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STORY: SAMOA / GUTERRES PRESSER
TRT: 3:25
SOURCE: UN SAMOA / MP STUDIO
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 22 AUGUST 2024, APIA, SAMOA
1. SOUNDBITE (English) António Guterres, Secretary-General, United Nations:
“High and rising sea levels pose an enormous threat to Samoa, the Pacific, and other Small Island Developing States. These challenges demand resolute international action.”
2. SOUNDBITE (English) António Guterres, Secretary-General, United Nations:
“The climate crisis is the gravest threat facing this country and this region – and, quite possibly, the world. This region contributes 0.02 per cent of global emissions. Yet you are on the front lines of the climate crisis, dealing with extreme weather events from raging tropical cyclones to record ocean heatwaves. Sea levels are rising even faster than the global average, posing an existential threat to millions of Pacific islanders. People are suffering. Economies are being battered. And entire territories face annihilation. The injustice is appalling.”
3. SOUNDBITE (English) António Guterres, Secretary-General, United Nations:
“But Pacific islands are not only climate victims. They are leaders. Samoa has built extraordinary resilience through Fa'asamoa. Many countries in this region are at the fore of ambition and action. The world must match them. The fate of the Pacific depends on limiting the rise in global temperature to 1.5 degrees Celsius. We need the G20 – the biggest emitters – out in front: Phasing out fossil fuels – fairly. And ending fossil fuel expansion – immediately. All countries must produce new national climate action plans – or Nationally Determined Contributions – by next year, aligned with the 1.5 degree limit on global temperature increase.”
4. SOUNDBITE (English) António Guterres, Secretary-General, United Nations:
“And we need climate justice – starting with major contributions to the new Loss and Damage fund, and ensuring that every person is protected by lifesaving early warning systems by 2027. We also need a massive increase in finance. In Samoa, and around the world, lack of funds has put ambitious plans for climate action and sustainable development on hold. We need to simplify access to concessional finance and massively increase the sums available. We need to reform the Multilateral Development Banks, to massively increase their lending capacity and enable them to leverage far more private finance for development at affordable rates. We need action on debt – which is soaking up funds in many developing countries.”
5. SOUNDBITE (English) António Guterres, Secretary-General, United Nations:
“On all these issues – together – the United Nations stands with the Pacific in calling for justice and change. For global action to support the Blue Continent and the future of its people. And take in particular consideration the needs of massively increase the funding for adaptation of countries that are already suffering the dramatic impact of climate change.”
During his visit to the Southwest Pacific region, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told journalist in Apia that like many Pacific countries, Samoa is caught in a storm of rising prices, rising seas, and rising geopolitical tensions – all of this compounded by an ailing ocean and woefully insufficient finance.
At a press encounter, Guterres said that Samoa is a firm friend of the United Nations and an active supporter of multilateralism. He applauded its fierce advocacy for climate justice in international climate negotiations, and its commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals.
The UN chief reiterated, “High and rising sea levels pose an enormous threat to Samoa, the Pacific, and other Small Island Developing States. These challenges demand resolute international action.”
He highlighted, “The climate crisis is the gravest threat facing this country and this region – and, quite possibly, the world.
Guterres said, “This region contributes 0.02 per cent of global emissions. Yet you are on the front lines of the climate crisis, dealing with extreme weather events from raging tropical cyclones to record ocean heatwaves. Sea levels are rising even faster than the global average, posing an existential threat to millions of Pacific islanders. People are suffering. Economies are being battered. And entire territories face annihilation. The injustice is appalling.”
“But Pacific islands are not only climate victims. They are leaders,” the Secretary-General stated.
He said, “Samoa has built extraordinary resilience through Fa'asamoa. Many countries in this region are at the fore of ambition and action.”
Guterres continued, “The world must match them. The fate of the Pacific depends on limiting the rise in global temperature to 1.5 degrees Celsius. We need the G20 – the biggest emitters – out in front: Phasing out fossil fuels – fairly. ending fossil fuel expansion – immediately.”
All countries must produce new national climate action plans – or Nationally Determined Contributions – by next year, aligned with the 1.5 degree limit on global temperature increase,” he added.
The UN chief also called for climate justice – “starting with major contributions to the new Loss and Damage fund, and ensuring that every person is protected by lifesaving early warning systems by 2027.”
He said, “We also need a massive increase in finance. In Samoa, and around the world, lack of funds has put ambitious plans for climate action and sustainable development on hold. We need to simplify access to concessional finance and massively increase the sums available. We need to reform the Multilateral Development Banks, to massively increase their lending capacity and enable them to leverage far more private finance for development at affordable rates. We need action on debt – which is soaking up funds in many developing countries."
The Secretary-General concluded, “On all these issues – together – the United Nations stands with the Pacific in calling for justice and change. For global action to support the Blue Continent and the future of its people. And take in particular consideration the needs of massively increase the funding for adaptation of countries that are already suffering the dramatic impact of climate change.”
