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World leaders gathering at the United Nations (UN) on Friday adopted a political declaration aimed at protecting Small Island Developing States (SIDS) from the impacts of climate change and accelerating sustainable development in those countries.
The leaders urged the scaling up of investments in SIDS for their economic growth and diversification.
They urged action to address the adverse impacts of climate change, including those related to sea-level rise and extreme weather events, which continue to pose a significant risk to small island states, and for many, are the gravest of threats to their very survival.
The declaration was adopted at a high-level midterm review on the progress of the SIDS Accelerated Modalities of Action, or the SAMOA Pathway.
The SAMOA Pathway, adopted at the Third International Conference on Small Island Developing States held in Samoa in 2014, is a dedicated 10-year program of action for the sustainable development of SIDS.
The world leaders also held two round-table discussions, respectively on the themes of "Samoa Pathway mid-term review: progress, gaps and challenges" and "Priorities, Solutions and the Way forward."
At the opening ceremony, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres praised SIDS' leading role in the global climate efforts, saying that at Monday's Climate Action Summit convened by him, they together committed to carbon neutrality and pledged to move to 100 percent renewable energy by 2030.
"The climate crisis is piling injustice upon injustice," Guterres said. "Despite contributing very little, practically nothing, to global warming, Small Island Developing States are paying the highest price."
He urged implementation toward the SAMOA pathway, which he called "a global effort based on a collective vision."
He said that the UN system will continue to support the governments of small island states to expand their activities and partnerships for sustainable development.
President of the 74th session of the UN General Assembly Tijjani Muhammad-Bande emphasized that only through global efforts, such as the Samoa Pathway, can the world address climate challenges, adding that priorities set out by SIDS must be central to efforts to realize the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
(CGTN)
