"The International Year is an opportunity to appreciate the extraordinary resiliency and rich cultural heritage of the people of small island developing States" — United Nations Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon.
The International Year of Small Island Developing States is celebrated in 2014 in order to mark the contributions that this group of countries has made to the world. Small island developing states are home to vibrant and distinct cultures, diversity and heritage. People of Small Island Developing States are also at the forefront of efforts to addressing pressing global issues through ingenuity, innovation and use of traditional knowledge. The challenges facing the small island developing States are challenges that confront us all, and they are determined to work with all countries to find solutions that will ensure a brighter future for generations to come. Read about the various activities that will take place at and around the Conference in Apia, Samoa.
There are currently 32 small island developing States in three geographic regions: the Caribbean; the Pacific; and Africa, Indian Ocean and South China Sea. These small islands have a combined population of 63.2 million people and a combined gross domestic product (GDP) of $575.3 billion. Small islands face a unique set of challenges due to their small size and remote location. They are also highly vulnerable to climate change and natural disasters. While they have many things in common, the standards of living among small islands differ widely, with GDP per capita ranging from $51,000 in Singapore to $830 in Comoros.
The Year will also help raise awareness of the Third United Nations Conference on Small Island Developing States, which will be held in September in Apia, Samoa, and will focus on building partnerships for sustainable development. The Conference will be preceded by activities related to the conference from 28 to 30 August 2014, including and Youth Forum, a Stakeholder Forum, side events, etc.
Third Conference will also serve as a follow-up to and implementation of the Mauritius Strategy for the Further Implementation of the Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States, Rio+20 outcome document, and The Future We Want Barbados Plan of Action. The Conference aimed to focus the world’s attention on a group of countries that remain a special case for sustainable development in view of their unique and particular vulnerabilities. The overarching theme of the Third Conference is "The sustainable development of small island developing States through genuine and durable partnerships ". The event will include six multi-stakeholder partnership dialogues, held in parallel with the plenary meetings, and it will seek to achieve the following objectives: assess the progress to date and the remaining gaps in the implementation; seek a renewed political commitment by focusing on practical and pragmatic actions for further implementation; identify new and emerging challenges and opportunities for the sustainable development of SIDS and means of addressing them; and identify priorities for the sustainable development of SIDS to be considered in the elaboration of the Post-2015 UN development agenda.
The United Nations General Assembly resolution called for "a concise, focused, forward-looking and action-oriented political document.". Preparatory Process The preparations for this important Conference are currently underway, starting with a robust, SIDS-directed, multi-stakeholder national preparatory process. The national preparations feed into regional meetings in July of 2013, followed by an inter-regional preparatory meeting.
You can Join and Support the Celebration ! If you are you organizing an event to celebrate the International Year of Small Island Developing States, let the United Nations knows and they will list your event on the UN website. You can also tell other people about the International Year by sharing information on your social networks and by using the hashtag: #islands2014 on Twitter.
Read more about the International Year at http://www.un.org/en/events/islands2014/ and about the Third SIDS Conference at http://www.sids2014.org/
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