Kiribati, 2005

Please accept my

congratulations, Sir, on your election to the presidency,

and my assurances that Kiribati will support you during

your term of office. I would also like to take this

opportunity to thank the outgoing President, Mr. Jean

Ping, for his able and effective leadership during the

fifty-ninth session.

During last week's High-level Plenary Meeting,

we discussed, among other issues, the future of this

Organization and what we expect from it. We heard about

the achievements made by our Organization over the past

60 years. We express our gratitude to all nations for the

cooperation and support that led to those achievements.

I would like to congratulate the Secretary-General as

well as his staff, for his leadership of our Organization

at these difficult and trying times.

We also heard about the shortcomings of our

Organization. While we recognize and fully endorse

the need for reform in the Organization, we are

concerned that many of the shortcomings in terms of

the promotion of sustainable development in Member

nations, in particular in the small island developing

States, are the result of our inability to deliver on

commitments made in the past.

Individual Member nations have the prime

responsibility for achieving sustainable development

within their borders, but with globalization and the

increasing interdependency of our world, individual

nations cannot achieve sustainable development acting

alone. To attain sustainable development in small

island developing States, the need for external

cooperation and support is understandably more

pronounced.

Having taken stock of progress over the past 60

years, the challenge now is to consider measures by

which we can collectively and through the United

Nations address the needs and concerns highlighted

during the High-level Plenary Meeting. Of particular

concern are the special needs of the least developed

countries and small island developing States.

While Kiribati may be categorized as a least

developed country and a small island developing State,

the people of Kiribati have a genuine desire to develop

themselves and at the same time to develop their

country. As their elected representatives, we have a

clear mandate and duty to make our best efforts to meet

their development aspirations.

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Population issues are a major challenge in our

development efforts. Concerted efforts to promote

effective family planning have been given greater

focus in our national development strategies. The

growing number of unemployed youth brings with it

new social issues. We are committed to directing the

energy of our youth to productive and worthwhile

pursuits. Employment opportunities abroad for both

men and women, such as the arrangements in place

with foreign shipping companies, fishing companies

and cruise operators, will be expanded and new

opportunities explored. The New Zealand Government's

Pacific Access Category scheme is a very welcome

model that merits closer scrutiny by other countries.

The spiralling cost of fuel is an issue of grave

concern to us. The impact of rising fuel costs has been

hardest on the least developed countries, which are also

the least able to afford it. Therefore, the need to

accelerate the development of alternative sources of

energy, including clean and renewable energy, is now

greater than it ever was.

We firmly believe that our fishery resources can

provide us with the basis for achieving a sustainable

future, but in order to be able to do so, we shall need

the assistance of our development partners in providing

the necessary incentives through the provision of credit

schemes to those investors who are able and willing to

develop onshore facilities within resource-owning

countries.

But before we can achieve that, and if we are to

achieve our Millennium Development Goals, we shall

continue to be reliant on the official development

assistance target of 0.7 per cent of gross national

income being met.

Environmental issues and, in particular, climate

change and sea-level rise are security issues for

countries comprising low-lying coral atolls, such as

Kiribati. A global and concerted effort, including

stronger political commitment, is required to achieve

the objectives of the United Nations Framework

Convention on Climate Change.

We are appreciative of the support we have

received and continue to receive in developing

adaptation measures to climate change and sea-level

rise. We nevertheless acknowledge the need now to

seriously consider the option of having to relocate our

peoples when necessary — an option that can be

meaningfully addressed only within this forum.

Kiribati fully endorses the need for

comprehensive reform in the United Nations. The

environment in which the Organization now operates is

so very different from that of 1945. Reform must take

place to ensure that the Organization continues to be a

relevant institution for its Member countries.

Terrorism threatens all. Kiribati condemns

terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and we

support the global fight against terrorism. We have

noted with increasing alarm the globalization of terror.

We cannot afford to be complacent about terrorism and

will contribute, within our resource constraints, to the

war against terror. We seek support from those able and

willing in the implementation and enforcement of

counter-terrorism legislation we have passed in

compliance with our obligations as a member of the

global community.

Kiribati has contributed to the Regional

Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands. We will

continue to contribute to that regional effort as long as

there is need. Kiribati is also interested in contributing

civilian police to peacekeeping missions of the United

Nations.

Kiribati supports an expansion of the permanent

and non-permanent membership of the Security Council.

In our view, those countries, such as Japan, that are

significant contributors to United Nations programmes

promoting peace, security and development merit a

permanent seat on the Security Council.

As we consider reform of the United Nations and

as we celebrate 60 years of the United Nations, we

believe that now is also the time to consider the issue

of Taiwan and its 23 million people. Taiwan is a

country where democracy thrives, where the rule of

law prevails and where human rights are respected.

Taiwan has also remained able and willing to make

significant contributions to the collaborative efforts to

secure global peace, security and prosperity.

We also believe that, whatever the views are on

the question of whether Taiwan is a domestic issue or

not, there can be no justification for supporting

threatening initiatives, such as the so called anti-

secession law, which could have such far-reaching

effects on regional and global stability.

I am confident that, under your leadership, Sir,

we will work with unity of purpose and perhaps with

less posturing to address the challenges before us.