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United Nations General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) on the Development of Small Island Developing States (SIDS) UN Headquarters, New York, 27-28 September 1999 |
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United Nations General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) on the Development of Small Island Developing States (SIDS) UN Headquarters, New York, 27-28 September 1999 |
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Photos and RealAudio |
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OPENING PLENARY
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On Monday, 27 September, Martin Andjaba,
Permanent Representative of Namibia, opened the 22nd Special Session of
the General Assembly (UNGASS)
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The Plenary elected Dr. Theo-Ben Gurirab,
President of the 54th General Assembly (Namibia, center), to preside over
the 22nd UNGASS.
President Gurirab welcomed participants and, recalling the commitment
made in Barbados in 1994 to pursue sustainable development and economic
growth for SIDS, called upon delegates to renew and strengthen the Barbados
Programme of Action. |
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Kofi Annan, UN Secretary-General (on the left), recalled the conference
slogan from Barbados, "small islands big issues." He described SIDS as
the frontline zones where many of the main problems of environment and
development are unfolding and stressed that they therefore provide a test
of the commitments made at UNCED. |
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COUNTRY STATEMENTS
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The president of GUYANA, on behalf of the G77, said discussions at the
Special Session would serve to highlight SIDS' special needs and to focus
attention of the international community on the problems and constraints
they face to achieve sustainable development. He noted the Barbados Declaration
described SIDS as being particularly vulnerable to natural as well as environmental
disasters and acknowledged their limited capacity to recover from such disasters.
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SAMOA, on behalf of AOSIS indicated that SIDS have done their best
to implement the POA and noted that although the review process should
have been a comparatively simple task, negotiations had not been easy.
He said that participants at the Special Session should ask themselves
whether their message about SIDS to the world was "a powerful one" and
whether the international community truly shared a common vision for the
future. |
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SAINT LUCIA expressed disappointment at the lack of support from the
OECD countries for the development of SIDS. |
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FINLAND, on behalf of the EU, highlighted the following emerging concerns
for SIDS: continuing deterioration of the marine environment; freshwater
and land degradation; increased frequency and severity of natural disasters;
economic difficulties due to external factors; and the expansion of globalization
since Barbados, which puts SIDS at risk of economic marginalization. |
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CLOSING PLENARY
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The CARIBBEAN CONSERVATION ASSOCIATION, representing a coalition of NGOs, highlighted negative impacts of globalization and trade liberalization. He supported the Caribbean Sea initiative and called for the removal of all external military bases and a cessation of transboundary movement of hazardous wastes. He said all stakeholders should be held publicly accountable for commitments made. |
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Delegates considered the report of the COW (A/S-22/9), which was introduced by COW Chair John Ashe (Antigua and Barbuda). This report contained a provision stating that the GA adopts the Declaration and the document on the State of Progress and Initiatives for the future Implementation of the POA for the Sustainable Development of SIDS as contained in A/S-22/2/Add.1, which the Plenary adopted. The Plenary also agreed to forward the draft resolution on the Caribbean Sea (A/S-22/6) to the Second Committee for further consideration under the agenda item entitled "Environment and sustainable development." |
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GA President Gurirab indicated that without adequate financial support
the way forward for SIDS was uncertain. He indicated time was running
out for action. He concluded by saying that the Special Session sent a
powerful message of the international community's solidarity with SIDS
and characterized it as an occasion to ensure that the well-being of SIDS
was the business of all humanity. |
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Klaus Töpfer, UNEP Executive Director, said SIDS are a microcosm
of the challenges facing all nations and, stating that their sustainable
development is about more than just coral reefs and climate change,
said it is about the existence and survival of a people. He stated that
the promotion of tourism was indispensable to the sustainable development
of SIDS. |
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The FAO presented the Plan of Action
on Agriculture in SIDS, along with a Ministerial Declaration on Agriculture
in SIDS, both of which are contained in A/S-22/3. He highlighted the
results of the Special Ministerial Conference and said it agreed the
Plan of Action on Agriculture in SIDS would focus on the following
five commitments: adjusting to changes in the global trading environment;
developing more intensified, diversified and sustainable agriculture;
meeting needs of fisheries; ensuring sustainable management of land,
water and forestry resources and environmental protection; and promoting
capacity building and institutional strengthening.
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The UNDP highlighted its commitment to capacity building in critical areas of the POA, including the establishment of SIDSNet through which SIDS can access and share sustainable development information on the Internet. He highlighted consultations being organized through its Resident Coordinator system between the UN system and SIDS' governments, the private sector, NGOs and civil society. |
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John Ashe (Antigua and Barbuda),
Chair of the Ad Hoc Committee of the Whole
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ECLAC stated that her organization, jointly with CARICOM, undertook
a role in the coordination of implementing POA activities and added
that the February donor conference was an important milestone for Caribbean
SIDS' as it provided an opportunity for all SIDS to congregate and interact.
She stated that the POA is but a framework which needs to be deepened
to capture future challenges, such as changes in trade regimes and protocols
resulting in losses of preferential access to markets. |
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The UN DRUG CONTROL PROGRAMME noted that a serious consequence
of globalization on SIDS has been an increase in crime, violence and
drug abuse due to SIDS' geographical location and miles of unmonitored
coastline. He stated the Caribbean SIDS recognized their vulnerability
and agreed in 1996, as part of the Barbados Plan of Action for Drug
Control Coordination, to, inter alia: monitor the movement of vessels;
encourage police cooperation and joint training; and harmonize drug
control and anti-money laundering. |
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THE WORLD METEROLOGICAL ORGANIZATION (WMO) noted that the WMO is ensuring the availability of reliable information on weather, climate and water resources; prediction of phenomena such as El Ni�o and La Ni�a; and associated impacts on the socioeconomic development of nations. He supported the full implementation of international conventions that would help alleviate and reduce serious obstacles to SIDS' sustainable development. |
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The COW addressed the draft resolution
on the Caribbean Sea (A/S-22/6) and discussed the possibility of forwarding
it to Second Committee of the GA for further consideration. The EU
noted specific challenges faced by Caribbean countries and said UNCLOS
should be a reference framework for reference and the work of the
International Maritime Organization (IMO) should be taken into account.
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GUYANA, on behalf of the G-77/CHINA, looked forward to further negotiations on the Caribbean Seas resolution in the Second Committee. |
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AOSIS PRESS CONFERENCE
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| AOSIS held a press conference on Monday morning to discuss the communiqu� adopted at the AOSIS Summit on 25 September and their hopes for the UNGASS on SIDS. Present were, from left to right: Billie Miller, Deputy Prime Minister of Barbados; Patrick Albert Lewis (Antigua and Barbuda), Vice-Chairman of AOSIS; Tuila'epa Sailele Malielegaoi, Prime Minister of Samoa and Chairman of AOSIS; and Rajkeswur Purryag, Deputy Prime Minister of Mauritius. | 
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Chairman Malielegaoi summarizes the main points of the communiqu�
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Miller discusses the Draft Resolution recognizing the Caribbean Sea as
a special area in the context of sustainable development
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UNEP REGIONAL OUTLOOK REPORTS AND GPA
CHM
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UNEP and the EU convened this special event to announce the launch of the
Caribbean, Pacific Island and Western Indian Ocean Environmental Outlook
Reports. These three reports detail the environmental conditions of the
three major island regions of the world, evaluate policy responses and highlight
priority issues. The reports are companion volumes of the Global Environmental
Outlook 2000 (GEO-2000) report. Among the speakers at this event were, from
left to right, Dr. Francisco Granelll, EC Directorate General for Development;
Dr. Klaus Töpfer, UNEP Executive Director; and Amb. Satiwan Gunasee,
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Mauritius. For more information on the
Outlook reports, contact geo@unep.org.
The launch of the central node of the Global Programme of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-based Activities (GPA) Clearing-House Mechanisms was also announced. For more information, please visit the GPA CHM at http://www.gpa.unep.org/ |
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Töpfer outlined the main environmental challenges of SIDS and discussed
the recommendations made in the Outlook Reports
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Gunasse gave concrete examples of the environmental and economic challenges,
both natural and man-made, faced by SIDS in the Indian Ocean |
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UNDP CAPACITY BUILDING
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The "Capacity Building for Sustainable
Development: The Role of UNDP in SIDS" side event brought together
several speakers to share their experiences in various UNDP capacity building
programmes. The presenters were Geir Sjoberg, UNDP Energy and Atmosphere
Programme (EAP, far left); Linus Spencer Thomas, Ministry of Finance of
Grenada (second from the left); Surresh Hurry, EAP (second from the right)
and Neil Pierre, UNDP Regional Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean
(RBLAC, far right). Elena Martinez, UNDP RBLAC
(third from the left), chaired the discussion.
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