As delivered
Statement of H.E. Mr. Peter Thomson, President of the 71st Session of the General Assembly, at United Nations World Water Day – Special Event Priority Actions for Water and Disasters in the next Decade
22 March 2017
H.E. Mr. Sirodjidin Aslov, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Tajikistan
H.E. Mr. Teru Fukui, Member of the House of Representatives of Japan,
H.E. Dr. Han Seung-soo, UN Special Envoy on Disaster Risk Reduction and Water
Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen,
It is a pleasure to address this special event on water and disasters. I would like to thank the organizers of today’s event for their long-standing leadership on water-related issues.
Excellencies,
As a Pacific Islander, I know all too well the importance of water to life on earth, as well as its power to take life away.
Just as the majesty and abundance of the Ocean has provided inspiration and sustenance, and has shaped the cultures of the people of the Pacific, its destructive potential is also well-known, with natural disasters regularly pounding our shores, exacerbated by climate change, leaving trails of devastation in their wake.
Cyclone Winston and Cyclone Pam which devastated Fiji and Vanuatu over the last two years were amongst the strongest tropical cyclones to ever make landfall in the Southern Hemisphere. This fits the global pattern of water-related disasters increasing around the world in both frequency and severity over recent years.
From tsunamis and floods, to storms and droughts, the effects can be traumatising, setting back development efforts for years. They often impact those countries least equipped to deal with them, including Small Island Development States, and Least Developed Countries.
Indeed, as we meet a catastrophic drought and famine is causing immense human suffering to millions of people across Nigeria, South Sudan, Somalia and Yemen; setting back sustainable development prospects for these communities.
With ‘water crises’ already regarded as a top ten global risk by the World Economic Forum, water-related disasters are predicted to worsen in coming years, exacerbated by factors including unsustainable land use, inadequate planning and management, ecosystem degradation, and of course, climate change.
With the last few years being the hottest in recorded history, climate change is expected to increase the frequency of heavy rain surges in many parts of our world in coming years, causing flood and landslides, while intensifying drought in others.
Urgent and scaled-up climate action is clearly needed.
Excellencies,
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, provide humanity with a universal masterplan to drive global action to address and mitigate water-related disasters.
Implemented urgently, effective and at scale, these agreements will eliminate extreme poverty, combat climate change, promote resilience, reduce exposure to climate-related disasters, conserve and protect the Ocean, and build peaceful and inclusive societies.
Excellencies,
As part of our efforts to address water-related disasters and achieve water-related SDGs, a number of key actions should be pursued over the next decade:
Firstly, we should explore opportunities for greater international cooperation and partnership between all relevant stakeholders, including Governments, the UN system, civil society, private sector, insurance companies, technology developers, and local authorities, to address disaster risk reduction, and pursue approaches that prioritise prevention and bring innovative solutions to the forefront.
Secondly, Governments must mainstream disaster risk reduction as an integral element of their national planning processes, including as part of climate adaptation and mitigation activities, and efforts to sustain economic growth and achieve sustainable development.
Thirdly, we must harness innovation and technology to bring into the mix new solutions that prevent water-related disasters, build resilience, achieve the SDGs, and combat climate change.
Indeed, across disaster-prone regions like the Pacific we are already seeing innovation and technology being used to improve adaptation plans, develop early-warning-systems, spread life-saving information, and direct emergency services to remote communities most in need.
Fourthly, we need to build local capacity to prevent and respond to water-related disasters, including in designing strategies for collecting and disseminating information, educating communities, reducing risk, influencing behaviour, and developing appropriate technological solutions.
And finally, we need to recognise the differentiated impacts that water-related disasters have on vulnerable and marginalised populations, and to reflect this into our risk reduction plans.
Indeed, one need only look at the 2004 Southeast Asia tsunami, which killed more than 200,000 people, to see the gender dimension of disasters, with four times as many women dying than men in tsunami-affected areas of Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and India.
With women and girls accounting for 70 percent of people living in extreme poverty, they are consistently at greater exposure to the risks of disaster, have higher rates of mortality, and suffer greater damage to their health and livelihoods.
It is vital, therefore, that women are empowered as part of comprehensive efforts to design and implement gender-sensitive disaster risk strategies.
Excellencies,
Given the interconnected nature of the Sustainable Development Goals, it is vital that we ensure that water and disaster-related issues are addressed during cross-cutting discussions, such as the High-Level Action Event on Climate Change and the Sustainable Development Goals that I will be convening tomorrow, here at the United Nations, as well as The Ocean Conference to be held in New York on 5 – 9 June.
The Ocean Conference is set to be a game-changing opportunity to drive global action to save the Ocean, including in building the resilience of coastal ecosystems.
I encourage you all to participate in The Ocean Conference, and to make bold voluntary commitments for action aimed at restoring the health of the Ocean’s life. Any party that wishes to stand and be counted in this regard, should now register their voluntary commitment on The Ocean Conference website.
Excellencies,
The scale of the water challenges before us are enormous. They cut across all our efforts to implement sustainable development, combat climate change, and reduce the risk and impacts of disaster. It is thus that we must work together to meet these challenges and secure safe and sustainable future for the generations to come.
Thank you.