H.E. Frank Bainimarama, Prime Minister of Fiji and Chair, Pacific Islands Forum
Presidents and Prime Ministers
Ministers
Henry Tuakeu Puna, Secretary-General, Pacific Islands Forum
My sincere thanks for allowing me to speak on behalf of the UN at this important gathering.
As the 26th Conference of Parties got underway, some of the most powerful voices were from the Pacific Islands. Heads of State and Governments spoke eloquently about the slow death climate change is inflicting upon your island states. Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama of Fiji, the 2020 Champion of the Earth for Policy Leadership and Chair of the Pacific Islands Forum, has long been speaking up on behalf of vulnerable communities.
Ancient Pacific Islanders mastered the sacred art of navigation. As voyagers across the seas, the stars, the wind, and the ocean told them the right and the righteous way. Ensured that arrival was safe and that the heavens, the oceans, and the land were in balance.
And now, your lands are in peril. You saw the climate signs, the signs of a planet in distress, of a people in distress, long before any of us.
So, I am not here to describe your struggles to you. You are living with climate change. You are sounding the alarm on climate change. You are fighting climate change. I am here to tell you that we, at the United Nations, have heard you and stand with you.
UNEP’s Emissions Gap Report made it clear that the nations of the world must almost halve greenhouse gas emissions in the next eight years to have a shot at 1.5 degrees – a temperature limit that could give your islands a fighting chance. We know the biggest emitters have the biggest responsibility here. We will continue to remind them of this.
But as you know better than most, climate change is already here. We must step up efforts to adapt, even if we limit global temperature rise. As the UNEP Adaptation Gap Report, released on Thursday, made clear, adaptation finance is still too weak. As a bare minimum, the goal of providing USD 100 billion per year in climate finance to developing nations must be met – to both boost adaptation and help developing nations strike out on a low-carbon development pathway. But the actual costs of adaptation run far higher. Again, we will remind the world of their responsibilities in this regard, including on loss and damage.
However, for the finance to flow and the right projects to be set in motion, countries need to set clear adaptation goals and targets, including through capacity building programmes. UNEP, through the Asia Pacific Adaptation Network, is developing a framework to advance this idea. And idea that would dovetail with National Adaptation Plans. We at UNEP are committed to helping Pacific Island nations adapt, and other specific projects are in the works to do just that.
Friends, the rest of the world must play its part in slowing climate change and helping island states to adapt to its impacts. Nations must pledge stronger cuts to emissions. Make good on adaptation finance. Finalize the Paris Agreement rulebook. Ensure the ocean is more prominent in climate discussions – because the ocean and its health is integral to the heritage, economies and livelihoods of Small Island Developing States, and crucial to the world’s climate.
But you are not passive victims in this global challenge. As Samoan climate activist Brianna Fruean told world leaders at the opening of the COP, the people of the Pacific are not drowning. They are fighting.
As humanity seeks to navigate to safer shores, the Pacific voice holds a moral clarity that is undeniable. Continue to raise that righteous voice. And as you do so, we will listen to the oceans, to the heavens and to the lands to help us reach our destination. We at the United Nations will stand with you and by you. And together, we can, —as master navigators, — continue the voyage towards sustainability, equity and justice.
Thank you.
