Excellencies, colleagues,

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the EU and its Member States.

The Candidate Countries Türkiye, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Albania, Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Georgia, as well as Andorra and Monaco align themselves with this statement.

First, let me thank PrepCom chairs Maldives and New Zealand for convening us this week.

Thanks also to all members of the Bureau, including Italy, Latvia, Romania, to Portugal and Samoa as outgoing co-chairs of the Steering Committee on Partnerships for SIDS, and to Ireland and Palau as incoming co-chairs. 

Colleagues,

SIDS 4 will be a milestone in our joint efforts to reaching the SDGs. It will be an opportunity to listen to each other and to ensure a strong SIDS perspective on sustainable development in the next ten years.

Small Island Developing States are key stakeholders in upholding the international rules-based order with the UN at its core. Yet, they are currently facing important challenges.

Climate change is one of them. Small islands are exposed to increasing extreme weather events and to sea-level rise. The EU will continue to support a just transition towards climate neutrality and resilience, in line with the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda, the Addis Ababa Action Agenda, the Paris Agreement, and the Paris Pact for People and the Planet.

As COP28 testified, we stand by the SIDS in this battle. In Dubai, we worked together to ensure a transition away from fossil fuels in energy systems, as well as a tripling of renewable energy and a doubling of energy efficiency improvements. We supported SIDS on Loss and Damage Fund, including their strong representation in the Board of the Fund.

The EU is committed to address biodiversity loss, marine pollution and illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing activities. Through our Green Partnerships and our cooperation assistance, we support SIDS in implementing the Global Biodiversity Framework and restore degraded ecosystems on land and in the oceans. We have aligned views on protecting the oceans, including through a swift implementation of the BBNJ agreement[1] and in preparing for an ambitious UN Ocean Conference in Nice in June 2025.

SIDS often struggle to attract investment due to their small markets and perceived risks. The revenue criteria used by international financial institutions for determining eligibility may not adequately capture the unique needs and vulnerabilities of SIDS.

We recognise the need for action to tackle debt sustainability. We are involved in the ongoing discussions in multilateral fora on the reform of the International Financial Architecture, to increase liquidity and improve access to concessional financing. We must provide solutions to address the complexity of SIDS challenges to achieve resilient societies and economies.

We understood from our exchanges that took place in Brussels on 11 January that access to finance and climate change are key priorities for SIDS. SIDS 4 will be a good occasion to present and discuss several of our investment and infrastructure projects under the Global Gateway Initiative, such as the Global Green Bonds Initiative and the ‘Green Blue Alliance for the Pacific’. 

The new ‘Samoa Agreement’ between the EU and the Member States of the Organisation of the African, Caribbean and Pacific States, signed last November, lays down a number of key common principles such as human rights and gender, democracy, peace and security, development, climate change and the environment, and migration and mobility. We committed to work together on these issues, including at the UN. 

Colleagues,

With a funding of more that 1.5 billion EUR, the EU and its Member States are together the largest donor to the SIDS. The European Investment Bank has signed lending operations in SIDS totalling EUR 3.47 billion

The EU will support the SIDS conference itself with a grant of 300.000 EUR. Together with the EU Member States, we are devoting around 2 million EUR to the conference.

Before concluding, let me assure you that the EU will engage constructively in the negotiations on the SIDS 4 outcome document. We are committed to achieving strong, concrete results for the SIDS for the next 10 years.

I thank you

[1] Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction