Excellencies,
Colleagues,
 
I welcome this opportunity to discuss what we must do together in this pivotal year.
 
I thank the Chair of the Alliance of Small Island States, Ambassador Young, for inviting me to join you.
 
And I commend the work AOSIS members are undertaking to prioritize concrete advancement of the Sustainable Development Goals in 2020, with a focus on enhancing climate ambition and ensuring a sustainable future for Small Island Developing States through conservation and sustainable use of the ocean.  It is a clear manifestation of sustained SIDS leadership in climate action and integrated, sustainable development to secure a prosperous and resilient future for SIDS.
 
Your leadership is vital as we embark on a Decade of Action to deliver the Sustainable Development Goals.
 
AOSIS members are facing unprecedented risks. 
 
The economic costs of climate change are rising, projected at 15 per cent or more of Gross Domestic Product.
 
Natural disasters continue to take a heavy toll on SIDS’ populations and economies.
 
Hurricanes and cyclones are claiming lives at an unprecedented rate. Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico and Dominica alone claimed more than 3,000 lives. Just a few months ago, the Bahamas was devastated by Hurricane Dorian, causing over $3.5 billion USD in damage.
 
On top of that, irreversible sea-level rise poses significant danger. In the Pacific, a rise of between 1 and 1.7 meters, which is in line with recent findings by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, is projected to result in a decline in GDP of between 3 and 15 from lost agricultural production, tourism, fisheries and infrastructure damage.
 
Atoll nations face existential choices of relocating their populations or drastic adaptation measures.

Ladies and Gentlemen,
 
We have a huge task ahead of us this year.   These challenges require bold solutions. 
 
I am immensely proud of the work we accomplished together in 2019, particularly on the reform of the UN Development System and for the Climate Action Summit last September.
 
Today I would like to emphasize the importance of enhanced collaboration on four key priorities for 2020: 1. UN Development System reform; 2. the Decade of Action; 3. Climate ambition; and 4. Ambition on ocean and biodiversity commitments.  Let me say a few words about each in turn.
 
First, we are firmly committed to ensuring that the UN Development System does what is needed to deliver for the development needs of the SIDS.
 
The UN development system, including the regional economic commissions, have come forward with specific commitments to SIDS encompassing tailored support, integrated policy advice, technical capacities and an enhanced physical presence. 
 
These commitments have been complemented by increased support for SDG financing, data systems and South-South and Triangular cooperation.
 
I would like to emphasize the important role of OHRLLS in this regard, and reaffirm the Secretary-General’s commitment to strengthen the Office as called for by the General Assembly.
 
With respect to UN Multi-Country Offices, which mainly cover AOSIS members, for the first time in at least two decades, we are undertaking a thorough review of SIDS needs and the offer by the UN development system.
 
The Secretary-General has now presented and has been engaging with you on a set of recommendations for increased coordination and substantive resources to address the specificities of each island and country covered by an MCO. We look forward to your guidance and support to implement after discussions at ECOSOC OAS.
 
Let me turn now to the Decade of Action.
 
The Decade is our opportunity to ensure that the 2030 Agenda can deliver on its promise of leaving no one behind and healing our planet.
 
We know that progress on many SDGs has not taken place at the scale and speed required. This is unacceptable to the people we serve.
 
The Decade is therefore our global rallying point, with three priorities:
 
First, to mobilize a global movement around the SDGs;
 
Second, to raise urgency and ambition to match the magnitude of the challenges; and
 
Third, to drive innovation, investments and collaboration to transform promising ideas into scalable solutions to deliver the SDGs.
 
We must work together to ensure that the Decade delivers for SIDS.
 
In addressing climate change, enhanced ambition and action are both a priority and a driver of the Decade.
 
The next ten months will be crucial, and we need SIDS leadership more than ever.
 
The Secretary-General remains deeply committed to stepping up ambition on mitigation, adaptation and finance. 
 
We are all operating in a challenging geopolitical environment and will need your help.
 
COP 26 in Glasgow must generate momentum towards a just, climate-resilient and climate-neutral world. It must respond concretely to the appeals of civil society and the young people who are taking to the streets.
 
And it must rebuild trust in the negotiation space, from adopting robust rules on international carbon markets to ensuring that member states meet the commitment to raise USD 100 billion per year.
 
The SIDS Package presented at the Climate Action Summit last year shows exemplary leadership by SIDS to transform their own economies beyond fossil fuels. 
 
The Summit demonstrated the transformations required by all countries to reach the 1.5-degree goal of the Paris Climate Agreement. It laid out climate neutrality by 2050 as the only way forward. We will continue to stand with you to deliver on these commitments.
 
By COP26, we need to deliver on new Nationally Determined Contributions. I applaud the Marshall Islands as one of the three countries that have delivered on their commitment.
 
I urge all AOSIS countries to submit their enhanced NDCs in 2020.  By doing so, you will show once again that the most vulnerable countries in the world are setting the benchmark for global ambition.  The UN country teams, led by UNDP, stand ready to assist.

The Secretary-General and the entire UN system will also engage with main emitters on NDC enhancement.
 
I count on SIDS to continue to raise the alarm bell with G20 nations.  You have a unique moral authority to call on main emitters to fulfill their responsibilities and transform their economies.
 
We must place the most affected people, as well as concrete steps for adaptation and resilience, at the center of our decision-making in 2020.
 
The Secretary-General is deeply committed to ensure that COP26 delivers tangible and concrete benefits on adaptation and resilience for SIDS, Least Developed and Land-Locked Countries and Africa. He will be pushing for increased access to direct finance, building the bridges to private finance, and other steps to enable faster rebuilding after natural disasters.
 
We have many opportunities in 2020 to harvest significant new commitments and to press ahead to turn commitments into action.
 
This brings me to my final point: the important role AOSIS can play in raising the game on biodiversity and ocean priorities in what some are describing as a “Nature Super Year”.
 
You are on the frontlines of the crises affecting the world’s oceans.
 
The United Nations Ocean Conference in Lisbon in June will be an opportunity for governments, private sector and cities to announce new targets, commitments and investments. Eight panels cover key aspects of our ambition.
 
Marine Protected Areas have gathered positive momentum, increasing ten-fold since 2000, and I commend a number of small islands in the Pacific and in other oceans that have led the way in establishing them.
 
However, protected areas remain insufficient to preserve marine biodiversity from threats such as plastic pollution and unsustainable fishing. We must set more ambitious goals.
 
Many countries and scientists are calling for a new commitment to protect 30 per cent of the world’s oceans by 2030.  I applaud this level of ambition. And is vital that the perspectives and solutions of SIDS are front and center this year.
 
COP15 on biodiversity is expected to adopt a new framework, which will be a benchmark for our success on the Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement. Saving nature is crucial to tackling the climate crisis and driving systemic transformations to achieve the SDGs and live in harmony with our planet.
 
We must address the direct drivers of biodiversity loss: namely land use, climate change, pollution, unsustainable exploitation of wildlife, and invasive species. And we must set ambitious targets and means of implementation.
 
Ladies and Gentlemen,
 
I count AOSIS members as true partners in the reform of the UN Development System.  Indeed, delivery for SIDS is a barometer for the success of this effort. 
 
SIDS are also a gauge for our success on the Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris Agreement.
 
I look forward to working with you throughout this year to meet our common objectives. Thank you for your leadership.