AOSIS Statement delivered by
Ms Farzana Zahir, Deputy Permanent Representative
on Eradication of Poverty and other Development Issues
17 October 2018
Mr Chairman,
I have the honour to deliver this statement on behalf of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS), and we align ourselves with the statement delivered by Egypt on behalf of the G77 and China.
We thank the Secretary General for his Report on this agenda item, in particular this year’s Note on the promotion of sustainable tourism, including ecotourism, for poverty eradication and environmental protection. Small island developing States rely on sustainable tourism for economic development, and therefore we encourage continued support of this issue as well as follow up to last year’s International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development. A great deal of awareness and work was accomplished over the course of 2017, and it is critical that we keep up the momentum by solidifying and expanding our work.
It is unfortunate that this year’s Report on the Decade of the Eradication of Poverty did not speak specifically about the challenges faced by sids. However, it does address concerns of sids, in the boarder concept of countries in special situations, on the need for climate change adaptation and mitigation. It outlines how in 2017 alone, weather-related disasters caused over $320 billion in economic damage, and that climate change induced threats and disasters are becoming more frequent and severe, undermining work towards the 2030 Agenda, and in some cases completely reversing development gains. Climate change and its impacts set back poverty eradication and therefore we continue to urge the full implementation the agreements, agendas, and frameworks to help mitigate this. For the sids to realise the sdgs, we need improved access to the means of implementation, including capacity building, access to finance and technology. As we have reiterated before, many sids still lack even baseline data that can help inform programmes and policies to eradicate poverty, and we urge the international community to improve its coordination and implementation of commitments around capacity building in this regard.
The Mid-term high-level review of the samoa Pathway, to be held on 27 September 2019, will provide space to discuss the sustainable development of sids, engaging with the progress made in eradicating poverty and related issues, and the challenges we continue to face in moving forward. We encourage support and participation from all States in this review to help further successful outcomes in sustainable development for sids.
In this regard, we welcome the Third United Nations Decade for the Eradication of Poverty, 2018-2027, and urge our collective commitment to ensure tangible progress in the eradication of poverty worldwide leading up to 2030.
Eradication of poverty remains a significant priority for sids, and while our unique vulnerabilities mean we continue to face structural challenges. We are committed to finding innovative solutions and to engage in genuine and durable partnerships to ensure that we do not leave anyone behind.
I thank you.
