General Assembly endorses small island states’ call for help with climate change

The United Nations General Assembly has endorsed a declaration made by Small Island Developing States (SIDS) requesting expanded trade opportunities, assistance in coping with sea-level rise and other adverse consequences of climate change, and renewable energy and cleaner fossil fuel technologies.

Adopting without a vote a resolution introduced by Jamaica yesterday on behalf of the 132-member “Group of 77” developing countries and China, the Assembly called for timely actions to implement the Mauritius Declaration and Strategy for implementation adopted at the SIDS international meeting from 10 to 14 January.

The Strategy would require a substantial increase in financial resources to be used effectively, access to and transfer of environmentally sound technologies, early warning weather systems, capacity-building and quick and practical actions to respond to the unique economic, social and environmental challenges facing the 51 SIDS, the representative of Mauritius said.

The SIDS are small island and low-lying coastal countries that share similar sustainable development challenges, including small populations, lack of resources, remoteness from other land masses, susceptibility to natural disasters, excessive dependence on international trade and vulnerability to global developments. In addition, they lack economies of scale and pay high costs for transportation, communication, public administration and infrastructure.