The SIDS4 Conference, which will be hosted next year in Antigua and Barbuda, is
beginning to take shape, and its outcome will likely have far-reaching results for
the future of the many island nations that will be represented at the ground-
breaking event.
The stage is being set well ahead of the meeting scheduled for May 27 – 30 next
year, for lasting policies and enduring positions that will precipitate the shift in
fortunes that Small Island Developing States have been seeking for decades.
In this connection, as the host country, the Antigua and Barbuda Permanent
Mission to the United Nations has maintained a constant presence at various
meetings, where it can field questions and share information about next year’s
meeting.
At one such recent meeting convened by the Alliance of Small Island States
(AOSIS), Antigua and Barbuda’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations,
Ambassador Walton Aubrey Webson joined fruitful discussions on important
matters on the SIDS agenda, and enlightened participants about preparations for
SIDS4.
The meeting discussed pertinent issues related to the data and financing gap being
faced by SIDS and the work being undertaken by The PVBLIC Foundation and the
Family Offices for Sustainable Development across the UN system on data and
technology.
In attendance were the Current Chair of AOSIS Ambassador Fatumanava Pa’olelei
Luteru, Executive Director of the United Nations Office of Project Services
(UNOPS), Under Secretary General Jorge Moreira da Silva, Senior Advisor to
SIDS Simona Marinescu and joining remotely was the Board Chairman of The
PVBLIC Foundation Sergio Fernandez de Cordova.
The dialogue on data and technology was of intrinsic value to Ambassador
Webson. Antigua and Barbuda will be using next year’s conference to launch a
Centre of Excellence where a Data Hub will be housed. It will help island nations
overcome their challenges in readily sourcing and providing the information
international institutions require in granting developmental and concessional
financing.
The concept has won the approval of AOSIS Ambassadors and will be hosted in
Antigua and Barbuda. The Government of Antigua and Barbuda and its partners
will support its development and operation. The centre will build capacity,
monitor, and track the SIDS next ten-year plan, and be the hub for innovation and
technology in the SIDS regions.
The theme of next year’s conference is ‘SIDS4 – Charting the Course towards
Resilient Prosperity’ a rallying call to action for island nations to once and for all
address their unique challenges, in particular those related to climate change and
burdensome debt.
