Small islands to sign historic treaty in Samoa, to help finance climate change adaptation
Representatives from 31 small islands and low lying countries that are members of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) will reaffirm their commitment to the Small Island Developing States (SIDS) Sustainable Energy mechanism – SIDS DOCK – at an Official Ceremony for the Opening of Signature for the Statute Establishing the SIDS DOCK, on 1 September 2014, during the upcoming United Nations (UN) Third International Conference on SIDS, in Apia, Samoa, from 1-4 September. The opening for signature of this historic SIDS-SIDS Treaty is a significant highlight and outcome of the Conference, and a major step toward the treaty’s entry into force.
Representatives scheduled to attend the ceremony confirmed their continuing support for, and preparation to sign the Statute as soon as possible, and reiterated their resolve to continue cooperating to achieve its prompt entry into force and to support the SIDS DOCK goal of 25-50-25 by 2033: Island Energy For Island Life. SIDS need to mobilize and facilitate in excess of USD 20 billion by 2033, about USD 1 billion per year, to help finance the transformation of the SIDS energy sector in order to achieve a 25 percent (from the 2005 baseline) increase in energy efficiency, generation of a minimum of 50 percent of electric power from renewable sources, and a 25 percent decrease in conventional transportation fuel use, in order to significantly increase financial resources to enable climate change adaptation in SIDS.
The Hon. Roosevelt Skerrit, Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Finance, for the Commonwealth of Dominica, and acting in his country’s capacity as Chair of the SIDS DOCK Steering Committee, said that SIDS DOCK represents a significant achievement in solidifying SIDS-SIDS relationships and cooperation and is, “an extraordinary lesson learned of what can happen when a genuine partner takes ‘a chance’ on a new and innovative idea that has the potential to help SIDS adapt and become more resilient to the changing climate and sea level rise.” Recognising that the lives of more than 20 million people in small islands and low lying states are at high risk, the majority of them young people, the Government of Denmark was the first country to provide support for SIDS DOCK start-up activities with a grant of USD 14.5 million in 2010, during climate talks in Copenhagen, Denmark. This gesture and demonstration of support was followed by a grant of USD 15 million, over two years in 2011, from the Government of Japan during climate talks in Cancun, Mexico.
In March 2014, in partnership with the United Nations Industrial and Development Organization (UNIDO), the Government of Austria extended support under a Memorandum of Understanding, with a grant of 1 million euros, for start-up activities for Centres for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency in the Caribbean (CCREEE), the Pacific (PCREEE), and support to African SIDS through the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) ECREEE in Cabo Verde, and at a later date, support for a centre in the Indian Ocean region (IOCREEE). The new centres will also act as SE4ALL Hubs, assisting SIDS to translate commitments to actions. SIDS DOCK is highly complementary to the work being done under the Sustainable Energy For All (SE4All) Initiative, a personal initiative of the UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, that has SIDS as the largest group of signatories and with the highest ambitions.
During the Third International Conference on SIDS, the Government of Samoa and its people will host hundreds of representatives from small islands and low lying states, donors, investors and civil society groups, to what is expected to be the most important conference on SIDS to date, and one that is expected to define SIDS in a Post-2015 world, with genuine partnerships at the core of the agenda. SIDS DOCK is well-positioned to participate in the SIDS Post-2015 Agenda with its partners, the Governments of Denmark, Japan and Austria; the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Industrial and Development Organization (UNIDO); The World Bank; and The Clinton Foundation – Clinton Climate Initiative (CCI).
During the Signing Ceremony on September 1, the Dominican Prime Minister will invite other members of the AOSIS to consider joining the organisation. The Statute will remain open for signature in Apia, Samoa until September 5, and will re-open for signature in Belmopan, Belize, from September 6, 2014 until it enters into force. Belize is the host country for SIDS DOCK, with Samoa designated as the location for the Pacific regional office.
Background Note
SMALL ISLAND DEVELOPING STATES (SIDS) SUSTAINABLE ENERGY INITIATIVE – SIDS DOCK
A SIMPLE MESSAGE: SIDS DOCK IS A “CLIMATE CHANGE STORY”
SIDS DOCK[1] is a SIDS–SIDS institutional mechanism established to facilitate the development of a sustainable energy economy within the small islands and low lying developing states. Transforming the energy sector away from petroleum dependency is the pathway for SIDS to generate the significant levels of financial resources that will be needed for adaptation to the impacts of climate change. It is estimated that SIDS consume in excess of 220 million barrels of fuels, annually, and emit some 38 million tons of carbon.
The goals of SIDS DOCK are to mobilize in excess of USD 20 Billion, by 2033, or USD 1 billion per year, to help finance the transformation of the SIDS Energy Sector to achieve a 25 percent (2005 baseline) increase in energy efficiency, generation of a minimum of 50 percent of electric power from renewable sources, and a 25 percent decrease in conventional transportation fuel use, in order to enable climate change adaptation in SIDS. Some SIDS governments have announced more ambitious goals for the reduction of fossil fuel use in order to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. By providing SIDS with a dedicated and flexible mechanism to pursue sustainable energy, SIDS DOCK will make it easier for SIDS Development Partners to invest across multiple island States, and to more frequently reach investment scale that can be of interest to commercial global financing.
SIDS DOCK will serve as a “DOCKing station” to increase SIDS access to international financing, technical expertise and technology, as well as a link to the multi-billion dollar European and United States carbon markets – within which the potential value of trading avoided GHG emissions is estimated to be between USD 100-400 billion, annually. The funds generated will help countries develop and implement long-term adaptation measures.
SIDS DOCK has four principal functions:
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Provide a mechanism to help SIDS generate the financial resources to invest in climate change adaptation;
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Assist SIDS with developing a sustainable energy sector by increasing energy efficiency and developing renewable energy resources that minimizes dependence on imported fuels;
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Provide a vehicle for mobilizing financial and technical resources to catalyse low carbon economic growth, and;
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Provide SIDS with a mechanism for connecting with the global financial, technology, and carbon market taking advantage of the resource transfer possibilities that will be afforded.
SIDS DOCK is uniquely placed to work with private sector companies, tertiary institutions and governments to facilitate research across a range of specific environmental settings, technologies and best practices. This will produce a cyclical effect, as the stabilization of clean energy infrastructures will attract increased private sector and foreign investment. With respect to the legal framework, SIDS DOCK will be registered as a trans-regional international organization, vested with the legal personality of an international organization, and with the full rights, privileges, and immunities of an international organization. This Convention will be registered pursuant to Article 102 of the Charter of the United Nations.
Further, SIDS DOCK will also be able to make recommendations to Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) Member States on the optimal policy and legal framework necessary to encourage such investment. The associated assessments and research into policies, innovative approaches, and economic incentives will help to standardize and streamline the transition to a low carbon, highly efficient energy economy. SIDS DOCK will finance its operations through a combination of multi-lateral and bilateral grants, philanthropic support and income generation from selected endeavours.
Financing, Institutionalization and Project Implementation
SIDS DOCK, the Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs of the Republic of Austria, and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), announced a historic partnership in March 2014, worth millions of Euros, to establish a network of regional Centres for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency in SIDS. The Government of Austria, through the Austrian Development Agency (ADA), has committed to fund the establishment and first operational phase for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Centres in the Caribbean (CCREEE), Indian Ocean (IOCREEE), and the Pacific (PCREEE), and to provide support to the African islands at the ECOWAS Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (ECREEE).
Twenty-two SIDS have signed historic Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) establishing a long-term partnership with the Clinton Climate Initiative (CCI) that will see the Partners working together to speed up innovative renewable energy projects and solutions that would significantly transform the SIDS energy sector to the benefit the population. In 2012, President Clinton established a Diesel Replacement Project in small island developing states, a decision that grew from his expressed concerns about the high cost of electricity for imported diesel fuel for small island developing states as well as the adverse impact on climate change from the use of fossil fuels.
SIDS DOCK was launched in December 2010, in Cancun, Mexico, with four Partners: the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS); United Nations Development Programme (UNDP); The World Bank, and the Government of Denmark, which announced a grant of USD14.5 million in start-up contributions. In December 2011, in Durban, South Africa, the Government of Japan joined the SIDS DOCK Partnership with a pledge of USD 15 million, over two years (2012-2014). In 2009, SIDS DOCK Members began the process of establishing the organisation through a Memorandum of Agreement, and on 1 September 2014, the Ceremony for the Opening of the Signing of the Statute Establishing the SIDS DOCK, is scheduled to take place at the UN Third International Conference on SIDS, in Apia, Samoa.
[1] SIDS DOCK Members: Antigua & Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, Bahamas (Commonwealth of the), Dominica (Commonwealth of), Cabo Verde (Republic of), Cook Islands, Dominican Republic, Fiji (Republic of), Grenada, Jamaica, Kiribati (Republic of), Maldives (Republic of the), Marshall Islands (Republic of the), Mauritius (Republic of), Micronesia (Federated States of), Nauru (Republic of), Niue, Palau (Republic of), Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa (Independent State of), São Tomé and Príncipe (Democratic Republic of), Seychelles (Republic of the), Solomon Islands, Suriname (Republic of), Tonga (Kingdom of), Trinidad and Tobago (Republic of), Tuvalu, Vanuatu (Republic of)
Further information on SIDS DOCK participation at Samoa is available at: http://sidsdockforum2014.org/
Contact information: Dr. Al Binger, Energy Advisor, CARICOM Climate Change Centre, and SIDS DOCK Coordinator, Belize. Email: abinger@sidsdock.org; Telephone: +1 301 873-4522 Mrs. Sheikha Bundhoo, Senior Information Officer, Office of the Prime Minister, Republic of Mauritius, and SIDS DOCK Communications Advisor. Email: jumpy952001@gmail.com; Telephone: +230 5728 0386