CHARLOT SALWAI TABIMASMAS, Prime Minister of Vanuatu, cited the collective efforts to create a better world for present and future generations as “nothing short of disappointing”.  The collective failures to confront climate change, boost international development finance and secure global peace continue to plague development in small island developing States.  “The increasing intensity and frequency of climate-induced disasters continue to threaten our livelihoods and shed multiple years of development gains, leaving the furthest behind even further behind,” he observed, adding that “the window for real action to restore the health of this planet is fast closing on all of us”.  Despite the latest report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the global response to the threat of climate change remains subpar, undermining sustainable development and efforts to eradicate poverty.

Accordingly, he continued, Vanuatu sought an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice, requesting clarification on States’ legal obligations with respect to climate change, which has garnered unprecedented global attention.  “The initiative to bring climate change before the [Court] is not about naming or shaming any particular nation,” he said, adding that it seeks to provide the foundation for real climate action and climate justice through a shared understanding of responsibility and accountability.  He called on all States to be part of these historic hearings, which begin on 2 December 2024.  “Your voices are crucial in ensuring the Court fully grasps the implications of climate change for those most affected and will unite us in our shared commitment to justice and human rights as part of a more sustainable future,” he added.

Spotlighting the multiple crises facing small island economies, he said that tightening financial conditions and rising borrowing costs have increased those countries’ debt distress risks and undermined their ability to invest in recovery.  Against this backdrop, he welcomed the outcome of the Summit of the Future, which calls for global concerted efforts to reform the global economic and financial architecture. He also called for reforms of Bretton Woods institutions to restructure the international monetary and financial system, including the establishment of an international sovereign debt workout mechanism to solve current debt crises in developing countries, particularly those most vulnerable.

Detailing Vanuatu’s struggle with climate-induced disasters, he said it loses over half its GDP each time a severe cyclone strikes.  The latest Adaptation Fund report estimates a current adaptation finance gap of $194 billion to 366 billion annually.  As a country on the front line of frequent and intensifying climate disasters, Vanuatu calls for a new financial goal to accelerate the transition away from fossil fuels, build resilience and realistically address loss and damage.  It is also vital to prevent the severest harms to the planet’s vital and climate-regulating ecosystems before they occur, he asserted, highlighting his Government’s formal proposal of “an independent crime of ecocide” to the International Criminal Court.