Acting Prime Minister Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum’s Statement – Bilateral Meeting with UNGA President Tijjani Muhammad-Bande

A very good afternoon to you all.

Our Honourable Prime Minister has asked me to pass on a warm “Bula Vinaka” to His Excellency, President Tijjani Muhammed-Bande. On behalf of the Fijian people, let me again welcome you to Fiji.

Our Honourable Prime Minister, of course, is in Australia where the Fijian Navy is bringing on its newest vessel –– a ship which we’ll soon put to work safeguarding Fijian waters from threats to our oceans like dumping, overfishing, and other illegal activities. So, as I’m sure his Excellency is pleased to hear, Fiji is clearly taking our progress towards Sustainable Development Goal 14 –– life below water –– quite seriously.

We’ve just held a great meeting with President Muhammed-Bande. Fiji is welcoming our 50th year of independence as the United Nations enters year 75 –– so 2020 is a milestone for both of us. It’s clear that our cooperation is entering a new era as well, as we’ve explored a number of new ways that the United Nations can support sustainable development aspirations in Fiji and, indeed, across the entire Pacific.

In its 75-year history, Fiji upholds the role of the United Nations as more important than ever. We’re living in a world of eroding trust, communal and economic nationalism, and unprecedented existential threats that present historic tests to our multilateral system. But history tells us that the answer to humanity’s greatest challenges always lies in the power of human cooperation. No single leader, nation, nor region of the world holds all the answers to every question, only the sum total of our knowledge, ingenuity and experiences can deliver our greatest possible future. That was true in 1945 –– and it is true today.

As we usher in a new decade, 2020 brings a critical series of global gatherings where world leaders will meet to save our forests, rivers, biodiversity and oceans from humankind’s reckless and unchecked abuses. As I’ve assured His Excellency, in these forums, Fiji will not accept short-term or selfish solutions. We will lead –– in word and action –– to secure a future for all life on the planet.

We spoke at length about the vital importance of the health of our oceans, and how Fiji and the UN can more actively collaborate to use our seas as a component of sustainable development. By doing so, we can combat climate change, protect Pacific livelihoods, culture and heritage, and leave a lasting legacy for the recently-departed Fijian Ambassador to the United Nations, Satya Nandan, who was a pioneer for the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.

We were glad to see His Excellency share Fiji’s urgency for addressing the climate emergency. As he knows, Fiji and our fellow Pacific Island nations are already seeing devastating climate impacts. It’s clear it will require much deeper international cooperation to build our resilience to the severe storms, rising seas and changing weather patterns at our doorsteps. On the mitigation front, 2020 is a defining year. The clock is ticking until COP26 –– where it is absolutely imperative we see more ambitious commitments towards a net-zero future, zero excuses.

But it’s also important we realise that climate change and economic growth are not mutually exclusive. His Excellency put it best at COP25, where he said that “Climate action is not a philanthropic endeavour; it is also a means to boost economic growth, to create jobs and to improve livelihoods worldwide.” We look forward to working with the UN to continue to carry that message, and allowing Fiji to serve as a case study in well-balanced, sustainable development in a world where the economy and the climate can both come first.

Fiji is prepared to lead by example in building a world as it should be; resilient, vibrant, inclusive and sustainable. We’re making great strides towards the 2030 Agenda, putting more women in our schools, vastly expanding our network of social welfare, decentralising key government services across the country, and incubating innovative climate-resilient solutions. But — like our neighbours across the Pacific — the full implementation of the SDGs is less a question of political will than it is of finances, and I’ve carried our message to His Excellency to help fill the financial gap separating vulnerable economies from realising the 2030 Agenda.

Last year, during his visit to Fiji, UN Secretary-General António Guterres planted one of the three million trees planted in Fiji over the past three years in a small but symbolic example of Fiji-UN cooperation in action. Over 15 years, our ambition is to plant 30 million trees across Fiji. Whether it’s growing new forests, building a more peaceful world, strengthening food security, putting more people in homes, supporting entrepreneurs, empowering women, or upholding human rights, we Fijians recognise the might of multilateralism –– and we value the platform that the UN has given us on issues critical to our national development. That is one reason we are especially proud to commit a new dedicated building to house the UN’s Pacific presence under one roof, here in Suva.

I thank His Excellency Muhammad-Bande for this historic visit, and we in Fiji look forward to working with you closely –– both throughout the rest of your term as President and beyond.

Vinaka vakalevu. Thank you.