Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States - 1.5 Degrees

Opening Remarks at the Local2030 Islands Network Virtual High-level Islands Side Event

Anonymous — Tue, 29 Sep 2020 21:24:00 +0000

Opening Remarks by Ms. Fekitamoeloa Katoa‘Utoikamanu, High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States

29 September 2020
New York, USA

Excellencies,
Colleagues,
Ladies and gentlemen,

I am very happy to be with you today at the formal launch of the Local2030 Islands Network.

On behalf of the UN Deputy-Secretary-General, Mrs. Amina Mohammed, I thank you for your leadership and commitment.

Local action, local participation, local island-led solutions are key to addressing pressing global challenges.

There is no one size fits all solution that a global agenda should or can propose. As they say “thinking must be global and action must be local” .

The key to turning a global agenda into action lies indeed in formulating and then implementing local sustainability frameworks built on participation and local knowledge.

We all know how very vulnerable Small Island Developing States are to the ongoing and ever accelerating impacts of climate change.

The list of what climate change means practically is long and ranges from sea-level rise, to ocean acidification, biodiversity loss and severe weather events just to name a few!

This is why it is all the more remarkable how island nations, on many fronts, have lead in developing innovative solutions for the rest of the world to be inspired by and learn from.

So, I seize this opportunity to thank all who are submitting ambitious NDCs, in particular those recognizing the critical 1.5 degree Celsius limit and the urgency of mitigating the dire projections in the IPCC Special Report on 1.5 degrees.

2020, I have no doubt, will impact all of us for times to come.

COVID-19, the global shutdowns, multiple and accelerating climate change related disasters have deepened the complexity and difficulty to manage existing challenges.

An already unsustainable debt crisis is worsening, incomes decline as key sectors such as tourism have come to an almost standstill, remittances have dropped perilously, fiscal space for medium- to long term investments in climate action and inclusive sustainability rapidly shrinks.

Human security truly is at stake.

More than ever, partnerships are needed to avoid further descent into a dangerous downward spiral wiping out years of hard won gains.

This is also the moment where we must share lessons learned and best practices.

You have shown the way in how to build a bridge between global aims and essential local action through initiatives such as the Micronesian Challenge, Caribbean Challenge, and the Aloha+ Challenge.

Your work is inspirational .

It personally reminds me how long ago, in my country, we saw how what we then call a bottom- up approach to planning and doing makes the difference.

It was all about listening to local concerns, working with communities, bringing communities together with partners through what we called integrated local development programmes.

Participation, genuine participation with actions is what brings tangible and sustainable change to communities. It is change communities own.

Islands nations indeed show us many scalable models that can be key to sustainable development.

There is much we can learn from each other. There is much that can even be an example for larger economies to follow.

So, today I wholeheartedly join in the UN support by partnering through the Local2030 Initiative.

This is an innovative network bringing together the UN system, local actors, and national governments to collaboratively develop locally sensitive solutions to global challenges.

As I said before, participation at all levels is key.

More than ever it is critically important to bring the diverse voices of Mayors, Governors and municipal leaders, the private sector and civil society into the work of the United Nations.

There is great hope that the Local2030 Initiative and Local2030 Hubs will make a difference for climate action, inclusion and local economic development and equity.

Your work is key to ensuring that we leave no one behind.

I am confident that the Local2030 Islands Network, an initiative facilitated by the Hawai’i Green Growth Local2030 Hub and Global Island Partnership, will continue to help bring the critical and diverse voices of local island civil society, and public and private sector partners into the work of the United Nations.

The United Nations supports the four principles of the Local2030 Islands Network:

To identify local goals to advance the SDGs and strengthen long-term political leadership on sustainability and resilience.
To strengthen public-private partnerships that support diverse stakeholders in integrating sustainability priorities into policy and planning.
To measure progress through tracking and reporting on locally and community driven metrics.
And to implement concrete initiatives that build island resilience and circular economy, particularly at the water energy-food nexus.

In closing, I wish you a productive event to formally launch the Local2030 Islands Network.

We look forward to continuing to work with all of you.

OHRLLS is ready to cooperate on bringing local island voices to global fora.

We are ready to help foster global and regional partnerships for effective climate action and this includes work through the SIDS Partnership Framework and the SIDS Global Business Network.

The time for action grounded in participation by all is now.

I thank you.

Front Page Article:

Opening Statement at the "Island Resilience Forum: SC1.5NCEnotSILENCE”

Anonymous — Tue, 29 Sep 2020 15:34:00 +0000

Opening Statement by Ms. Fekitamoeloa Katoa‘Utoikamanu, High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States

29 September 2020
New York, USA

Excellencies,
Colleagues,
Ladies and gentlemen,

Resilience may well be a key theme for all of us this year where individual, community, national, regional and global resilience is put to severe tests.

We are in the midst still of a health pandemic where there is no denying that inequalities and climate change play major roles.

Global warming has already severely risked biodiversity, fisheries, air quality and the list is long. Yet, nature is the host for our being and unchecked and ever accelerating global warming threaten human existence.

We long have been given a clear warning: we must limit global warming at its minimum to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

Yet, even at 1.5 degrees of warming we still run major risks.

There is no room left for complacency, inaction or worse silence. Facts cannot just be wished away.

Too many continue to drag their feet while the deadline for staying below this critical threshold is here.

The human and financial costs of inaction are already visible and are especially heavy for the Small Island Developing States, Least Developed Countries and Landlocked Developing Countries.

Historically speaking, these countries have made the smallest contribution to global warming. Yet, they are the most exposed to and affected by climate change.

So, it is even more remarkable how the LDCs and SIDS for decades now have been at the forefront of climate action.

They deserve our collective support and also our gratitude for relentlessly pushing for a science-based approach to one of the greatest human challenges of our times.

I thank all who have recently submitted their updated and ambitious NDCs in line with the 1.5 degree target.

This includes several SIDS, LDCs and LLDCs.

I encourage all to explicitly recognize the IPCC Special Report on 1.5 degrees in NDCs and to continuously remind ourselves and others of the costs of ignoring its findings.

Of course, the key challenge is the implementation of the NDCs.

Definitely, time has run out for words, action counts. Implementation means we must join forces.

Joining forces , in turn, means creating and working in genuine partnerships.

Partnerships ranging from South-South, to North-South, public and private, across generations, across sectors, across communities are key.

For urgent and effective climate action, the global community must undertake rapid and far-reaching action.

Support must accelerate in all areas and including in areas such as finance, technology, technical assistance, capacity building and knowledge sharing.

We continue to be in the midst of deep changes.

The climate change induced hazards, natural disasters, the COVID pandemic , the unsustainable debt levels leave many vulnerable countries unable to now also effectively invest in climate action.

Today, I wish to echo the call by AOSIS and others for a green and inclusive recovery.

The time is now to leave no one behind in a sustainable and inclusive recovery.

This is the time to invest in renewable energy transitions and end investments in carbon-based growth.

The time for mitigation and adaptation is not tomorrow, it is NOW. The more climate hazards are mitigated or adapted now, the more we can reduce the ultimate cost of loss and damage, including irreversible loss of biodiversity and the social upheavals of forced migration and economic hardships.

I applaud March For Science, the Island Resilience Partnership, YOUNGO, and AOSIS for organizing this critical meeting and for your tireless efforts.

Thank you.

Front Page Article:

Joint AOSIS-LDC Group Event: Leading the Way: Raising Ambition for 1.5°C-compatible Climate Action

Anonymous — Fri, 25 Sep 2020 11:04:00 +0000

Friday, 25 September 2020 - 8:00am to 9:30am

BACKGROUND

At a time when the impacts of COVID-19 are creating much uncertainty on climate action, the pandemic also provides tremendous opportunities to build back better with climate-friendly policies and actions that deliver better outcomes both for economies and the environment. Communicating enhanced nationally determined contributions (NDCs) in 2020 will be a critical cornerstone of recovery efforts from COVID-19 that need to put us on track to a 1.5° C world. A failure to move collectively onto an emissions reduction pathway consistent with the Paris Agreement's 1.5°C warming limit will affect all countries but will have the greatest impact on the poorest and most vulnerable people in Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and Small Island Developing States (SIDS).

Despite LDCs and SIDS being among the most vulnerable countries, hardest hit by the compounding crises of COVID-19 and climate impacts, many of our member countries are taking determined actions and many are aiming to communicate updated NDCs this year. It will be important that other countries and in particular major emitters do the same this year, with their highest possible ambition and fair share of the global effort, and in line with 1.5°C pathways.

With 2020 being a critical year for accelerated climate action, this side event focused on ambition. It brought together LDCs and SIDS to discuss the implications of inaction, the opportunities of bold green recoveries, and how to build the momentum for collective action to end the climate crisis.

DOCUMENTS

Background Materials

Background Note & Agenda

Statements

Ms. Fekitamoeloa Katoa ‘Utoikamanu

Photo: Building the green homes project in Zambia. Marcel Crozet / ILO

tags:

Least Developed Countries

1.5 Degrees

Climate Change

Small Island Developing States

Categories:

Keynote Statement at a A Joint AOSIS-LDC Group Event - Leading the way: Raising Ambition for 1.5°C-compatible Climate Action

Anonymous — Fri, 25 Sep 2020 07:42:00 +0000

Statement by Ms. Fekitamoeloa Katoa‘Utoikamanu, High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States

25 September 2020
New York, USA

Excellencies,
Colleagues,
Ladies and gentlemen,

I thank the co-organizers for your invitation to address this important meeting.

Your meeting is critical. We find ourselves in the middle of multiple global crises – worsening climate change impacts, a global health pandemic, and deep global financial and economic disruption.

The toll already is and will continue to be especially heavy for the SIDS, LDCs and LLDCs.

Key economic sectors have either been deeply disrupted or even come to standstill such as trade, tourism, fisheries and agriculture.

Consequently, governments’ revenues have plummeted, worsening an already acute debt situation.

As we all face this crisis, as we face very uncharted territory, we must seize this disruptive moment and turn it into a moment of hope and opportunity.

But this, we can only do if we act in a collective manner.

It is now our shared opportunity and responsibility to inject new urgency to remain within the critical 1.5 degree C threshold.

Historically, the SIDS and LDCs have made the smallest contribution to global warming.

To improve the lives of their citizens, they must produce sustained economic growth.

And they do so by taking exemplary steps towards mitigation and decoupling emissions from growth.

Both groups of countries made important announcements at the Climate Action Summit last September in New York. More importantly, they have continued to follow-up on them.

The NDCs are key vehicles for climate action.

I applaud the countries that have recently submitted their updated and ambitious NDCs. This includes several SIDS, LDCs and LLDCs.

The need for bold climate action is clearly most important for the largest emitters.

In this global pandemic, many of the most developed nations have rolled out major social protection and stimulus packages.

The packages amount to billions of dollars.

In how these packages get delivered, lies a major opportunity.

Each dollar of stimulus can potentially have a green impact, but even if only a fraction is deployed towards low-carbon transitions, this would go a long way.

Allow me to share a couple examples.

Policies and operational plans do already include in some cases direct support for renewable energy and sustainable modes of transport but more can be done. And much more can be done for the financing of measures in NDCs and climate action plans.

Government budget deficits can be improved through equitable and sustainable fiscal measures. This can range from carbon taxes to the removal of subsidies to polluting activities.

I would also once more call on development partners to expand investment in climate action in vulnerable countries so that together we urgently limit loss and damage.

It is up to us how we leverage the disruptor this global health pandemic is for all of us.

The pandemic can also provide new impetus for harnessing the potential of the digital revolution and mainstreaming disaster risk reduction strategies.

Many nations , including the LDCs and SIDS, have taken important measures to build back better.

These are examples I encourage all to follow and to use the opportunity afforded by the updated NDCs.

In concluding, allow me to recall the six climate positive actions that Secretary-General Gutteres invited all countries to consider as they rebuild their economies, during his opening address at the general debate of the General Assembly on Tuesday.

These are:

to build resilient societies and a just transition;

to promote green jobs and sustainable growth;
to ensure bailouts of industry, aviation and shipping to be aligned with the Paris Agreement;
to end fossil fuel subsidies;
to integrate climate risks in financial and policy decision-making; and
to leave no one behind.

I thank you.

Front Page Article:

Opening Remarks at the Climate Talk and Net Zero 2050: New Zealand and Pacific Island Countries

Anonymous — Tue, 04 Aug 2020 14:45:00 +0000

Opening Statement by Ms. Fekitamoeloa Katoa‘Utoikamanu, High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States

4 August 2020
New York, USA

Excellencies,
Colleagues,
Ladies and gentlemen,

A big thank you , Malo Aupito ! to the New Zealand’s Embassy to the Republic of Korea.

A big thank you to the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI),

Our co-organizers.

I am honored by your invitation to address this important meeting.

Please allow me to first pay tribute to you, Your Excellency, Ban Ki-moon.

Throughout your distinguished career and especially during your two consecutive terms as Secretary-General of the United Nations, you drove, you unwaveringly committed to combatting climate change and you continue to do so!

Thank you for inspiring us all.

Climate change knows no borders. Climate change concerns all women, girls, men and boys of our shared planet.

By now though, climate change has taken on a truly existential meaning for the peoples of the Pacific. In Shakespeare’s words it is about “TO BE OR NOT TO BE.”

Many before me already alerted to this.

The SIDS, the least developed countries and the landlocked developing countries with a population of over one billion people, human lives!, are among the most vulnerable nations.

They all have in common to be on the frontline of climate change.

Adapting in pro-active ways to the foreseeable adverse impacts of climate change is not a luxury for them, it is a necessity to survive.

A key driver to be able to achieve that lies in access to affordable and reliable energy. They lack that access. This means you can barely power rural health clinics, forget about telemedicine or telework. This means you remain stuck in sub-optimal production processes and you cannot compete in regional or global markets.

Many of the countries, especially the small islands and landlocked countries, are far away from markets, they remain highly dependent on fossil-fuel imports, and suffer from the resulting high energy access costs.

With rapidly advancing technology and thus also more competitive pricing, the move towards renewable energy and low-carbon development has become an economically viable option. This is particularly so given the high renewable energy potential of the countries.

The challenges countries face are considerable and let us not forget that, historically, their contributions to greenhouse gas concentrations has been very low on a per capita basis.

All of us should be very encouraged that both Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) and the LDCs have taken exemplary steps in terms of ambition in mitigation. Both groups made important announcements at the Climate Action Summit last September in New York, and continue to follow-up on them.

All SIDS have committed to strategies consistent with the 1.5 Degree target, and several have committed to 100% renewable energy by 2030 – including through initiatives like SIDS Dock and the SIDS Lighthouse Initiative.

I take it upon myself and OHRLLS – and I call upon all to join - to urgently amplify their voice so it is heard loud and clear by the major greenhouse gas emitters, to whom we appeal to play their part on the global stage.

Since, further challenges have arisen with the COVID-19 pandemic.

We have massive disruptions everywhere. But the toll is especially heavy for the SIDS, LDCs and LLDCs.

They faced complex vulnerability challenges prior to the pandemic but now they face a multiple of challenges amounting to an almost perfect storm.

The imperative of short-term health and basic survival responses means that already scarce domestic resources have to be diverted from national SDG implementation towards emergency plans.

Through all this, the global climate crisis continues to unfold.

The onset of the hurricane season is a stark reminder of this.

While, allow me to say, mission control is all focused on pandemic management, capacity to respond to other unfolding disasters is almost depleted.

Take as evidence the most recent Category 5 Tropical Cyclone Harold which wreaked havoc in Fiji, the Solomon Islands, Tonga and Vanuatu.

I am sure we all agree that constant, short-term re-active responses cannot be the answer because this simply is not sustainable.

The challenge before us is to stay the course and maintain traction for ambitious climate action.

We must reverse the current downward spiral.

This is why I wish to thank the AOSIS Chair for convening the Placenia Ambition Forum in April of this year. At the Forum, important steps were taken to mobilize major actors in the climate change negotiations, and for increasing ambition and safeguarding of the Paris Agreement.

In these efforts, countries have to be in the driver’s seat. I wish to mention the countries that have recently submitted their updated national plans, which include four SIDS and three LLDCs, one of which is also an LDC, as well as New Zealand.

It is a beginning and I look forward to the work of the new independent Climate Change Commission.

The Pacific NDC Hub, which was launched in 2017, already supports pacific island nations on their low carbon pathways.

As a side remark, I believe the COVID pandemic shows us some keys for solutions like much more replacing travel with virtual meetings, consuming locally including movements like farm-to-table, valuing the quality of the natural environment ! These are all steps each one of us can take to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions. Each one of us has a role to play.

Let us not just be victims but let us be actors in the change we want.

Slowly indeed, but surely , countries across the world are focusing on recovery efforts.

This is now our opportunity to change course by greening our recovery measures.

This is our moment for SOLIDARITY.

As I said at the beginning, climate change knows no boundaries and a virus also does not and nor should basic human rights.

It is a basic human right to have access to a healthy environment as expressed in the Stockholm declaration.

At the outset, very strong local, national, regional and global political wills have to come together to decide that our “new normal” will be built on an inclusive and sustainable development model.

All stimulus spending should drive a green impact. This would go a long way toward making the low-carbon transition reality rather than keep talking about it.

The evidence is there and shows that such investments can generate a strong economic recovery, create decent jobs and bring us closer to a 1.5-degree world.

We CAN do it, but now we MUST do it !

Let us unite, have a common voice, let us move to ACTION with strong champions who will lead by example.

I thank you.

Front Page Article:

Keynote Address at the AOSIS/LDC Event: “Leading the Way: Raising Ambition for Climate Action”

Anonymous — Fri, 20 Sep 2019 17:42:00 +0000

Keynote Address by Ms. Fekitamoeloa Katoa‘Utoikamanu, High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States

20 September 2019
New York, USA

Honourable Ministers,
Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen,

It always is both a privilege and responsibility to deliver a keynote statement. But it is even more so at this important moment on the eve of the Secretary-General’s Climate Action Summit! and also just before other critical gatherings in this week’s series of Summits on sustainable development.

For months, countless experts in government, the private sector, civil society organizations and academia have done groundwork for the truly critical next few days.

People across the world answered the call to join young people and take part in the “Global Climate Strike”.

I think one critical step is taken - the sense of urgency and the sense that we must ACT and no longer hide behind words are firmly entrenched in people's minds and hearts.

AOSIS and the LDC groups have contributed a lot to this growing awareness by your extraordinary efforts in the lead-up to the Summit to ensure that our collective voice is heard and by leading the way in terms of ambition.

So, I wish to acknowledge the efforts of the Chair of AOSIS, the Chair of the LDCs in New York and the Chair of the LDCs in Bonn, as well as all the AOSIS and LDCs members that have co-led the Summit’s nine action areas, supported the coalitions and come forward with collective and individual initiatives.

Thank you all!

What unites us is that we truly are in the frontline of the climate change impacts and already so for a long time! There is no need to recall the growing list of truly catastrophic climate-related disasters in just recent years - Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Dominica, Lao PDR, Malawi, Puerto Rico, Somalia, Tanzania, or indeed my own country Tonga.

Our nations are not among what we call traditionally the most powerful.

But we have strength in numbers!

There are 44 states and observers of AOSIS and an additional 41 states from the LDC group. Do the maths!

While the populations of SIDS are small, the LDCs total one billion.

The strongest asset we have is to speak loudly, put our facts on the table and remain a united voice. We have done so, we must continue to do so, we must never waiver.

The IPCC Special Report on 1.5 Degrees is crystal clear on the extent and severity of expected climate change impacts. That is what is expected but think of what the SIDS and LDCs already experience since by times decades!

Now, mitigation, being pro- active rather than reacting after the fact at very high costs, yes it COSTS. And these are costs the often small- size and fragile economies cannot bear alone.

The need for finance per se and the need to expedite and simplify finance access is a TOP PRIORITY.

Access to concessional finance for reconstruction following climate-related disasters, irrespective of the per capita income category of a country is an equal priority.

We are talking survival and not luxury. We are talking stability rather than letting countries slide into instability. We are talking basic human rights.

International assistance must go beyond addressing immediate humanitarian emergencies over and over again and must step in to share the costs of longer-term re-building as well as loss and damage.

I applaud but above all support the broad array of initiative and pledges for ambitious climate change action by AOSIS and the LDCs.

The SIDS and LDCs' greenhouse gas emissions are low compared to the OECD countries. Yet, and once again at the forefront, AOSIS and LDCs will announce plans for low greenhouse gas emission development strategies – through the “SIDS 2020 Ambition Leadership Coalition” and the “LDC 2050 Vision: towards a climate resilient future.”

You lead with vision, care and truly by example. Your leadership will provide strong incentives to the rest of the world to follow suit.

Over and over I hear it myself and we all can see it - young people tell us they have heard enough words, they want action.

In the coming days, we must ensure a united voice and call for action. The call must resonate not only at the Climate Action Summit, but throughout the week until the SAMOA High-level MTR.

We must leverage this week to build additional partnerships and forge further alliances – with Member States, private sector leaders, academia, youth groups and civil society alike.

We ALL are concerned, we all are in the proverbial same boat and none of us has a plan B for our shared planet.

We must ensure that the momentum for action generated this week continues beyond the General Assembly High-level week. We must ensure it translates into concrete commitments in the NDCs for all. This is after all a truly multi- lateral, truly cross- border issue.

We must ensure we show our young generations that we ACT.

We must act TOGETHER and that means mobilizing the private sector, which has such a critical role to play in coming up with and sharing the technological innovation needed to shift away from fossil-fuel based economies and societies.

Engagement at the highest political level is a must and must happen at all possible occasions and fora.

COP25 in Santiago will be but only the first such opportunity. My Office will be there and beyond to support these efforts.

I would like to conclude by sharing with you a point made by H.E. Prime Minister Mia Mottley of Barbados when she delivered the 16th Raúl Prebisch Lecture at UNCTAD last week in Geneva.

She argued that if vulnerable countries such as the SIDS were themselves to finance the costly process of building resilience, they would have to borrow more to do so. This would increase their debt to GDP ratio, and thereby impact negatively on their credit rating. The net effect would be simply to shift environmental vulnerability to economic vulnerability.

So, let us not fall into such vicious circle - we need a virtuous circle with no more time to squander.

Thank you.

Front Page Article:

Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States - 1.5 Degrees

Opening Remarks at the Local2030 Islands Network Virtual High-level Islands Side Event

Opening Remarks by Ms. Fekitamoeloa Katoa‘Utoikamanu, High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States

29 September 2020 New York, USA

Opening Statement at the "Island Resilience Forum: SC1.5NCEnotSILENCE”

Opening Statement by Ms. Fekitamoeloa Katoa‘Utoikamanu, High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States

29 September 2020 New York, USA

Joint AOSIS-LDC Group Event: Leading the Way: Raising Ambition for 1.5°C-compatible Climate Action

BACKGROUND

DOCUMENTS

Keynote Statement at a A Joint AOSIS-LDC Group Event - Leading the way: Raising Ambition for 1.5°C-compatible Climate Action

Statement by Ms. Fekitamoeloa Katoa‘Utoikamanu, High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States

25 September 2020 New York, USA

Opening Remarks at the Climate Talk and Net Zero 2050: New Zealand and Pacific Island Countries

Opening Statement by Ms. Fekitamoeloa Katoa‘Utoikamanu, High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States

4 August 2020 New York, USA

Keynote Address at the AOSIS/LDC Event: “Leading the Way: Raising Ambition for Climate Action”

Keynote Address by Ms. Fekitamoeloa Katoa‘Utoikamanu, High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States

20 September 2019 New York, USA

29 September 2020
New York, USA

29 September 2020
New York, USA

25 September 2020
New York, USA

4 August 2020
New York, USA

20 September 2019
New York, USA