Barbados Conference addresses problems of small islands

UN Chronicle, Sept, 1994

In an effort to confront the serious economic and environmental problems of small islands--rising sea levels, vulnerability to storms and droughts, loss of fragile reefs and rain forests, coastal pollution, shortages of fresh water and import dependency--representatives from over 120 countries approved by consensus a comprehensive 15-chapter Programme of Action, at the UN Global Conference on the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States (25 April-6 May, Bridgetown, Barbados).

A separate "Barbados Declaration", which provides the political framework for the Programme of Action and affirms that the international community has a responsibility to "facilitate the efforts of small island developing States to minimize the stress on their fragile ecosystems, including through cooperative action and partnership", was also adopted. it concluded that a powerful message should be sent on the possibilities of joint action undertaken with a sense of common purpose and partnership.

"As island States and other developing societies strive to raise living standards for their peoples, they will continue to need international support", UN Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali told Conference participants in an opening speech on 2 5 April. "Such assistance is a necessary and prudent investment in a more stable, more prosperous and more peaceful world."

Lloyd Erskine Sandiford, Prime Minister of Barbados and President of the Conference, told the assemblage that the international community could not begin to solve development problems unless there was a greater flow of resources from the industrialized to the developing world in the form of foreign direct investment, official development assistance, and support from international institutions and other sources.

Dame Nita Barrow, Governor-General of Barbados, presented a report prepared by the Group of Eminent Persons, which had met earlier in Bridgetown on 21 and 22 April (see box, p. 68).

Some 77 Member States, four observers, as well as UN-affiliated agencies, and non-governmental and intergovernmental organizations participated in the general debate. Speakers echoed the view that small island developing States were "front-line" areas, uniquely vulnerable to climate change, external economic factors and threats to their cultural and biological diversity. They faced a host of problems resulting from unsustainable economic and environmental practices, ranging from over-fishing of once abundant stocks and overdevelopment of tourism, to pollution and hazardous waste disposal, exacerbated by the islands' small size and relative isolation.

Speakers cited obstacles they faced in implementing sustainable development strategies. For example, an increasing number of insurance companies were refusing to provide coverage of island States, making it difficult to attract foreign investment. Many paid tribute to the efforts of the Alliance of Small Island States in advancing their cause.

During a high-level segment of the Conference on 5 and 6 May, 46 speakers, including 14 Heads of State and Government, as well as a large number of special representatives and ministers, made statements on the theme, "Forging Partnership for Sustainable Development".

In his capacity as Conference President, Mr. Sandiford expressed the common view that partnership for sustainable development meant "collaboration, cooperation and companionship, not foreign aid". It meant, in his words, a multilateralism which provided the developing world, and small island developing States in particular, with the means to fully participate in global environmental protection while fulfilling their needs for development.

Many speakers on the theme stressed that, while sustainable development was the primary responsibility of island States, the problems they faced often originated beyond their borders and required international solutions. One speaker said that small islands should become the models of sustainable development, provided they were given the means to prevent, not just repair, damage.

Representatives of 88 nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) attended the Conference as observers. They organized an NGO Islands Forum, featuring lectures and workshops, and a "Village of Hope", portraying island themes.

The 1992 UN Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), held in Rio de janeiro, recognizing the special challenges of small island developing countries, had called for the holding of the conference. Subsequently, the General Assembly on 22 December 1992, in resolution 47/189, had reiterated the call for a global conference to ensure that strategies and measures to enhance the sustainable development of small islands would be elaborated.

Blueprint for change

Intended to foster sustainable development in small island developing States, while preserving their unique cultural and ecological diversity, the Programme of Action that was agreed upon sets out a basis for action in a number of established priority areas: climate change and sea-level rise; natural and environmental disasters; waste management; coastal, marine, freshwater, land, and energy resources; tourism; biodiversity; national and regional institutions; transport and communication; science and technology; and human resources development.