Statement to the 61st session of the UN General Assembly
Second Committee
Agenda item 53: Sustainable Development
25 October 2006
Delivered by Dr Dean Bialek
Permanent Mission of Australia to the United Nations
(Check against delivery)
Australia is pleased to be able to take this opportunity to address the topic of sustainable development in the context of the Second Committee’s consideration of what is a crucial underpinning of the work of this organisation.
As we have said previously on a number of occasions in this and other fora, Australia considers that good governance, commitment at the national level and practical partnerships are fundamental to the achievement of sustainable development, consistent with the principles and commitments articulated in the outcomes of the Rio and Johannesburg Summits.
At the United Nations, Australia is a strong supporter of ongoing work on sustainable development, including in the Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD). We are particularly pleased to be representing the Western European and Other States Group on the Bureau for the 15th Session of the CSD. We look forward to making a positive contribution to the discussions and outcomes of the Commission as it addresses its current themes of energy, industrial development, air pollution and climate change. These issues are of great importance to the international community as a whole.
Australia views political stability, effective political and institutional governance and a policy environment that is conducive to growth as essential for attracting the investment necessary for achieving sustainable development. The investments required worldwide for achieving clean development, and in doing so, addressing the challenges presented by climate change, will only flow when these pre-requisites have been fulfilled.
In this regard, Australia is committed to practical partnerships between governments and the private sector as the foundation of our response to the global challenge of sustainable development. Australia believes that engaging the private sector is crucial to driving the innovation and investment necessary to underpin sustainable development.
Collaborative partnerships between countries are equally important for ensuring implementation of the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation, especially in relation to energy policy. Such collaboration is vital for countries with smaller economies to gain the benefits of new ideas and best practices, promote local innovation and to create an environment conducive to the development and employment of new technologies.
Australia is actively involved in a number of partnerships that provide a framework for sharing experiences and learning from others. Initiatives such as the Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate – where we are actively engaged with China, India, Japan, the Republic of Korea and the United States – provide opportunities for engaging business to address sustainable development issues. The six partnership countries each face different challenges, but all are committed to working collaboratively, with both governments and the private sector, to encourage the technological shifts essential for reducing air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.
More generally, Australia has adopted an integrated approach to sustainable development, and this theme is central to the overall objective of our aid program. Australia is committed to working with our partner countries towards the achievement of sustainable development by addressing environmental challenges. This includes the development of a new environment strategy for our aid program, which will concentrate on climate change and adaptation, water and environmental regulatory regimes.
Australia also supports ongoing efforts within this and other fora in respect of improving the framework for international environmental governance (IEG). We have participated actively in the General Assembly process for following through on paragraph 169 of the World Summit Outcome, which recognized the need to make more efficient the UN’s work on environment-related issues. As we have stated in those consultations, it is crucial that environment, sustainable development and natural resource management is mainstreamed into the UN’s development-related programs.
In this regard, we are pleased with the efforts of the United Nations Environment Programme under the Bali Strategic Plan to mainstream environmental concerns and rationalise program delivery in coordination with UNDP. We await with interest the outcome of the deliberations on the Secretary-General’s High Level Panel on System-Wide Coherence, and look forward to considering any proposals for improvement and reform.
I thank you.