Seychelles, 2013

It is with

great honour that I address the General Assembly at its

sixty-eighth session on behalf of the President of the

Republic of Seychelles, Mr. James Alix Michel, and on

behalf of the Seychellois people. I wish to congratulate

Ambassador John Ashe on his election as President and

on his guidance of the proceedings so far.

In 2014, we will mark the United Nations

International Year of Small Island Developing States.

Mr. Ashe’s appointment during the sixty-eighth session

is highly symbolic of the constructive role that small

island developing States play within the United Nations,

and we express our full support for his efforts to further

promote inclusiveness and full participation.

I would also like to join all those who preceded me

in complimenting Mr. Vuk Jeremi. on his leadership

of the General Assembly at its sixty-seventh session,

during which he stressed the unifying elements of the

Assembly. Allow me to also express our appreciation to

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for the determination

and commitment he has shown since the beginning

of his tenure of office to strengthening the role of the

United Nations.

For the Seychelles delegation, the General

Assembly evokes the spirit of humanity’s common

cause better than any other institution. Indeed, in this

Hall, we are reminded that there are no large nations

or small nations, rich nations or poor nations, powerful

nations or weak nations — simply the United Nations.

As a small island developing State, we are perhaps

also more conscious than most countries that very

little can be achieved through isolation. Our economy

is built around its connectivity to the world economy.

Our security is easily undermined by events beyond our

control. Our environmental safety is also dependent on

many factors that have an impact beyond our borders.

Both our opportunities and our risks can be addressed

only through international partnerships.

As we have discussions and exchanges of ideas on

the post-2015 development agenda, we believe that the

experiences of our group of States provide contexts that

can help us to design a better development model. As

we aim to set sustainable development goals, we must

keep in mind that, if we can sustain our island, then we

will know that we can sustain our planet.

In 2013 Seychelles was given the honour to host

the Atlantic, Indian Ocean, Mediterranean and South

China Seas Sub-Regional Preparatory Meeting for

the Third International Conference on Small Island

Developing States, to be held next year in Samoa.

The participation in the preparatory event by both

the Under-Secretary-General of the Department of

Economic and Social Affairs and the President of the

General Assembly was highly appreciated as a symbol

of support for the concerns of islands. Our discussions

there, and in the ongoing process, have highlighted the

fact that there is an urgent need for the United Nations

to adopt a “resilience” that takes into account the

evolving developing needs of islands.

In Rio last year, we identified the green economy

and the blue economy as tools with which States may

implement a more sustainable approach to development.

We are convinced that the green economy cannot be

properly addressed unless we also give more attention

to what is termed the blue economy, which is based on

harnessing the development potential of our oceans

sustainably. Oceans make up 72 per cent of our planet

and connect our nations in terms of geography, trade,

transport and communications. We consider island

nations such as ourselves as guardians of that space,

even if in many cases we can but be witnesses to

plunder, pillage and pollution.

The status quo merely perpetuates a model where

we will consume our planet’s resources with no long-

term protection, while the menace of climate change

continues to grow as a threat to our economies, our way

of life and our existence.

To further mobilize reflection and action on the

concept of the blue economy, Seychelles is pleased to

be able to organize, in partnership with the United Arab

Emirates, a special high-level event to be held as part

of the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week on 21 January

2014. The blue economy also represents an unparalleled

opportunity for Africa. As an African island nation, we

have continued to call for more attention to be given to

the sustainable development of Africa’s coastal areas

and its oceans. We can transform Africa’s oceans from

being sources of raw products for distant nations to a

space where Africa’s trade needs are prioritized and

where Africa can better protect its oceanic resources.

As an African island State, Seychelles continues to

prioritize the security of our maritime spaces. In terms

of maritime security, Seychelles reiterates its desire

to build partnerships to create better coordination and

sharing of information in the immediate region and

beyond.

Seychelles has also set up a Regional Anti-Piracy

Prosecution and Intelligence Coordination Centre, and

it also hosts an anti-piracy cell of the Indian Ocean

Commission to build the maritime security capacity

of the island States. The tools we have developed

through such initiatives have strengthened our ability

as a region to deter other criminal activities, such as

arms trafficking, drug trafficking, people trafficking

and illegal fishing. We look forward to building on

those successes with our partners in order to create

an effective coordination mechanism for maritime

security in our region.

As we consider the security situation in East

Africa, may I also take this opportunity to express our

solidarity and our sympathy to the Government and

the people of Kenya, as well as personally to President

Uhuru Kenyatta, as Kenya recovers from the barbaric

attacks in Nairobi on Saturday.

Such acts of terrorism strengthen our resolve to

ensure that we build a shared future free of the forces

of division and hostility. We also salute the efforts of

the Government of Somalia in its dedication to ensure

that forces of extremism and intolerance have no place

in our shared region.

Similarly, we are encouraged by the positive

developments in relation to the expected first round

of presidential elections to be held in Madagascar in

October. Elections represent the path towards resolving

the crisis in that neighbouring island, and we are

encouraged that the basis for the resolution of the crisis

discussed during the Southern African Development

Community mediation, with the support of the Indian

Ocean Islands Commission, held in Seychelles in the

year 2012, have come to fruition.

During the sixty-eighth session, Seychelles will

continue to be an advocate for peace and stability and

will urge all nations to work through the mechanisms

of the United Nations towards resolving existing

crises. Seychelles condemns in the strongest terms

any use of chemical weapons or any other weapon of

mass destruction. As one of the first signatories of the

Arms Trade Treaty, Seychelles also urges all nations to

actively engage in that treaty process so as to reduce the

risk of arms trades, which remains one of the biggest

challenges for our region and the world.

Finally, during the sixty-eighth session, Seychelles

will continue to call for every effort to be made to

reduce the marginalization of island States, and it is in

that context that we reiterate the call for the removal of

the embargo against our brotherly nation of Cuba.

Seychelles is a nation that believes that all voices

count. In speaking out on behalf of small islands that

are often marginalized in international processes, we

believe that we have a duty to ensure that all perspectives

are considered. It is because of our commitment to

that inclusive approach to the United Nations and

to multilateralism that Seychelles has announced its

intention to stand as a candidate for a non-permanent

seat on the Security Council for the period 2017-2018.

As a nation that has never served before, we are actively

engaged in discussions in our East African constituency,

and we appreciate the opportunity to engage with all

nations that wish to share their views. We look forward

to many fruitful discussions.

In conclusion, I would like to emphasize that our

approach towards the sustainable development goals

must be even broader and more inclusive than for the

Millennium Development Goals. The challenges are

obvious: poverty, climate change and energy, among

others. The list can go on indefinitely, but we believe

that there is also a shared opportunity in setting the

sustainable development goals. There is an opportunity

to reflect the true interconnectivity of our planet

through the adoption of interconnected objectives.

Shared objectives will lead to shared success. That is

the conviction of Seychelles.