2023 GLOBAL MULTI-STAKEHOLDER SMALL ISLAND DEVELOPING STATES PARTNERSHIP DIALOGUE
11 July 2023
Statement by Dr. Fiona Webster, Charge d’Affaires, Deputy Amabassador and Permanent Representative, Australian Mission to the United Nations
I’d like to begin by thanking the Governments of Samoa and Portugal for convening this multi-stakeholder partnerships dialogue for Small Island Developing States SIDS. Australia would like to reaffirm our steadfast commitment to ensuring SIDS perspectives are genuinely heard and understood by all partners.
With 2023 being the mid-point of the 2030 Agenda and one year away from the Fourth SIDS Conference, Member States have an important opportunity to take stock and reimagine a stronger, more inclusive, and more sustainable future for SIDS. Central to making this vision a reality is leveraging SIDS partnerships, which are crucial to the effective implementation of our shared agenda.
This room understands that SIDS are among the most vulnerable countries in the world to external shocks, and can lose development gains rapidly when shocks occur. Rising sea levels, increased frequency and intensity of extreme weather events and changing weather patterns exacerbate the vulnerability of SIDS. The unique and particular vulnerabilities of SIDS demonstrates that there is a critical need to continue building resilience.
In this regard, we have seen strong outcomes for SIDS this year through the Political Declaration of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction. We have also taken important steps towards ensuring the international development system better reflects the particular vulnerabilities of SIDS through the development of a Multidimensional Vulnerability Index.
Australia is confident that SIDS partnerships can continue to produce significant sustainable development outcomes, and would be pleased to see a greater role of SIDS partnerships in driving implementation of the outcomes of the Fourth Conference. Creating an effective enabling environment will ensure that hard-fought development gains can be sustained into the future.
In particular, we see a role for SIDS partnerships in ensuring efforts to improve data availability for SIDS, which is essential to improving understandings of SIDS’ vulnerabilities and the continued work of the MVI. We also see SIDS partnerships playing a valuable role in promoting synergies between the UN and other relevant international and regional organisations.
Australia looks forward to working with Member States to support the important work of the SIDS Partnership Framework, particularly as we prepare for a successful and meaningful SIDS 4 and ultimately agree a strengthened program of action beyond 2024.