United Nations General Assembly: Plenary Statement on addressing threats of sea-level rise

Statement delivered by Principal Advisor, Mr Anthony Simpson

Mr President,

Allow me to take this opportunity to acknowledge the leadership of Mr Dennis Francis, President of the General Assembly for the 78th session, in initiating today's High-Level Meeting. New Zealand was honoured to work with Costa Rica on the preparations for today's meeting.

Sea-level rise is already impacting vulnerable communities in low lying nations. It degrades the habitability of land, and impacts ways of life. It is a critical issue for Small Island Developing States and low-lying coastal states.

Pacific Leaders have made clear that climate change and sea-level rise are the defining issues that imperil the livelihoods and wellbeing of Pacific peoples.

Consistent with the sovereign equality of states, the international community should respond to the priorities of small nations, as well as the large.

And all states should be clear eyed that sea-level rise is a global phenomenon that will have implications for all.

That is why it is essential that the UN General Assembly has an enduring focus on this issue.

This High-Level Meeting, and the steps it initiates, is an opportunity to advance the international cooperation needed to address sea-level rise.

Multifaceted collective action is vital as we seek to respond to this critical issue. I want to highlight three essential areas.

First, we need our community of nations to unify around the objective of reducing and preventing the impacts of climate change-related sea-level rise. This includes continued urgent action under the Paris Agreement.

Secondly, we must act with urgency to protect communities. To achieve this we need location-specific data and science to inform decisions. And we need to plan, finance and implement a range of effective adaptation measures.

This will help build resilience, and safeguard the livelihoods, culture, and heritage of those affected.

Thirdly, we need to ensure that the most impacted nations are not stripped of their legal status, and legal rights and entitlements, by sea-level rise that they did not cause.

The Leaders of the 18 members of the Pacific Islands Forum have made clear their position that our statehood, sovereignty and maritime zones will continue notwithstanding sea-level rise. The Pacific Islands Forum has called for international cooperation on these matters.

New Zealand is committed to working with a diverse coalition to urgently address the impacts of sea-level rise and protect communities and nations from it.

Thank you Mr President.

Share:

• Share on Facebook
• Share on Twitter
• Share on LinkedIn
• with Weibo