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Own country · at 5 min · 2 mentions in this passage
For Dominica, this is not an abstract question. When a hurricane destroys our infrastructure, when international energy prices rise, when access to capital becomes more expensive, when global markets change, or when climate finance remains beyond our reach, the consequences are felt immediately in our homes, in our businesses, in our schools and hospitals, and in the very lives of our people. Yet, Mr. President, I do not come before this assembly to speak only of vulnerability. I wish to speak of transformation and resilience. Dominica has made a choice. We have chosen not only to rebuild after disaster, but to build differently, build better, build stronger. We have chosen not only to adapt to climate change, but to demonstrate what a climate resilient economy and country can look like. And we have chosen to move from dependence to greater resilience. Mr. president, in 2017, category five Hurricane Maria demonstrated with devastating force the vulnerability of small island states like Dominica. The economic and human consequences were enormous. Hurricane Maria, however, also taught us an important lesson resilience should never begin after the disaster. Resilience must begin before disasters. The international community must therefore move from a model that primarily finances reconstruction after catastrophe to one that invests systematically in resilience before disaster strikes. For Dominica, this means resilient roads and bridges, resilient buildings, reliable communications, modern water systems, strengthened health infrastructure and disaster ready communities. But resilience is not only physical. A resilient country must have resilient institutions. It must have resilient public finances. It must have resilient energy systems and must have resilient food systems. Above all, a resilient nation must have people who possess the skills and confidence to withstand shocks and move forward. That is the Dominica that we are building. Excellencies.
But experience has also taught us that resilience cannot begin after disaster strikes. We must invest before the storm, prepare before the emergency, build before the damage is done and finance resilience before countries are forced to borrow simply to rebuild what they have lost. This requires greater international cooperation in climate adaptation, disaster preparedness, resilient infrastructure and accessible financing. Small island developing states should not be viewed simply as victims of climate change. We are also laboratories of resilience. Climate action remains one of the areas in which collective effort can make a profound difference. Grenada remains committed to strengthening resilience and advancing sustainable and low carbon development. But ambition without implementation is merely aspiration for vulnerable countries. Climate commitments must be accompanied by reliable access to the resources required to deliver them. Climate financing must become more accessible, predictable and responsive. Our objective should not simply be to help vulnerable countries recover from the next disaster. Our objective must be to transform vulnerability into resilience and resilience into sustainable opportunity.
Yet the measure by which we are assessed sees none of it. It sees income and it sees nothing else. It does not capture the full story of my nation, the true cost of our geographic isolation, the fragility of our limited economic base, or the devastating impact a single disaster can have on our people and our progress. In January 2027, Naoero will be considered a high income country in the OECD system. That does reflect real progress. But progress should not be punished because 58% of our revenue comes from bilateral arrangements that are not ours to renew. 87% of the food our people eat is purchased and imported. We have one runway, one port, one road that connects everywhere. None of that appears in how we are assessed. That is why we strongly support the Multidimensional Vulnerability Index, or MVI, and the United Nations efforts to pilot the tool. Its full implementation is essential to ensuring that countries like ours are fairly assessed and adequately supported. It recognizes that vulnerability is complex and it must be seen, measured and acted upon. Mr. president, we acknowledge the significant progress made by some development partners and financial institutions in adopting vulnerability assessments and reviewing the eligibility criteria. The Asian Development Bank, ADB, weighs vulnerability alongside the income and its own policy names my nation as the clearest example of why income alone conceals what small island states face. As a country that is ranked the fifth most vulnerable country in the world on the index and the most vulnerable in the Pacific, we welcome these developments as positive steps. But a gap remains. Not all have taken the necessary steps to truly recognise our realities. I therefore urge all who have yet to do so, including the World Bank, to weigh vulnerability alongside income in decisions on eligibility, as the ADB already does. If the international community is truly serious about restoring trust and managing transformation, it must demonstrate that commitment where it matters most with those who are most vulnerable.
He championed vulnerable countries and supported the international effort that brought into being the Multidimensional Vulnerability Index. Whether confronted by climate change, challenging inequalities or calling for reform the international financial system, he was a fearless and principled advocate. He never relented in demanding a fairer world, and he constantly placed the concerns of small island developing states before the international community.
Mr. President, Mr. Secretary General, excellencies, ladies and gentlemen. It is a distinct honor to stand in this historic hall where so many great leaders have stood before to deliver my country's statement to the world. On behalf of Micronesia, I extend my warmest greetings of Kamorale. Let me begin by congratulating you, Mr. President, on your election as president of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly. I also extend my appreciation to Secretary General Antonio Guterres for your dedicated and steadfast service, principled leadership and personal commitment to the values of the United Nations. As you conclude your tenure, we honor your advocacy for the most vulnerable and your tireless efforts in strengthening multilateralism. Micronesia stands in solidarity with all nations that have endured the recent waves of natural disasters around the world. The loss of lives, displacements, and destructions remind us of our common vulnerability. We extend our deepest condolences to the governments and peoples affected, and we honor the courage of those who chose to help in the face of tragedy.
We have also submitted our updated nationally determined contribution, completed our long term strategy for a low carbon, climate resilient future and advanced our National Adaptation plan. But national ambition must be matched by international action. We must revive 1.5. Climate finance must become more accessible, affordable and predictable, and the international financial architecture must finally recognize what SIDS have so long argued. Income alone does not and cannot measure vulnerability.
Across climate action, sea level rise and ocean governance, one reality remains: resilience has a cost. For decades, small island developing states have argued that income is not the same as resilience. Mr. President, per capita income cannot show exposure to hurricanes, droughts, pandemic shipping disruptions, energy shocks, conflict, or tourist collapse, nor how quickly one shock can erase years of investment. This year, Saint Kitts and Nevis stood before the United Nations and completed the Pilot Vulnerability and Resilience Country profile under the Multidimensional Vulnerability Index framework. And what did we learn? We learned what our grandparents always knew: a house can look strong from the road and still have rot in the rafters. Vulnerability is not a statistic. It is a roof that was destroyed in a hurricane Beryl. It is a school that became a shelter. It is a family rebuilding for the third time in a decade, because storms have no patience for GNI per capita. Mr. President, we are not asking that gross national income be discarded. We are asking that it stop being expected to tell a story it was never designed to tell. GNI can count our coconuts and our cruise ships. It cannot count our courage, and it cannot count the price we pay to simply remain. It cannot capture the cost of rebuilding the same bridge, clinic, or seawall again and again, while nations twice our size and half of our vulnerability borrowed cheaper than we do. We therefore call on the World Bank, the IMF, development banks, climate funds, and every partner here to incorporate MVI into the architecture of financing, not as charity but as arithmetic and justice made real.
For Sao Tomé and Principe, this reality underscores the importance of an international order based on the charter of the United Nations International Law and the sovereign equality of states with principles applied universally and consistently. As a small island nation, we stand as a consolidated democracy and a state governed by the rule of law, grounded in peace, stability, and harmonious coexistence among our citizens. It is on the basis of this experience that we reaffirm our confidence in dialogue, diplomacy, cooperation and the peaceful settlement of disputes. Mr. President, for small island developing states, geographic, economic, financial and social vulnerabilities are compounded by the effects of climate change.
Own country · at 1 min · 3 mentions in this passage
Hope has retreated, while cynicism and doubt have grown. Nevertheless, we hear the insistent calls for justice, peace, and for a rules based international order that applies equally to all nations. Mr. President, I come here for the first time representing my country, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, with a clear mandate and a commitment that governance must be transparent, that individual actions must consistently reflect integrity, and that public resources must be used to improve the lives of ordinary people. We are a small democratic multi-island Caribbean nation committed to multilateralism and the peaceful resolution of disputes. Those principles serve us well and we believe should bind all of us in this chamber. We, in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines experience firsthand the vulnerability of living on the front lines of climate change, having experienced only two years ago the sudden destructive power of a category five hurricane. We also feel enormous strains imposed on small nations and our small, open economy by distant wars that have disrupted supply chains and by decisions made in places where our voice is never heard. Yet we will not let vulnerability define us or limit our ambitions. We will be resilient, and we will work individually and collectively to transcend our vulnerability. So, Mr. President, we come to this august assembly not as mere petitioners, but as partners to play our part in making our world a better place. I come at this point in the debate, having had the privilege of listening to other leaders who spoke before me. And Mr. President, I must tell you, I was moved by the hopeful vision, the fiery passion, the boundless generosity and caring of many of the speakers. They lifted my spirit and I am determined that that is where my spirit shall remain.
We are committed to the Sustainable Development Goals, and we are making measurable progress. Multidimensional poverty stands at 19.1% and unemployment at 1.9%. Public debt has been brought down to 66.6% of GDP. And for the first time in a generation, it is on a path of sustainable development. These figures are not abstractions. They are Belizeans at work. Families with greater purchasing power, and a government with room to invest in the future. Vamos bien. We are doing well, but we have further to go. That is the purpose of the next phase of our national strategy to create jobs, reduce vulnerability, reduce exposure to imported energy, protect the ecosystems and equip Belizeans to compete in a changing economy. Implementation of Plan Belize 2.0 is underway. Alongside it, my government has launched the Belize Compact, a landmark grant partnership with the United States that will strengthen our energy security and build the skills of our young people for the workforce of tomorrow.
You have brought us together to restore trust and manage transformation. To achieve this, we now require serenity, clarity, and unity— serenity because the international order is going through a profound transition, clarity because this organization faces an unprecedented financial situation and conflicts that are ongoing, and a technological revolution that is progressing quicker than our ability to govern it, and unity because none of these challenges can be addressed by one country acting alone. As a developing island country, the Dominican Republic is well aware of vulnerability. Situations that happen far away from our coasts can directly impact the dinner tables of our families.
Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, in this regard, the realities on the ground in my country speak for themselves. In southern Madagascar, mothers walk dozens of kilometers under scorching heat in search of water from the bed of a dried up river. In the east, every year, increasingly violent and destructive tropical cyclones devastate crops, infrastructure and human lives. In other regions, floods engulf rice granaries, affecting entire communities. These images illustrate the daily vulnerability of our people, our Malagasy population. Faced with these recurring humanitarian emergencies amplified by climate change, considerable investments are made, reflecting the unwavering commitment of our development partners working every year towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, the SDGs, whether that be fighting hunger, providing education or providing access to basic services for vulnerable populations.
Mr. President, for Benin the issue of security has a very concrete, very tangible dimension. Terrorism has hit our subregion. It seeks to exploit our vulnerability, to take advantage of our borders, and to progressively extend its clutches to new areas. Benin understands full well just how grave this threat is. On this note, I would like to solemnly commend the bravery and commitment of our defence and security forces, as well as the resilience of the people of Benin. Our response is resolute. We are strengthening our defence and security capabilities. We are bolstering the surveillance of our territory and our borders. We are also stepping up our cooperation with our neighbours and our partners. However, our region's experience has taught us one very important lesson when faced with the fast evolving threat, we must act very quickly before that threat becomes a crisis. For that reason, prevention, early warning and upstream action should all be part and parcel of our security policy. This requires better intelligence sharing, strengthening cross-border cooperation, improving coordination between national, subregional and continent wide mechanisms. Inter-State solidarity, regional cooperation, the action of the African Union, the support of the United Nations, we need all of the above to be better coordinated.
Transnational criminal networks are using our ocean as a highway for illicit drugs, undermining our sovereignty and national security, destroying young lives and tearing at the fabric of our communities. Behind every statistic stands a family, a community, a young life robbed of its promise. We will not allow criminal networks to profit from the vulnerability of our people. We are amending our Dangerous Drugs Act to introduce stiffer penalties as a deterrent, and we are strengthening law enforcement to prevent and detect these crimes and to hold perpetrators accountable. In August this year, Solomon Islands acceded to the UN Convention Against Transnational Organised Crime, a clear demonstration of our resolve to confront this threat. These are costly and demanding undertakings, and no Pacific country can win this fight alone. We call for stronger international cooperation, greater information sharing, sustained investment in the capacity of our law enforcement agencies, and the support for prevention and rehabilitation. Our vision of a peaceful and secure Pacific extends beyond transnational crime. As enshrined in the Ocean of Peace declaration, our region must remain free of nuclear weapons and free from destabilizing external influence.
Therefore, the success of an economy is not measured only by how much production grows, but rather how much it's able to reduce poverty. It's measured in young people with decent jobs and children with a better education, in citizens who are able to build their future with dignity. And this also must guide the agenda of international development. Middle-income countries face vulnerabilities that income per capita does not reflect. We ask that access to cooperation and financing be defined using more fair vulnerability criteria, and that the international financial architecture support the efforts of those who are undertaking reforms. We believe in open, predictable, and equitable trade. When a producer can export, innovate, and grow, there's a family behind that can be lifted out of poverty. The best social policy is policy that generates opportunities.
I come from a country made up of 10 islands in the Mid-Atlantic, a country aware of its vulnerabilities, but one that has learned that the size of a territory must never determine the size of our dreams. The history of Cabo Verde is also a history of learning. We have learned to confront drought and scarcity to transform a sea from a barrier into a bridge, but above all, we have learned that a nation's greatest wealth lies in its people. We even have a word for this wealth, which is morabeza, a term that defines the cordiality, determination, and kindness of our people, which the world was able to witness a little during this year's Football World Cup.
But, Mr. President, the task now is delivery. We need financing that reaches communities without adding debt, adaptation finance that is accessible to countries already bearing the cost of the problems they did not create, and full support of the loss and damage and the special circumstances of SIDS. This means grant-based and concessional finance, grid readiness and storage, productive energy use, and support that respects our circumstances while enabling delivery at scale. Those who contributed the least to this climate crisis yet confront the worst threats of rising sea levels must not be burdened with debt simply to purchase a life jacket for their survival. International financial institutions must look beyond income and account for vulnerabilities of SIDS. Climate exposure, remoteness, narrow economies, and limited access to affordable finance must be considered. The Antigua and Barbuda Agenda for SIDS provides a strong roadmap for resilience, but requires urgent, predictable, and scaled-up support. The Pacific Resilience Facility is one practical answer, the PRF. Endorsed by the Pacific leaders, the PRF is the first Pacific-led, owned, and managed regional financing facility dedicated to climate and disaster resilience, and the first international financial institution collectively owned by the Pacific focused on turning resources into real community-level resilience. The PRF reflects the kind of capital the world should support. Resilience is also about safeguarding public health. And I commend Palau's First Lady for advancing efforts to combat tobacco and nicotine use, with a focus on our youth.
Numbers and statistics can obscure the true magnitude of our trials. Behind every metric is a human story. Put a face to the climate emergency. A single disaster can erase decades of hard won progress. Look at Nepal, bearing the heavy cost of rising temperatures despite contributing less than 0.1% of global emissions. Look to the Philippines, one of the world's most climate vulnerable nations. Since August alone, ferocious monsoons and storms have battered our islands, affecting more than 2.7 million families, destroying homes and shattering livelihoods. We share these vulnerabilities with many developing countries, particularly small island and coastal states. Those who have contributed less to the climate crisis must now bear its heaviest cost. We call for the effective implementation of the Paris Agreement, the full operationalisation of the Fund for responding to Loss and Damage, and strengthened implementation of the Sendai Framework. Put the face to the pursuit of sustainable development.
Small nations are being asked to finance both development and survival. No nation should have to borrow its way out of a crisis it did so little to create. Excellencies. The world is facing a growing development financing crisis. The gap between commitments and delivery continues to widen, and too often we simply rebrand and recycle old ideas while failing to deliver tangible progress. Meanwhile, multilateralism is under siege and international financial commitments are being eroded. The current international financial architecture was designed for a different era. It struggles to adequately recognize vulnerability and fails to fully account for the realities faced by SIDS. A fairer financial system is not only in the interest of developing countries, it is in the interest of global stability and shared prosperity. The implementation of the Multidimensional Vulnerability Index MVI in financing decision making is essential if we are to genuinely address the financial challenges facing developing countries. We thank the Secretary General and UN DESA for their proactive efforts in moving this issue forward with international financial institutions IFIs, and we look forward to the pilot project to demonstrate the MVI can help developing countries in their financing challenges. On debt, we need to build a sustainable, equitable and fair debt regime, starting with a robust mechanism for debt restructuring. Debt forgiveness must be linked to measurable progress on resilience-building. And investment in resilience today will reduce the cost of disasters tomorrow. Samoa supports the incorporation of states contingent clauses in debt instruments, allowing for suspension during crisis. Excellencies. Energy is both a driver and accelerator for Samoa's sustainable development ambition.
Yet there's still a long road ahead of us. We need to mobilise greater levels of both domestic and external funding so as to attain our goals. Now, given this scarcity and rising cost of financial resources, particularly because of the access criteria for concessional financing, and they often fail to reflect reality. For a small island state such as ours, income indicators alone do not capture our multidimensional vulnerability. And that is why we in the Comoros call for a profound reform of the international financial architecture. Such reform is essential to guarantee our right to development and to ensure that multilateral banks finally take account of our vulnerabilities in their allocation policies. Encouraged by positive macroeconomic results and our determination to reach higher middle income status, we are now entering a decisive phase. For the period 2027 to 2030, we will accelerate implementation of the Emerging Comoros Plan, and we invite our bilateral and multilateral partners, as well as the private sector, to join us in transforming this ambition into a lasting reality for the Comorian people.
Excellencies. Lasting peace requires sustainable development. Yet development remains deeply uneven. Climate change is accelerating, inequality persists, and too many countries continue to face structural barriers to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. For developing countries, particularly mountainous and landlocked developing countries these pressures are even greater. We therefore need stronger international solidarity and development financing that is more accessible, predictable and adequate. For Tajikistan, sustainable development begins at home. Our National Development Strategy 2030 remains a key framework for economic growth, reducing vulnerabilities and improving the well-being of our people. But development is not only about economic growth.
Mr. president. Economic and climate vulnerabilities are having an impact on stability and security in Africa. These are coupled with ongoing security challenges and can fuel tensions and conflict. This is why development questions, questions of peace and security must be tackled in a complementary and interlinked fashion. Lasting security cannot be boiled down just to its military dimension. It requires us to act on factors causing vulnerability, and it requires us to promote dialogue prevention and mediation. Along these lines, the president of the Council, His Excellency Faure Essozimna Gnassingbé, has striven to promote dialogue, to bring people's positions closer and to contribute to find political solutions to crises that affect regions in West Africa and in the Sahel, for example. Our country is working hard to encourage exchanges and to contribute to the emergence of lasting political responses in the Great Lakes region. Togo as part of African mediation, is also making its contribution to de-escalation, to restoring trust, and to the quest for lasting responses to disputes. These initiatives reflect a conviction: in the face of crises, we need to maintain spaces for dialogue. We need to foster political and diplomatic means. Mediation is not a weakness. It is an expression of responsibility. Togo has made dialogue and preventive diplomacy the pillars of its foreign policy. In our West African subregion and the African level, Togo is working unfailingly to promote mediation, stability and the peaceful settlement of disputes. We are convinced that no lasting solution can be imposed from the outside without actively listening to local and sovereign realities and what's going on on the ground. Africa is not asking for others to act in its place. It is asking for its efforts to be recognized, assisted and supported.
Economic transformation and sustainable development are impossible without a healthy population. The vulnerabilities exposed by recent global pandemics continue to linger, reminding us that global health security is only as strong as its weakest link. Malawi is making strides towards a universal health coverage and strengthening our primary health care system. However, systemic global inequities in healthcare access, medical manufacturing and vaccine distribution remain glaringly unresolved. True global health security demands decentralised pharmaceutical manufacturing capabilities, unrestricted technology transfer and intellectual property waivers during health emergencies. My delegation appeals to all of us here to finalize a robust, legally binding pandemic treaty that guarantees equity, solidarity and immediate resource sharing for the Global South. We also call for collaboration in efforts to build long term resilience against pandemics through investment in our domestic pharmaceutical manufacturing capacity. By producing essential medicines within Africa, the entire world gains through stronger health security and stable supply chains, especially through faster outbreak response.
Mr. President, ladies and gentlemen the Islamic Republic of Mauritania renews its commitment to the principles and purposes of the UN Charter and the norms of international law, as well as the resolutions of international legitimacy. Our foreign policy is based on good neighbourliness, the respect of states sovereignty, independence and non-interference in their internal affairs, as well as the peaceful settlement of disputes and ensuring the just causes proceeding from such principles. My country, under the leadership of His Excellency, the President of the state, Mohammed, will continue to build a modern state that is coexistent in synergy with its neighbours and open to the entire world. On the national level, we have adopted a comprehensive strategy with its political, economic, social and security dimensions. We made dialogue and consultation the pattern for public offices. Thus, His Excellency the President launched a comprehensive national dialogue that is all inclusive. It does not exclude any strata of society to ensure consensus on the development of our institutions and entrench a state of law, a democratic state that protects rights and freedoms. Turning to the social context, we promote social cohesion and community unification through fighting discrimination and vulnerability while addressing any weakness inherited. We try to promote the synergies and develop our economies to limit poverty and provide the basic services to the most needy. We have also expanded the medical services through establishing a Medicare fund for all those who are not currently covered with medical insurance. We provide certain basic medical services to the most in need, especially mothers, the elderly, and those with disabilities. Turning to education, reforming this sector is the basis of our effort to provide high quality education that provides equal opportunities and ensure equity. Turning to good governance, we focus on transparency, the independence of the judiciary, and combating corruption while reforming public offices and promoting investment. Our approach addresses the hike in prices, confronting any threats to the security or terrorism while tackling also vulnerability and poverty. The complementarity between all those dimensions ensured our country's security and stability in an environment full with disruptions.
Concessional financing for developing countries is declining precisely when the need is greatest. The graduation of countries, including small island developing states, should be encouraged and supported and not prejudice access to affordable finance. Mauritius calls for a review of the criteria for access to concessional financing that reflect vulnerability, rather than income per capita alone.
With 2030 approaching, too many sustainable development goals remain off track. National income alone cannot capture remoteness, disaster exposure and the repeated burden of rebuilding. The Multidimensional Vulnerability Index must move from adoption to application. There is one measure of delivery that reaches Fijians households directly. Remittances are now Fiji's third largest source of foreign exchange.
We wish them well as they complete their tenure at the end of this year. Mr. president, few institutions embody the principle of sovereign equality as visibly as this assembly. Within these walls, differences in power, wealth and influence may shape the realities our nations confront, but they do not confer a greater claim to membership or participation. And perhaps more than anywhere else, this assembly reminds us of a simple truth: Our differences are real but so is our interdependence. This is why this organization was created with the understanding that disputes must be resolved through dialogue, human dignity must be protected, and that nations must work together if development, peace and human rights are to be sustained. In other words, that our common future requires common institutions. Eight decades later, we must ask ourselves whether we have remained faithful to that insight. And perhaps more importantly, do we still trust one another enough to act on it? Because today, Mr. President, trust is being tested. Geopolitical divisions are widening. Wars have become more protracted, with devastating humanitarian consequences. Respect for the United Nations Charter and international law is under visible strain, with developing countries facing intensifying debt burden, climate vulnerabilities, huge gaps between commitments made and implementation, and feeling of marginalization and inadequate representation in the global system. Therefore, the task before us is building stronger, better equipped, representative responsive and effective multilateral system and global financial architecture that delivers for all nations and regions. Mr. president, The Gambia's own experience within this organization gives us grounds for optimism. We have seen within this very institution that multilateralism can still deliver. During the 80th session of the General Assembly The Gambia had the honor of chairing the second Committee at a time of profound disagreement over some of the most consequential economic and development issues before us. That experience reminded us that multilateralism does not require unanimity on every issue. It requires the willingness to remain at the table to listen, negotiate, and courage to make compromises. Our experience demonstrates that in this period of deep disagreement, progress remains possible when member states approach negotiations with political will, mutual respect, and a sense of responsibility.
This theme invites us to consider international cooperation in a world that is subject to profound challenges. For Equatorial Guinea, trust is strengthened when we fulfill commitments that have been made and decisions that have been adopted collectively, and when visible results can be produced. The countries of the Global South need cooperation that preserves peace, that drives sustainable and inclusive growth, and that expands the ability of each state to build its own future. Therefore, 21st century cooperation should provide opportunities for the mobilisation of financing to transfer, transform raw materials and to develop one's own knowledge and technologies. Excellencies, this vision is especially relevant for Africa, which needs investments that can allow it to develop local value chains, build infrastructure, advance industrialization, strengthen human capital, incorporate new technologies and generate employment, especially for the continent's large youth population. A more productive and industrialized Africa will be a stronger partner for the benefit of all of those wanting to halt its emigration. Excellencies. When the 2030 agenda was adopted, the world embraced its deeply human vision: eradicating poverty, protecting the planet, and making sure that all people can live with dignity, leaving no one behind. However, as we approach its end date, we are far from meeting its goals. Poverty persists, inequality is expanding, and climate change continues to rage. It is clear that we need an international financial architecture that facilitates productive investments, that takes into account the real vulnerabilities of developing countries, and supports the efforts of each nation. It is therefore urgent to implement the resolutions adopted at the conferences in Addis Ababa in 2015 and in Seville last year.
Frameworks like the Antigua and Barbuda Agenda for SIDS and the Sevilla Commitment must be backed by real capital. For small island states debt sustainability is a matter of national survival. We require affordable, accessible, long term financing, meaningful debt relief and the full implementation of the Multidimensional Vulnerability Index. Measuring a nation's development solely by GDP per capita ignores extreme exposure to climate shocks and geographic isolation. If international finance is to serve reality, it must first measure reality correctly. Looking ahead, we must also address the rapid rise of artificial intelligence and emerging technologies. Whilst these tools offer immense opportunities for development and ocean management, they also risk widening the global divide and enabling new forms of warfare and cybercrime. We must ensure technology serves human dignity. We call for global digital governance anchored in human rights, ethical standards and international law, with a United Nations playing a central role in steering this transformation. Mr. President, excellencies, across every crisis we face, one fundamental truth endures. Our ultimate duty is to the people we represent our families, our youth, our coastal communities, and future generations.
The East Micronesia Cable landed in Tarawa last year, connecting Kiribati with Nauru and the Federated States of Micronesia, transforming our connectivity and digital development. However, it also creates vulnerabilities. With limited redundancy and technical capacity, island States face threats including cybercrime, critical infrastructure attacks, ransomware and online harms that can undermine security and development. Your Excellencies, Kiribati comes to this Assembly not simply to speak of the challenges we face. We come to speak of the future we choose.
We have heard that this also requires United Nations Security Council able and willing to discharge the responsibility entrusted to it. As I said at the opening of this debate, in the eyes of the world, when the Security Council works, the United Nations works. Excellencies. Development, another pillar of the United Nations, featured prominently throughout the debate, but the message was clear time is running out and promises remain unfulfilled. We heard that only a few of the Sustainable Development Goals are on track. We heard that progress has stalled, and we heard the question that should trouble us all. Should we have done much more? The answer must be a resounding yes. The burden is not shared equally. Those speaking most urgently about development were often the countries facing the heaviest debt burdens, the narrowest fiscal space, the greatest climate vulnerability, and the least voice in the institutions that shape the global economy. Debt was spoken of more forcefully by those who bear it not by those with the greatest ability to resolve it. We have heard that we must honor the Sevilla Commitment to reform the international financial architecture, provide affordable and accessible finance, expand fiscal space, strengthen productive capacities, and invest in people. And we must deliver on the promise of Paris. Climate disasters are erasing hard earned development gains and deepening inequality. For small island developing states, low lying coastal countries, least developed countries and climate vulnerable nations, adaptation and resilience are not optional expenditures.
Cote d'Ivoire hopes that this process will result in the appointment of a figure of the highest caliber, whose moral values independence of mind, diplomatic experience and commitment to dialogue will enable the United Nations to pursue, with ambition and effectiveness its mission in the service of peace, development and solidarity among nations. Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen. Current international events remind us every day of the human, political and economic cost of protracted conflicts. Cote d'Ivoire remains deeply concerned about the resumption of hostilities in the Near and Middle East, the consequences of which weigh on peace and on food, energy and economic security throughout the world. The dire situation in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and in the Sudan is equally alarming, with severe and endless humanitarian consequences. All these persistent conflicts are exacerbating the suffering of the affected populations and producing harmful effects that extend far beyond the borders of the states concerned. We therefore call for dialogue to prevail over arms. We also express our solidarity with the Haitian people. Cote d'Ivoire will continue to contribute to ongoing initiatives aimed at supporting the Haitian authorities and international partners in order to restore security in the sister nation so as to restore democratic legitimacy to its institutions. My country takes this opportunity to reaffirm its commitment to the peaceful settlement of disputes in accordance with the United Nations Charter, and to lend its full support for the many mediation efforts undertaken by the United Nations, the African Union and relevant regional organizations. Ladies and gentlemen. Africa is bearing the brunt of the decline of multilateralism and the difficulties the United Nations has faced in recent years. Due to a lack of support from certain partners and from the United Nations, several African countries are struggling to find lasting solutions to conflicts and to bear the cost of various counterterrorism and peacekeeping operations. Meanwhile, violent extremism, transnational organized crime and illicit trafficking of all kinds continue to destabilize a number of regions on the continent and in particular, the Sahel. Our experience and the realities on the ground demonstrate that no state can, on its own, overcome such threats in a definitive and lasting manner. This requires greater regional cooperation and international solidarity in order to ensure appropriate responses. These threats also call for investment in conflict prevention and for addressing, at an early stage the vulnerabilities that fuel crises, including poverty, inequality, youth unemployment and all other forms of marginalization. In this regard we commend the efforts of the United Nations, the African Union, ECOWAS and all the partners working on security and stabilization efforts in our region.
Developing countries continue to face high financing costs, external vulnerabilities and limited fiscal space. Access to climate finance and reform of the international financial architecture therefore remain essential. In this regard, the Sevilla Commitment represents an important step forward whose commitments must now be translated into tangible results, including through improved access to concessional financing, enhanced debt sustainability and increased mobilisation of public and private capital for development. We must also strengthen South-South and triangular cooperation in order to share technologies, knowledge and solutions tailored to the realities of our countries. Africa must not be viewed solely as a region vulnerable to climate change.
Rules gave us a compass when force sought to erase our borders. Reform gave us a bridge from vulnerability to resilience, and from post-war recovery to membership in the EU, the euro area and Schengen. Delivery turned those ambitions into institutions, security and better lives for our citizens and gave us the capacity to contribute beyond our borders. That is the experience Croatia brings to the United Nations, not a claim to perfection, but the perspective of a country that has traveled a difficult road and learned from it. The United Nations remains indispensable because no country can navigate today's storms alone. Let us, therefore rebuild trust by defending our common compass and managing change so that it strengthens human dignity.
As we forge ahead with the SDGs, reform of the United International Financial Architecture is critical to a more equitable and inclusive global economic order. Such reforms should create greater policy space and access to financing to enable countries to expand their economies through value addition to their natural resources, including critical minerals, for our people to have full benefit of our resources. This will accelerate sustainable development, address inequality, create jobs for our youth, and lift our population out of poverty. In this context, we welcome the creation of the African Credit Rating Agency to be launched in Mauritius in October this year. This development is a building block of Africa taking ownership of her development and prosperity agenda. It demonstrates progress in Africa's ambitions to drive impetus for the reform of the international financial architecture in order to ensure a level playing field. Middle-income countries continue to face high borrowing costs, limited fiscal space, debt vulnerabilities, climate-related shocks, and persistent inequality. Namibia reaffirms the Sevilla Commitments as an important step towards reforming the international financial architecture and strengthening the global partnership for sustainable development.
We must peak as low as possible and return below 1.5°C as quickly as possible. Every fraction of a degree matters. The Pacific loses an estimated of $500 million every year due to natural disasters such as cyclones, flooding. Early warning systems give communities time to prepare and reduce these losses. That may be a modest sum in global terms but for Pacific nations it is a heavy toll on our countries and our people. And yet the financing to prevent such losses still falls short. The Pacific Resilience Facility, our own financing mechanism for building community resilience, needs a further $328 million in pledges to reach its initial capitalisation target of $500 million. Weather Ready Pacific, designed to reduce the human and economic costs of severe weather events, needs a further 160 million to reach its target. Tonga's Climate Trust Fund, a direct community fund which disbursed its first round of grants this year, also requires significant funding support. We call on all our partners to invest in these Pacific designed and Pacific owned solutions. Tonga stands behind 2026 Pacific Island Forum leaders, the Belau Declaration, and calls on all our major emitters to act urgently. Climate action is a legal obligation, but meeting those obligations will require difficult decisions rooted in science. Climate leadership is not a popularity contest. Seven of the nine planetary boundaries have been breached by human activity. Climate inaction is not an option. Tonga is accelerating its transition away from fossil fuels and expanding renewable energy, and we encourage the shift to electric vehicles. For us, decarbonising also means greater energy security and protection from global fuel price shocks. We must phase out the explicit fossil fuel subsidies estimated by the IMF at $725 billion. International financial institutions and multilateral development banks must recognise the Multidimensional Vulnerability Index, the MVI, which ensures that it informs eligibility and allocations. By any credible index, Tonga is amongst the world's most vulnerable countries. However, we call on all nations, especially the world's largest emitters, to attend the Pre-COP31 meetings in Fiji and Tuvalu in October this year. Come to the Pacific and confront what 1.5 degrees means for our water, our people our food, our homes, and our security. We welcome the General Assembly's declaration on sea level rise, a significant achievement for the preservation of sovereignty. It marks the first time all member states have agreed on a single common text on sea level rise.
They move and they arrive at someone's border. Protection, prevention costs less than rebuilding or relocating. The Bahamas is taking action, but no nation acting alone can hold back the tides. Nor can we build resilience inside a financial system designed at Bretton Woods in 1944, which still declares us too prosperous to help until the next storm makes us poor. The Vulnerability Index exists.
It is a carefully crafted agreement to safeguard peace and security, promote development, and uphold human rights. I still believe in that promise, enshrined in the United Nations Charter. But the world around us is changing, and not for the better. Over the past year in particular, it has become increasingly clear that the multilateral world order, with the United Nations and the Charter in its core, is at a profound turning point. Blatant disregard for international law and the principles of a charter, reinforced by the sense of impunity, too often dominates over adherence to the rule of law and cooperation between countries for a better future. Mutual dependence has come to be treated as a critical vulnerability. Aggression, wars, and conflicts are becoming the new normal. Millions of people are suffering in Ukraine, Gaza, Sudan, Haiti, Myanmar.
My third observation is that a new economic world order is taking shape. Instruments once used for economic integration, such as trade, technology, energy investment and supply chains, have become instruments of geopolitical competition. There was perhaps, at times, a naive belief that interdependence would bring about stability and peace. Now the focus on opportunities has been replaced by the focus on threats. We've entered a world of coercion where dependencies are vulnerabilities. Countries seek choke points that can be weaponized to pressure others. But dependencies are complex. No nation, not even the biggest ones, can go it alone. All coercive actions come at a cost. And even if a mightier state dominates in one domain, a smaller state can respond in another. In the new geopolitical environment, the economic order of the post World War II era is seeking new forms. A new order must be based on a realistic understanding of the power balance in the world. We in the West must acknowledge that the global South and East are an expanding economic and political force. Many nations around the world have made remarkable advances in competence and know how. We should put this collective expertise to work for the global common good. Countries are right to be wary of dangerous dependencies, but our focus on the threats should not lead us to abandon cooperation. We should strive for an economic world order built on institutions and agreements. Multilateralism is also needed in the global economy. Now, this was the first part. It's all good and well to diagnose the problem.
Our objective here is strategic autonomy for Mali, strategic autonomy for the Confederation of the Sahel states, the strategic autonomy for Africa in both security and development areas, and this autonomy does not mean a rupture. Rather, it seeks to make Africa into a credible and indispensable partner for global stability and prosperity. Climate change and desertification for Mali and the Sahel remain a major source of economic, social and environmental vulnerability. They affect agriculture and livelihoods. They also, we have to acknowledge it, threatening peace and security. We therefore call on member states to focus on adaptation, on access to climate finance, on indigenous technologies and solutions tailored to Sahelian realities.
The integration is built through roads that bring people closer, with energy that crosses borders, infrastructures that transform neighboring communities into single communities, a transformation that requires fair and sustainable financing conditions. Your Excellencies, with less than four years remaining for the achievement of the 2030 Agenda, developing countries continue to face high financing costs, rising debt, and limited access to resources to invest in their own development. We continue to advocate for a fair international architecture, more predictable and accessible financing, and sustainable solutions for the debt. It is also necessary that the access to concessional financing takes into account the country's vulnerabilities beyond just the income.
Second, we call on the next Secretary-General to provide strong leadership across the UN's development and human rights pillars. The authors of the UN Charter understood that peace and security cannot be sustained without creating the conditions for Member States to provide their citizens with prosperity and the full enjoyment of human rights. With significant changes in the global development cooperation landscape, we ask you to ensure that the UN is clear about where its comparative advantage lies, alongside the role of governments, regional organisations and international financial institutions. Citizens and donors expect the UN to operate as one, with agencies working together through a strengthened Resident coordinator system. We will work with you to ensure the UN is more coordinated and focused on strengthening local capacity and partnerships to address a country's development needs. The UN development system must remain relevant, responsive and accessible to all member states based on need rather than size, income level or location. We welcome progress in advancing the UN's Multidimensional Vulnerability Index, and want to see further work to ensure its practical application across the multilateral development system. In the face of contracting development finance flows and increasing debt levels, we need to ensure our ambitions are matched by more sustainable and predictable financing. This will inevitably involve moving beyond exclusive reliance on traditional sources and approaches. President, as Pacific Islands Forum leaders recently reaffirmed in Palau, climate change remains the single greatest threat to the livelihoods, security and wellbeing of Pacific peoples.
Emerging technologies such as drones are rapidly transforming warfare and posing serious challenges to human rights and the international law based order. Tensions surrounding the Strait of Hormuz are undermining the fundamental principles of free and safe navigation, and heightening the vulnerability of energy supply chains. Quote, The United Nations was not created in order to bring us to heaven, but in order to save us from hell. End of quote.
However, these developments do not fully reflect the vulnerabilities of countries exposed to debt and external shocks. While we work with our global partners to consolidate this hard won stability, we remain conscious of the critical need to address the hardships faced by vulnerable communities. Cyclone Ditwah was one of the worst natural disasters in Sri Lanka's recent history and devastated several parts of our country. The calamity resulted in the loss of hundreds of lives and affected more than 2 million people. Livelihoods were disrupted and critical infrastructure was destroyed. Having experienced this tragedy we understand deeply the challenge posed by the Himalayan floods to the people of Nepal and China. We extend our deepest sympathies to the victims.
Tuvalu has shown that small nations can lead in climate adaptation and resilience, ocean stewardship, digital innovation, mobility with dignity and the advancement of international law. Tuvalu's ability to lead is not determined by the extent of our vulnerability, but national leadership cannot substitute for global responsibility. The United Nations and its charter are the bedrock of international cooperation and multilateralism, and they must be guarded with all seriousness and integrity. Tuvalu will continue to stand firm in its effort to safeguard its sovereignty,
Recognising continued vulnerability to epidemics, Zambia calls for the expedited conclusion of negotiations on the Pathogen Access and Benefit Sharing Annex under the World Health Organization Pandemic Agreement, alongside strengthened access to technology and preparedness capabilities to detect and respond to future health threats. Zambia is further making efforts towards building capacity for local vaccine manufacturing. Mr. president, in Zambia, we have taken decisive steps to expand access to education through the enactment of the Free Education Act and the strengthening of the school feeding programme, ensuring that more children can access education and remain in school without the burden of fees or hunger standing in their way of learning.
Artificial intelligence already confronts us with another question how can we make full use of the possibilities created by innovation without allowing technology to move faster than our ability to protect people? I'm thinking, in particular, of children who are growing up in a world where AI can open extraordinary possibilities, but also creates new vulnerabilities. We must neither hold back innovation out of fear, nor assume that it will regulate itself. At sea, as in the digital world, freedom needs rules if it is to remain freedom.
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No. 48
Burkina Faso09/28 · first at about 16 min1 mention
In terms of international peace and security, our world remains up against multiplication of armed conflicts, the emergence of new crises, and a return to the principle of might is right. Unilateral approaches, unlawful sanctions, selective interventions, and double standards weaken the international order and put the multilateral system to test. The Confederation of Sahel states calls for an immediate end to violence against civilian populations, unhindered humanitarian access and a just and lasting political solution. The inability of the Security Council to prevent or resolve in a lasting way these crises reveals the limits of a system that too often protects the interests of powers to the detriment of human life. On the development file, the confederation remains concerned over the aggravation of climate vulnerabilities, the multiplication of humanitarian crises, the malicious use of technology and ICTs for manipulation and destabilization.
Mr. President, few situations illustrate so painfully the gap between international commitments and lived reality as that of the East of the DRC. For more than three decades, millions of Congolese have been suffering attacks, forced displacement, and bereavement. Territories have been occupied, families dispersed, women and girls have suffered sexual violence, while children are recruited by armed groups or deprived of education. At the same time, the looting of our resources continues to fuel international trade. My country continues to face a war of aggression led by Rwanda through its proxy, the AFC M23, in violation of its sovereignty, our sovereignty, and our territorial integrity, as documented by the UN. The atrocities committed by other armed groups, especially the ADF and CODECO, are exacerbating this humanitarian crisis even further. To combat this challenge, the DRC has chosen the path of diplomacy without ever abandoning its rights. The peace agreement signed in Washington on June 27, 2025, the commitments made as part of the Doha process, and the roadmap coordinated by the African Union have opened up prospects that we have constantly supported. I commend the United States, Qatar, the African Union, African facilitators, regional partners, and all those who are sincerely striving to restore peace. However, for the sake of truth, we must recognize that for millions of Congolese, this peace remains only a promise. Resolution 2773 of the Security Council has laid out an unambiguous path. It calls for an effective cessation of hostilities, the withdrawal of Rwandan forces from Congolese territory, an end to all support for armed groups, the disengagement of the AFC M23, the dismantling of parallel administrations, the restoration of state authority, unhindered humanitarian access, and the safe and dignified return of displaced persons and refugees. But we don't need new texts to replace those that have already been adopted. What we need is their implementation. With regard to the issue of the Democratic Liberation Forces of Rwanda, the FDLR, long cited by Kigali to justify its military presence on our territory, the DRC is shouldering its responsibility. The protocol signed by the political and military leadership of the FDLR on May 30, 2026, provides for the disarmament, demobilization, and containment of their combatants, with a view toward their repatriation or resettlement without prejudice to potential judicial prosecution for serious crimes, until the movement is disbanded. The repatriation on September 8, with the support of MONUSCO, of 120 persons associated with the FDLR, is a first testament to the protocol's implementation. The issue of the FDLR, therefore, should no longer serve as a pretext for maintaining foreign military presence in our territory. The coordinated implementation of the mechanisms of Washington, Doha, and the African Union must be subject to a precise time frame, independent verification, regular information exchange, and clear consequences in case of violations. In this context, MONUSCO maintains a vital role in protecting civilians, monitoring the ceasefire, and supporting agreed-upon mechanisms. Any change to its presence must be determined by the conditions of security on the ground, the strengthening of national capacity, and the guarantee that no vacuum of power will remain to the detriment of populations. The DRC, for its part, will continue to fully shoulder its responsibility, especially through pursuing reforms of its defense and security institutions, through bolstering state authority, and through reconstruction on territories affected by the conflicts. And because the peace sought after in the subregion ought to go hand in hand with cohesion within our nation, the President of the DRC launched on August 28 a national dialogue for peace, cohesion, and the rebuilding of the state. This dialogue is open to the political and social forces that are committed to the Republic, our constitution, our territorial integrity, and to the rejection of violence. It does not aim to circumvent institutions nor to distribute power. It ought to help us address the structural causes of our vulnerabilities, to consolidate national unity, and to build a state that is more just, more involved, and more protective. Our hand remains outstretched toward all of the children of Congo that choose peace, Republican debate, and loyalty to their homeland. We Congolese speak to each other with frankness and responsibility, but no internal dialogue can transform an external aggression into a simple domestic dispute. At the same time, no external aggression should absolve us of correcting our own weaknesses. National cohesion and the defense of our territorial integrity are not mutually exclusive but mutually complementary. Because the peace that we seek cannot be limited to a ceasefire, it ought to also help our country regain full control of its future by transforming the wealth that has too often gone to fuel conflict into tools for development and shared prosperity. Mr. President, it is another paradox that my country's experience is showing the world, that some of its resources that fuel conflicts on its territory are also those that a growing proportion of the transformations of the global economy depend upon.
Less than two years into my administration, through disciplined governance and fiscal prudence and an uncompromising fight against corruption, Ghana has achieved a dramatic economic turnaround. Indeed, some circles describe it as a Ghanaian miracle. Our macroeconomic stabilisation measures have restored growth, drastically reduced inflation, stabilised our national currency and significantly lowered our public debt burden. This remarkable economic recovery story has been independently validated by all the multilateral financial institutions and major international credit rating agencies, all of which affirm that Ghana has moved from economic vulnerability to sustained recovery, resilience and growth. Mr. President, macroeconomic indicators mean little if they do not translate into real improvements in our people's daily lives. Economic growth and progress must have a human face and that is why we are pursuing an aggressive national infrastructure agenda under our Big Push programme to build roads, expand digital connectivity, construct schools and health facilities. This strategic investment is opening up the length and breadth of our country, bridging the rural urban divide and unlocking agricultural potential and guaranteeing equitable access to basic services for every Ghanaian, no matter where they live in our country. Through our flagship 24 hour Economy and Accelerated Export Development Programme and the soon to be launched New Ghana, New Economy policy, we are transforming Ghana into an industrial high productivity hub while incentivising round the clock commercial operations driving value addition in agriculture, mining and creating sustainable, dignified jobs for our vibrant youth and women. And central to our national reset is a revolutionary expansion of social protection, universal health care, delivering on the Sustainable Development Goals, specifically SDG one on poverty SDG three on good Health and well-being, and SDG ten on reduced inequalities. And so Ghana has officially launched a historic free primary healthcare programme, ensuring that every Ghanaian can access essential primary health care services at their community level at zero cost. This programme has been hailed by the World Health Organisation and the United Nations as a benchmark paradigm shift for the global South, and this model is currently being studied by other nations that are seeking to achieve true universal health coverage. Alongside our National Health Insurance Scheme, we've introduced a specialised fund officially named Ghana Medical Trust Fund, but popularly referred to after my name Mahama, that guarantees Ghanaians suffering from non-communicable diseases such as renal failure, cancers, cardiovascular diseases and diabetes.
Artificial intelligence is changing economies and societies. Digital technologies are changing the way governments operate. Energy systems are changing. Global trade is changing. Demographic patterns are changing, and climate change is transforming the physical environment in which many of our societies exist. The question before us is not whether transformation will occur. It will. The question is who will shape the transformation and who will benefit from it? For Vanuatu, the answer must be clear transformation must not create a new hierarchy between those who possess technology, capital and influence, and those who merely experience the consequences. We need an international system in which developing countries and small states are participants in transformation, not simply consumers of decisions made elsewhere. Artificial intelligence provides one example. AI offers enormous opportunities for education, health care, public administration, agriculture, climate forecasting, and economic development. But without appropriate governance, it could also deepen existing inequalities. Small states need access to technology. We need digital infrastructure. We need skills and capacity. We need access to data and computing. And we need a meaningful voice in establishing the international norms that govern that governance. Emerging technologies. The digital future must not become another form of dependency. Mr. president, there is a tendency to describe small states primarily in terms of our vulnerabilities. We are small. We are geographically dispersed. We are economically vulnerable. We have limited institutional capacity. We depend on international markets. We depend on development partners. We depend on international shipping. We depend on imported fuel, food and manufactured goods. And yes, in many respects we are dependent on the international system. But dependence must not be confused with powerlessness. Small states can lead. Indeed, history has shown that some of the most important developments in international law and global governance have emerged, because small and vulnerable states refuse to remain silent.
This cannot be fair. So that, believe me when I say that change is possible. As we have seen consistently with measures from the Bridgetown Initiative in less than one year, Barbados as chair of the climate Vulnerable countries, the V20 countries, along with the OPEC Fund for International Development, designed and launched the Vulnerability to Viability Compact on four pillars, bringing about 74 countries along with 16 development finance institutions globally, to expand access to affordable long term capital for education projects, health projects and water infrastructure. The CVF also had its governors of the central bank meet to establish the Lifeline Fund, which will shortly be operationalized. It seeks to provide rapid liquidity when climate shocks create balance of payments pressures for countries. So we are moving to help ourselves. We have been resolute, and the reason for it is that we know that you cannot build hospitals and schools and water infrastructure with ten and 15 year money. It crowds out critical investments for our people and leaves you flat footed. And that is why this important initiative represents real progress. But mechanisms such as this one cannot, on their own, address the underlying flaws of the international financial architecture. I repeat that for almost five years, the Bridgetown Initiative has consistently argued that climate resilience, debt sustainability and access to affordable finance cannot be treated separately. For many vulnerable countries, the problem is not simply the availability of capital, but whether we have the fiscal space to borrow and to invest on reasonable terms.
