Tuvalu, 2008

Standing before the

Assembly for the first time, I am greatly honoured by

this opportunity to speak on behalf of the people and

Government of Tuvalu.

Next week, on 1 October, Tuvalu will

commemorate the thirtieth anniversary of its

independence. While we take pride in moving forward

in nationhood, as a small and young nation, we have

full confidence in the noble goals of the United Nations

to guide us through the waters of our destiny. Our

presence here in the United Nations is our statement of

hope and trust in the goodwill of humanity.

Let me on this occasion express Tuvalu’s deep

appreciation to all members of the international

community for their invaluable support to my nation,

and convey its warmest greetings and felicitations to

the Assembly at its sixty-third session.

I wish also to associate us with previous speakers

in extending our congratulations to the President on his

election and in expressing our appreciation to his

predecessor, particularly for promoting the issue of

climate change, among other matters, within the

Assembly’s agenda.

Climate change is without doubt the most serious

threat to the global security and survival of mankind. It

is an issue of enormous concern to a highly vulnerable

small island State like Tuvalu. Here in this great house

we now know both the science and economics of

climate change. We also know the cause of climate

change, and that human actions by all countries are

urgently needed to address it.

The central message to us, world leaders, of both

the International Panel on Climate Change reports and

the Sir Nicholas Stern report on climate change is

crystal clear: unless urgent actions are taken to curb

greenhouse gas emissions by shifting to a new global

energy mix based on renewable energy sources, and

unless there is timely adaptation, the adverse impacts

of climate change on all communities will be

catastrophic.

This great family, the United Nations, must not

fail to take heed of these timely warnings, and to save

us all, particularly the small and most vulnerable, from

this man-made catastrophe.

The next 12 to 18 months are crucial in the

context of negotiating a new international agreement

on climate change, based on the Bali Action Plan. We

must work together to ensure that all countries make a

substantial effort to reduce their greenhouse gas

emissions.

We need to find the right incentives to ensure that

all countries contribute to dramatically reducing

greenhouse gas emissions. This requires a substantial

collective effort. It also requires strong political

leadership. Tuvalu observes with great disappointment

the clear absence of this leadership particularly

emerging from the recently concluded Group of Eight

(G-8) Summit. We need stringent, short-term targets by

all major developed countries.

Based on the principle of the polluter pays and

common but differentiated responsibilities, the

industrialized world must show strong leadership in

advancing real actions on climate change. But all

countries must also act. In the little way we can, we in

the small island developing States are also committed

to contributing to emission reduction through use of

renewable energy.

While we call for urgent action to reduce

emissions, we know that the impacts of climate change

are upon us. For a highly vulnerable small coral atoll

nation like Tuvalu, the consequences of the impacts of

climate change are frightening. The survival and

security of our entire nation, along with fundamental

human rights and its cultural identity, are under threat;

Tuvalu is right on the edge of existence. Climate

change could well push us over that edge.

Last year Tuvalu produced an international

blueprint on adaptation which we presented as a

submission to the Conference of the parties to the

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate

Change. This blueprint highlights a number of areas

where we envisage greater collaboration within the

United Nations system. Let me highlight a few.

First, it is very clear that financial resources for

adaptation are completely inadequate. Last year Oxfam

International suggested that the adaptation needs of

developing countries will cost a minimum of

$50 billion per year. We must work together to find

these additional funds. One means of increasing the

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funding for adaptation is through the creation of what

we call a burden-sharing mechanism. Funding for this

mechanism could come from levies on the share of the

proceeds from emissions trading and international

aviation and maritime transport.

We also believe that new and additional sources

of funding must be identified and channelled through

the recently established Adaptation Fund to help fund

concrete adaptation projects in-country to adapt to the

impacts of climate change, while ensuring long-term

survival and livelihoods of our God-given lands. While

we welcome, therefore, the recent launch of several

new funding initiatives on climate change, we must

caution against the fragmentation of international

efforts, and warn of the need, not to do more studies,

but to fulfil obligations to urgently save those suffering

from climate change.

Secondly, we need collaborative action by United

Nations institutions and non-governmental organizations

to develop a comprehensive approach to long-term

adaptation action. As a first step, we believe, a special

coordination committee should be established under the

auspices of the General Assembly.

Thirdly, the blueprint proposes the establishment

of an international climate insurance pool. This would

be an internationally sourced pool of funds for an

insurance mechanism to provide support to the most

vulnerable communities to meet the costs of rebuilding

after climate-related disasters.

Those are only three ideas we have elaborated in

our blueprint. There are a number of others. We

encourage the President to look closely at the blueprint

and develop the ideas further.

We strongly believe that it is the political and

moral responsibility of the world, particularly those

who caused the problem, to save small islands and

countries like Tuvalu from climate change and ensure

that we continue to live in our home islands with long-

term security, cultural identity and fundamental human

dignity. Forcing us to leave our islands due to the

inaction of those responsible is immoral, and cannot be

used as a quick-fix solution to the problem.

In the context of all this, therefore, Tuvalu also

strongly supports the draft resolution on security and

climate change submitted by the Pacific small island

developing States, to be reintroduced at this sixty-third

session. We urge others to co-sponsor this very

important draft resolution and properly address the

issues raised in it.

Tuvalu recently attended the High-Level

Conference on World Food Security. We share the

grave concerns regarding the current global issue of

high food prices, food shortages and their associated

social problems for humanity, which are made worse

by high fuel prices. We highly commend the initiative

taken by the Secretary-General in establishing the

High-Level Task Force on the Global Food Security

Crisis, and the formulation of a Comprehensive

Framework for Action. We sincerely hope that this

Framework will produce concrete results in countries

experiencing the food crisis.

One of the most sensitive issues for small and

vulnerable island developing States like Tuvalu has

been the lack of recognition of our unique vulnerability

in the consideration of the question of graduation from

the least developed country (LDC) status. Our

economic and environmental vulnerabilities cannot be

ignored. The enormous threat of more severe weather

events and a rising sea level hangs overhead like a

large storm cloud. It hinders investment in our country

and potentially puts into question our very survival. We

therefore make a strong and heartfelt appeal to the

General Assembly, the Economic and Social Council

and our development partners to carefully reconsider

the criteria for LDC graduation.

Two issues are of particular concern. First, it is

remarkable that nearly all recent graduates and

potential graduates are small islands — including my

own country, Tuvalu. The small island States that are

also LDCs eligible for graduation all have improved

their per capita income and their human assets. Also,

they have in common the fact that they are highly

vulnerable in economic and environmental terms. But

this vital criterion of vulnerability does not seem to be

taken seriously enough. In short, our countries are or

could be losing LDC status because of progress they

have made on per capita income, despite the fact that

the sustainability of that income is challenged by our

vulnerability.

My second point has to do with the serious lack

of coherence within the United Nations system. For

several years the high level of vulnerability of small

island developing States has been recognized and

reiterated in many different United Nations circles —

in Rio, Barbados, Mauritius and Johannesburg, as well

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as in several other major United Nations events,

including the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)

Summit Declaration. Yet this special vulnerability has

never been given serious recognition in the General

Assembly and the Economic and Social Council, let

alone recognized as the main criterion for LDC

graduation.

I therefore call on the United Nations to work

seriously towards reform of the graduation rule so that

no LDC that is recognized as highly vulnerable is

forced to lose its LDC status.

Tuvalu wishes to commend the ongoing reforms

within the United Nations but would also note with

grave concern that progress is slow. We clearly need to

restructure and expand the Security Council in order to

properly reflect regional balance. We must take a fresh

look at the membership so that the Council can

properly address emerging global peace and security

challenges, including climate change. We also believe

that a seat should be allocated for a representative from

a small island developing State in the reformed

Security Council.

In the broader context of United Nations reforms,

I support the Secretary-General’s remarks that

“Our changing world needs a stronger

United Nations. …

“we need to be faster. … We need to pay

less attention to rhetoric, and more attention to

results — to getting things done.” (A/62/PV.4,

pp. 1-2)

I could not agree more. To this end, I appeal again to

the United Nations for the earliest establishment of its

Joint Presence office in Tuvalu in order to facilitate

better coordination of United Nations interventions.

Tuvalu believes strongly that nations have the

right to self-determination. The United Nations must

uphold this principle. Therefore, we believe it is time

that the United Nations properly addressed the issue of

Taiwan’s meaningful participation in the United

Nations specialized agencies. My Government strongly

supports Taiwan’s aspirations to meaningfully

participate in the United Nations and its specialized

agencies, recognizing Taiwan’s own political and

economic achievements and its constructive

contribution to international development, trade,

health, education and technology. We appeal strongly

that Taiwan’s aspirations to participate as a full

member of specialized agencies of the United Nations

be given proper and urgent attention.

Finally, our story on the achievement of the

MDGs is mixed. For small island developing States

like Tuvalu, addressing our sustainable development

challenges is not simply poverty reduction. It is the

MDGs-plus. More than ever, we need a significant

increase in direct financing, technology and capacity

development, as recognized under the Mauritius

Strategy for Implementation, to cope with our unique

island challenges.

Mr. Derrick Sikua (Solomon Islands), Vice-

President, took the Chair.

My Government firmly believes that the next 12

months will be an extremely critical time in the history

of the United Nations. We must act promptly and

decisively to address climate change, to achieve the

Millennium Development Goals and to respond to the

global crises on food and energy. These issues are

closely linked. We must rise to these challenges.

God bless the United Nations. Tuvalu mo te Atua.