Daily report for 2 September 1993

The PrepCom concluded the general debate on Agenda Items 2(a) and3 on Thursday morning. The Chair, Amb. Penelope Wensley, then movedon to more specific discussion of Agenda Item 2(a), activities ofthe United Nations system, and Agenda Item 2(c), reports from theregional technical meetings. Wensley also convened informalsessions in the late morning and afternoon to introduce and discussthe G-77's draft paper on basic elements for an action programmefor the sustainable development of small island developing States(SIDS).

GENERAL DEBATE

UNITED KINGDOM: Linda Brown noted that a clear programme ofaction would allow governments to assess their success in meetingtheir UNCED commitments to consider the special needs of SIDS inthe context of Agenda 21. Important issues to be considered includewater and the marine environment, health and population policy, theneed for export diversification, and institutional issues, such asdevelopment planning and capacity building. Donor coordination isneeded. The UK will contribute œ30,000 to the Conference process insupport of Caribbean participation (Government and NGO) and isdiscussing support for Pacific participation with SPREP.

AUSTRIA: Irene Freudenschuss-Reichl said that thedevelopment of vulnerability indicators, as suggested in PC/10,could be a step toward the creation of sustainable developmentindicators. Issues such as new and renewable energy and tourism arevery important. She hoped that this Conference will contribute tokeeping sustainable development on the international agenda.

SAMOA: Amb. Tuiloma Neroni Slade highlighted the obstaclesthat Samoa and other South Pacific SIDS face in their quest forsustainable development. He added that SIDS are the first victim ofglobal change that has been caused by others. For this reason, theywill need assistance from the international community. He expressedhope that the outcome of this Conference would be a holistic andintegrative plan of action.

MEXICO: Patricia Belmar said that the Conference providesthe first opportunity to implement a part of Agenda 21. To succeed,the situation of SIDS needs to be understood and supported by theentire international community.

BANGLADESH: Mohammad Ziauddin said that his country suffersfrom many of the same problems as SIDS. He underscored theimportance of natural disaster preparedness and offered to shareexperiences in coping with sea-level rise. He suggested that theplan of action adopted for the least developed countries couldprovide some useful lessons for this Conference.

SRI LANKA: Amb. Stanley Kalpage said that there is an urgentneed for special consideration for both environmental assistanceand development aid for SIDS. He said that progress has been madein regional and inter-regional cooperation, but political will andcommitment is now needed. He called on the world community toprovide assistance to SIDS and added that the reality of globalpartnership will be tested by the outcome of this Conference.

UNIDO: A.O. Lacanlale presented an overview of the UNIndustrial Development Organisation's activities in support of thesustainable development of SIDS. UNIDO emphasizes the developmentof entrepreneurial and managerial skills, enhancement ofcompetitiveness, and the maintenance of products quality. UNIDOsees considerable scope for the development of marineresource-based industrial processing in SIDS. UNIDO will undertakea study to classify SIDS according to their potential forindustrial development.

UN REGIONAL COMMISSIONS: John M. Foday-Lamin spoke on behalfof the Economic Commission for Europe (ECE), the Economic andSocial Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), the EconomicCommission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), theEconomic Commission for Africa (ECA), and the Economic and SocialCommission for Western Asia (ECSWA). He mentioned the nature of theRegional Commissions' work with SIDS. The Regional Commissionshave: spearheaded initiatives in establishing variousinter-governmental organizations and inter-agency committees tocoordinate environmental management; and reinforced theireffectiveness in dealing with sustainable development and capacitybuilding. The Conference should: develop a coordinated plan ofaction for implementation by UN organizations and otherinter-governmental bodies; develop environmental management plans;and strengthen existing regional and subregional institutions formonitoring and follow-up.

WORLD BANK: Jan C. Post said that the Bank created a vicepresidency for environmentally sustainable development last year.All projects now have to go through an environmental impactassessment process. Environmental protection is the object of manyBank projects. He referred to the role of the Bank in the GEF andits work in conjunction with UNEP and FAO on integrated coastalzone management.

WAFUNIF: Diedre Powell, on behalf of the World Associationof Former Internes and Fellows, highlighted five areas for furtherattention: endogenous scientific and technological capacity; accessto environmentally sound technologies; the brain drain; theglobalization of finance and production and the impact of groupingssuch as the EC and NAFTA; and the impact of science and technologyon women and youth. Youth, women and indigenous people form anessential part of the knowledge base of SIDS.

WOMEN'S CAUCUS: Dr. E.A. Moore said that women's centralityto both the economic and social fabric of life in SIDS isunquestionable. She highlighted women's roles in SIDS and expresseddeep disappointment with the Conference documents for their failureto recognize this. This Conference must demonstrate that the gainswomen made in Rio have not been lost.

ECUADOR: Miriam Mantilla said that the stage of diagnosis ofthe problem has already been launched. The next step is to promotegreater activity and set priorities for sustainable development ofSIDS. The Barbados Conference will provide an opportunity to definestrategies.

OVERVIEW OF ACTIVITIES IN THE UN SYSTEM

The discussion of A/CONF.167/PC/6, overview of the activities ofthe UN system, took place with only half a dozen UN agencies andthe Regional Commissions present. While the Secretariat was thankedfor its efforts, many delegates pointed to some of the shortcomingsof the document. In particular, Australia, New Zealand, Belgium,France, Iceland, and Canada regretted that the activities describedwere not always specific to SIDS. Issues specific to SIDS, such ascommunication and transport, were not always addressed insufficient detail.

Australia called for a new document providing a complete picture ofwhat the UN is doing, what it can do, and how well it is doing it.Kiribati reminded participants that some UN agency programmes willnot benefit SIDS that are not members of the agency in question.Vanuatu added that the imperfections of the report reflect theimperfections of the UN system. The US urged the internationalcommunity to make the best use of the institutions already in placeand to implement existing conventions. Canada suggested that aquestionnaire be circulated to assist in evaluating programmescarried out at the national level and to include relevant commentsin an inventory compiled by the Secretariat. Cuba suggested thatthe participants meet once more before Barbados when they have abetter sense of what is already being done and a clearer idea ofwhat is needed.

Miles Stoby from the Secretariat urged the delegates to rememberthat the UN has no specific mandate to deal with SIDS as such. Heindicated that a new document could be prepared for Barbados if itsfocus was more clearly defined. He suggested that as informationsystems are expensive, a SIDS referral point within the UN systemcould be created.

The Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission warned againstduplication of efforts in monitoring the effect of climate changein the Caribbean. The FAO suggested that the Conference examinerelevant work of non-UN agencies.

REPORTS FROM THE REGIONAL TECHNICAL MEETINGS

The Chair asked representatives of the South Pacific RegionalEnvironment Programme (SPREP) and the Caribbean Community (Caricom)to introduce their reports of the two regional technical meetings.Gerald Miles (SPREP) commented on the significance of the meeting:the first chance at the regional level to discuss UNCED's outcomesrelated to SIDS; the first meeting of islands from these regions onthese issues; and the first opportunity to discuss sustainabledevelopment for SIDS in the context of this Conference. The meetingfound that environmental legislation is a key cross cutting issue.

Herman Roehler (Caricom) said that in identifying the prioritiesfor short-, medium- and long-term action, the meeting helped definethe different problems faced by some SIDS, as well as generalconstraints to sustainable development. He noted that at theinternational level many SIDS are unable to be fully represented atimportant negotiations and conferences.

ACTION PROGRAMME FOR THE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF SIDS

During the morning session, Colombia, on behalf of the G-77,submitted an informal paper entitled, "Basic Elements for an ActionProgramme for the Sustainable Development of Small IslandDeveloping States." This paper was originally drafted by AOSIS andis based on a triangular approach (action at the national, regionaland international levels).

Later in the day, the Chair convened an informal meeting to hearpreliminary comments on this paper. During the discussion, Braziland Argentina pointed out that this Conference and the resultingaction programme should be in line with the agreements reached inRio. They pointed out that financial resources were not adequatelyaddressed in the paper. To reinforce the links to UNCED, the papershould reflect activities in other fora, such as the Climate Changeand Biodiversity Conventions, the GEF and the CSD.

Belgium, on behalf of the EC, pointed out that the paper has a goodlist of objectives, but is too general. The paper should:concentrate more on the specific problems of SIDS (economicdiversification, transport, tourism, and water resources); mentionongoing work that addresses the specific problems of SIDS; focusmore on issues like capacity building and human resourcesdevelopment; and clarify how specific problems of SIDS will beaddressed in the context of other relevant global negotiations.Some issues that are not mentioned in the paper and should beincluded are: dissemination of information; the role of the CSD infollow-up; and better donor coordination, especially at theregional level.

Australia and Iceland agreed with the emphasis on implementation atthe national level and the triangular approach. They both supportedCanada's proposal to prepare an inventory of what is presentlybeing done at the national level and said that the question ofimplementation must be considered in time. Iceland also pointed outthat this paper should be linked to more efficient UN cooperation.Jamaica expressed concern about the incorporation of the work ofmany of the UN agencies into this document. He made specificreference to consideration of the latest initiatives on the Law ofthe Sea, the regional seas programme, and on human settlements.

IN THE CORRIDORS

Cuba's call for another session of the PrepCom spurred discussionin the corridors. However, with the current constructive atmosphereand the AOSIS/G-77 paper fresh in the hands of delegates, there isa feeling that it is still too early to judge whether or not asecond PrepCom will be needed. In fact, many believe that if theSecretariat and the Bureau can develop a negotiating text based onthe AOSIS document over the long weekend, the four days of meetingsnext week may produce agreement on all aspects except forimplementation. As the section on implementation was not circulatedwith the rest of the paper, it is not yet clear how contentiousthis issue will be.

THINGS TO LOOK FOR TODAY

PLENARY: The first item on the agenda is a report by thehost Government. Harcourt Lewis, recently appointed Minister of theEnvironment in Barbados, will give details on the state ofpreparations for the Conference. He met yesterday with UNDP todiscuss plans for the sustainable development technology exhibitionand talked to NGOs about plans for an NGO forum. Today, Lewisshould be able to give a detailed overview of the host Government's preparations for all three events.

The second item on the agenda will be a review of the operations ofthe voluntary fund. Look for signals from donor countries that havenot yet made commitments to the fund (such as the United States)that they will indeed do so. There will be some gentle nudging ofthose who have committed funds, but whose checks have not yetarrived. Talk of a second PrepCom will prove abortive withoutadditional funds.

INFORMAL SESSION: After discussion of the voluntary fund,the Chair will adjourn Plenary and convene an informal meeting tocontinue discussing the AOSIS/G-77 paper. At its meeting lateyesterday afternoon, AOSIS began drafting language on means ofimplementation. While many AOSIS members recognize that there aregaps in the document as it was introduced (including environmentallegislation, references to the role of women, and generalstrengthening of human resource language), they are looking toother countries and especially NGOs to suggest language. Meanwhile,the OECD countries met yesterday to look at structure -- how toget a clearer idea of what is ongoing at the national level andsubsequently define the other two points in the triangle, regionaland international coordination and support. There are also concernsabout follow-up and implementation. A matrix of existing programmes, priority issues, and levels of response may be needed.