“For 80 years this Assembly has been a harbour for hope,” said Terrance M. Drew, Prime Minister of Saint Kitts and Nevis,but stressed that “language must be matched by labour; pledges must be partnered by payment and rhetoric must be redeemed by results”.  He urged great actors to transform their capacity into compassion, to change “the calculus of comfort for the calculus of climate justice”. Describing the human face of the climate crisis – a fisherman watching reefs die away until there is nothing left to catch but memories - he underscored: “these are not metaphors for us; these are our fears at the turn of every hurricane season.”

Noting that emissions heating the planet are largely produced by industrialized nations, while small island developing States bear the brunt of the consequences, he stressed: “That is not merely an accident of geography — it is a failure of stewardship, a moral failing we must name and a responsibility we must repair.”  He welcomed the International Court of Justice landmark ruling on the responsibility of States for climate change, declaring: “We must do better!”  His country has chosen to “script a different future for survival and growth” through its Sustainable Island State Agenda, a blueprint to 2040.  Built on seven pillars, this roadmap reimagines energy to light homes and not darken another nation’s future; invests in water as a right, not a luxury; and builds homes and schools that will shelter hope in the time of storm.

On gender equality, he highlighted that Saint Kitts and Nevis co-facilitated a resolution that revitalises the Commission on the Status of Women and that his country’s Parliament – led by a woman speaker - “boasts the highest number of female members in our nation’s history”.  “When women lead, nations rise,” he said.  Welcoming adoption of the multidimensional vulnerability index, he urged its institutionalization across global financial institutions, calling it “lifesaving” for small island developing States.

He underscored the historic significance of the recent Africa-CARICOM Summit, calling it a moment of remembrance, reconnection and solidarity in the pursuit of reparatory justice.  “Reparatory justice is not just about giving money, it is about correcting a moral wrong,” he emphasized.  On peace, he said it “is not the absence of noise; peace is the presence of safety,” stressing the need of the Caribbean nations for concrete measures in the areas of maritime security, youth employment and illicit weapons.  “Partnership, not pity; prevention, not punishment,” he stressed, adding that those who suffer the sharpest edges of insecurity must have a seat at the Security Council where peace is forged.