Island Leaders at UNGA79 Resolve to Spur Global Support for Sustainable Development

Heads of State and high-level officials united at the AOSIS Leaders Meeting to strengthen the course for delivery of the ‘ABAS’, enhanced finance, and addressing sea level rise.

24th September, 2024 – New York City


On the margins of the High-Level General Debate of the 79th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA 79), the 39 heads and high-level officials of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) came together On Monday 23rd September to set out their development needs and calls for a secure future. The event was led by the Honourable Fiamē Naomi Mataʻafa, Prime Minister of Samoa.

A key area of discussion was the implementation of the new ten-year framework, the Antigua and Barbuda Agenda for SIDS (ABAS), which was agreed at the Fourth International Conference on SIDS in May of this year.

“Implementing the ABAS is key to our resilient development,” said Prime Minister Mataʻafa. “The means of implementation, and the immediate need to establish the SIDS Center of Excellence are core to ABAS’ success, and our own. A collective and inclusive coordination process will be essential to deliver overarching success towards the sustainability of small island developing states.”

The Meeting also included participation from United Nations leaders including UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, and Mr. Haoliang Xu, Under-Secretary-General and Associate Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Leaders from other key international bodies included Her Excellency Ms. Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, Ms. Mafalda Duarte, Executive Director of the Green Climate Fund, and Mr. Vladimir Jares, Director of the Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea (DOALOS).

Leaders of small island developing states seized the opportunity to engage with these officials. Several Heads of state outlined their countries’ development needs and proffered their guidance for achievement of sustainable development goals. Heads and representatives making interventions included:

– President of Cabo Verde, His Excellency José Maria Neves
– President of Maldives, His Excellency Dr. Mohammed Muizzu
– President of the Republic of Marshall Islands, Her Excellency Hilda Heine-
– President of the Republic of Mauritius, His Excellency Prithvirajsing Roopun
– President of the Federated State of Micronesia, Honourable Wesley W. Simina
– Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, Honourable Gaston Brown
– Prime Minister of Belize, Honourable John Antonio Briceño
– Prime Minister of Jamaica, Honourable Andrew Holness
– Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of Timor Leste, Honourable Kay Rala Xanana
– Prime Minister of Tuvalu, Honourable Feleti Penitala Teo
– Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Tonga, Honourable Hu’akavameiliku
– Prime Minister of Vanuatu, Honourable Charlot Salwai
– Minister of Climate Change, Environment and Energy of the Republic of Maldives, Mr. Thoriq Ibrahim
– Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Cuba, H.E. Anayansi Rodríguez Camejo
– Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office of Singapore, His Excellency Dr. Maliki Osman

The Leaders also discussed the critical issue of unlocking the finance which islands urgently need to be resilient in the face of growing challenges.

“As SIDS leaders it can seem that for every move forward there remains a greater chasm to cross. For every dollar spent on recovery and loan repayments, we forego contributions to our future.” Said Prime Minister Mataʻafa. “We need reform. COP29 and the Fourth Financing for Development Conference can be seen as leading processes, while the Multidimensional Vulnerability Index, Bridgetown Initiative, and the Debt Sustainability and Support Service, as proposed in ABAS, can be our immediate tools in this reform.”
Significantly, AOSIS will be making an announcement on the topic of Sea Level Rise and Statehood at the UN High Level Meeting on the Threats of Sea Level Rise*. At the Leaders Meeting, Prime Minister Mataʻafa described the development as “our next step in the progressive development of the law”.

“We have seen, first-hand, the relentless rise of sea levels on our islands. The impacts of this rise increase day by day. Consequently, we have been leaders in clarifying international law in this era of climate change. We are making sure that international law works for us—the smallest, but most effected states.”

*This announcement will be publicized on Wednesday 25th September, 2024.