The President of the Dominican Republic, among other leaders of small island developing States addressing the General Assembly today, noted the importance of tackling climate change as a key part of the broader work of ensuring sustainable development for all.<\/p>\n
President Danilo Medina S\u00e1nchez welcomed the fact that \u201cindustrialized nations have finally stepped forward to fight climate change, with firmness and determination.\u201d<\/p>\n
He also spoke of the new UN development agenda and the opportunity it offered to combat inequality, which he said was \u201cthe great enemy of sustainable development.\u201d<\/p>\n
Citing a 2014 study by the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), Mr. Medina S\u00e1nchez said that growth with equity required a \u201cresponsible productive sector that guarantees the generation of wealth in all layers of society.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAlong with the necessary transformation of our economic structures, the second pillar of the fight against inequality has to be the State,\u201d he continued. \u201cWe must regain the role of the State as an efficient wealth distributor, as a creator of opportunities and as a defender of the rights of all citizens.<\/p>\n
Seychelles\u2019 President, James Alix Michel, stressed UN institutional reform before he discussed the impact of climate change on small island developing States (SIDS), which he called the \u201csentinels of nature and the guardians of the oceans.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr. Michel said \u201cwe must break the present growth model\u201d and place nature over consumerism in order to minimise the effects of climate change.<\/p>\n
\u201cClimate change is not of the making of the small island developing States, but we bear the full brunt of it, which is why we will never cease to raise the issue in every forum, including this one, because we are the conscience of the world,\u201d he declared.<\/p>\n
Mr. Michel also spoke about the special and differentiated treatment of SIDS, cautioning that a \u201cone size fits all approach to development cannot be the order of the day.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe, the inhabitants of SIDS shall constantly remind you of this because islands remain the moral compass of the world, because our own agenda is inextricably linked to humanity\u2019s,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
He also noted the importance of Goal 14 of the 2030 agenda to all SIDS and coastal States, emphasizing that it presented a \u201cunique opportunity for global governance of the oceans and seas\u201d and a mechanism to realize sustainable growth for SIDS based around an ocean economy.<\/p>\n
Referring to the upcoming climate negotiations in Paris, Mr. Michel said that \u201cit will be a crucial and decisive moment of choice for all of us,\u201d adding that \u201cwe cannot allow ourselves to be condemned to the wrong side of history\u201d and called on developed countries to commit to devoting $100 billion annually by 2020 for the operationalization of the climate change fund.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines said that the Assembly was \u201cbeset by global threats and risks.\u201d<\/p>\n
He spoke of the \u201cgrave and gathering threat of climate change\u201d and of the \u201crising and raging seas\u201d attacking the coastline of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, where, he said, climate volatility threatens lives and livelihoods.
\nSpeaking of the recent devastation wrought by tropical storm Erica on the island of Dominica, Mr. Gonsalves noted that nations\u2019 existential struggles in the face of climate change must be addressed through reaching an agreement at the upcoming Paris conference.<\/p>\n
Similarly, the Prime Minister of Tonga, Samuela ‘Akilisi Pohiva, said his country looked forward to the successful conclusion of negotiations on a climate agreement in Paris at the end of this year.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis agreement must reaffirm the ultimate objective of the
President Pohiva also noted that Tonga’s vulnerability to natural disasters epitomized the island nations\u2019 special case for sustainable development. Such vulnerabilities, he said, should be factored into development finance calculations designed to assist SIDS.<\/p>\n