giving priority to the improvement of basic
services, such as access to potable water, environmentally sound
sewage treatment and disposal, shelter, education, family planning
and health care, as well as to the elimination of poverty; ensuring
that development projects are people-centred and have explicit
environment and health objectives; ensuring adequate resources for
public health and preventive medicine activities; and considering
urban development options, including decentralization.
(iv) Direct efforts to improve urban/rural settlements through the
promotion of projects aimed at the elimination of poverty that give
priority to the improvement of basic services such as shelter and
comprehensive public health, including potable water, sewage
disposal, maternal and child health care, the responsible planning
of family size and other specific measures aimed at health promotion
and disease prevention.
(v) Encourage the use of distance training to meet the expanding
educational demand and the large demand for knowledge and training
in the area of the environment.
(vi) Promote and strengthen the role of major groups, including
non-governmental organizations and women, in the creation and
implementation of sustainable development initiatives.
(vii) Seek to improve the quality of education, training and human
resource development by upgrading basic education and
technical/vocational skills training and by making improvements,
where necessary, to national management and planning capacities and
labour market linkages.
(viii) Encourage the use of traditional knowledge and skills in
environment, resource management and health, and the use of
community groups to assist in promoting environmental awareness.
B. Regional action
(i) Support national efforts to develop appropriate curricula for
sustainable development at all levels, including the introduction,
development and/or access to interdisciplinary training in
environmental sciences at a tertiary level, and improve the
coordination of training activities on sustainable development and
environmental issues that are being conducted throughout small
island developing States by different organizations, including
non-governmental organizations.
(ii) Assess the impact of urbanization on the physical and human
environments and provide health evaluation and impact assessment
capability for small island developing States.
(iii) Enhance regional cooperation in educational and human resource
development and improve the responsiveness of education centres to
regional requirements.
C. International action
(i) Support efforts to develop curricula for sustainable development, in
particular tertiary level courses on environmental management and
sustainable development, encouraging multidisciplinary approaches.
(ii) Provide appropriate resources to meet the particular population
concerns of small island developing States, including the
implementation of any relevant outcomes of the International
Conference on Population and Development.
(iii) Improve the coordination and targeting of the education and human
resource development programmes provided by the development partners
of small island developing States.
(iv) Support national and regional efforts to improve education and human
resource development in small island developing States.
(v) Encourage and support technical cooperation among small island
developing States and other developing countries as a means of
enhancing sustainable development.
(vi) Support efforts to promote and strengthen the role of small island
developing States in the creation and implementation of sustainable
development initiatives.
(vii) Support basic regional and national formal and informal health
training institutions and research on the technology and health
problems of small island developing States, paying more attention to
malaria, nutrition, drugs, acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS)
and maternal and infant health care, and support national and
regional efforts to improve urban/rural settlements.
(viii) Support an integrated approach to drug-abuse control, in accordance
with international conventions, including the Single Convention on
Narcotic Drugs, 1961, 12/ 14/ the Protocol amending the Single
Convention on Narcotic Drugs, 1961, 13/ 14/ the Convention on
Psychotropic Substances (1971), 15/ and the United Nations
Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and
Psychotropic Substances (1988). 16/
(ix) Support environmental education programmes specific to island
environments and adapted to all levels, including primary and
secondary schools, with curricula and materials tailored to the
interests and needs of end-users.
(x) Continue to support and increase, where possible, scientific and
technical training in order to promote sustainable development.
(xi) Support programmes aimed at increasing the involvement of community-
based organizations in conservation and natural resource management
programmes, including planning and decision-making.
(xii) Provide assistance for the training of policy makers in the area of
natural resources management, including policy related courses for
the resolution of competing demands, the multiple use of resources
and other policy related environmental issues.
(xiii) Support small island developing States in their efforts to improve
urban/rural settlements, by promoting projects aimed at human
development and the elimination of poverty, particularly urban
development options such as decentralization, and by ensuring that
such projects have adequate resources.
65. The recommendations and language contained in the present chapter should
in no way prejudge discussions at the International Conference on Population
and Development, to be held in Cairo from 5 to 13 September 1994.
XV. IMPLEMENTATION, MONITORING AND REVIEW
66. Effective implementation, monitoring and review of the present Programme
of Action is essential for the sustainable development of small island
developing States. The Programme of Action provides an opportunity for the
international community to demonstrate its commitment to the means of
implementation adopted in Agenda 21. Since small island developing States are
among the most environmentally vulnerable, the United Nations system and the
international community, in line with Principle 6 of the Rio Declaration on
Environment and Development and on the basis of chapter 17, section G of
Agenda 21, shall give special priority to the situations and the needs of
small island developing States in the implementation of the Programme of
Action. That will require, in particular, providing adequate resources for
implementation and actions at the national, regional and international levels.
67. The implementation of the Programme of Action shall be consistent with a
number of parallel international processes important to the sustainable
development of small island developing States that contain relevant
provisions. Those processes include the Commission on Sustainable
Development; the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change; the
Convention on Biological Diversity; the United Nations Conference on
Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks; the United Nations
Convention on the Law of the Sea; 17/ the International Conference on
Population and Development; the intergovernmental negotiations on land-based
sources of marine pollution of UNEP; the Intergovernmental Negotiating
Committee for the Elaboration of a Convention to Combat Desertification in
those Countries Experiencing Serious Drought and/or Desertification,
particularly in Africa (INCD); the World Coast Conference 1993; the Bamako
Convention on the Ban of the Import into Africa and the Control of
Transboundary Movements and Management of Hazardous Wastes within Africa; 18/
the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous
Wastes and their Disposal, and other relevant international instruments for
the control of transboundary movements of hazardous wastes and their disposal;
the Convention for the Protection of the Natural Resources and Environment of
the South Pacific Region; the Convention on International Trade in Endangered
Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES); the Convention on Wetlands of
International Importance Especially as Waterfowl Habitat; 20/ the Fourth World
Conference on Women; the World Summit for Social Development; and the World
Conference on Natural Disaster Reduction. Support for the participation of
small island developing States in those processes will be important and those
processes will need to reflect the outcome of the Global Conference on the
Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States. As small island
developing