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Nauru - President Addresses General Debate, 72nd Session
As the high-level segment of the United Nations General Assembly continued today, Baron Divavesi Waqa, President of Nauru, expressed deep sorrow and condolences to those who have suffered from the recent successive hurricanes in the Caribbean and United States and earthquakes in Mexico, stressing that “your suffering and grief is shared by us all.”
Mr. Waqa agreed that the full implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) be at the centre of the coming year’s work, underscoring that the five words – ‘people, planet, prosperity, peace, and partnership’ – which guide the goals, are broad enough to encompass collective ideals, while accommodating tremendous diversity.
“In the case of Nauru, our status as a small island developing State underlies every aspect of the lives of my people,” he said.
Noting that Nauru was among the first countries to ratify the Paris Agreement, the President pointed out that “more than most, our prospects depend on a stable planet, including a safe climate and healthy oceans.”
“Climate change will be the defining security challenge of the century and we are simply not prepared for life on a hotter planet,” Mr. Waqa asserted. For that reason, Nauru supports the appointment of a UN Special Representative on Climate and Security.
He also urged that the mounting threats to the health of the world’s oceans be tackled ambitiously. Pointing to illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing as a great threat and economic loss to his country’s small economy, he emphasized that “security of our Oceans is a problem which must also be tackled by us all.”
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