Hon. Clarke Delivers Forceful SIDS Statement at UN Ocean Summit in France

Nice, France, June 11, 2025 (PMO)— The Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis, represented by Minister of Sustainable Development, Environment, Climate Action and Constituency Empowerment, Hon. Dr. Joyelle Clarke, delivered a compelling national statement today at the 5th Plenary Meeting of the 2025 United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC), held in Nice, France.

In a powerful address on behalf of the Government and people of Saint Kitts and Nevis, Minister Clarke urged the global community to act with resolve and urgency on three critical priorities: ocean finance, ocean science, and global ocean governance.

“For Small Island Developing States like Saint Kitts and Nevis, the ocean is our birthplace, lifeline, sustenance. It is our greatest asset, yet it faces the greatest and most urgent risks associated with unmitigated increases in greenhouse gas emissions,” Dr. Clarke stated, underscoring the existential threat facing SIDS.

Framing the stakes in stark terms, she declared, “Should we fail to accomplish even one of these priorities then we would have failed over 2 billion coastal inhabitants who need and deserve our resolute action in addressing the crises they face daily: sea level rise due to a warming planet, biodiversity loss, and increased marine plastic pollution.”

Calling attention to the disproportionate burden placed on vulnerable nations, Hon. Clarke reminded delegates that “the SIDS experience is NOT self-inflicted – our survival sadly, largely depends on the actions of others; but we still aim for progress and want to do so collaboratively.”

The Minister reaffirmed Saint Kitts and Nevis’ alignment with the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), and issued clear calls for action, including: “Science-based policy for our oceans which complements existing platforms; Upscaling nature-based solutions in marine ecosystems; Ratification of the BBNJ Agreement and the urgent conclusion of the Plastic Pollution Treaty, Amplified Ocean Financing which sees clear, predictable, adequate, newer and more sustainable resources for ocean priorities.”

She also advocated for urgent reforms in international law to address sea level rise: “Sea Level rise must be addressed urgently through international law that is interpreted and enacted to ensure the protection of those disproportionately affected so that in addition to maintaining nationhood and sovereignty, we can prevent the extinction of vulnerable coastal states and ensure that our people equally enjoy the right to exist.”

Dr. Clarke also called for the international system to honour and operationalize the “special circumstances of SIDS” and criticized existing global climate finance systems for being insufficient, unpredictable, and detached from local realities. “Ocean sustainability calls for targeted solution-building, localizing ocean-climate finance, building local autonomy, and providing upscaled, community-led coordination,” she added.

Underscoring the urgency of the moment, she declared, “In Saint Kitts and Nevis, the climate crisis is NOT an abstraction. Its relentless threats and volatility are lived daily”, moving on to highlight the Federation’s firm policy commitments under its Sustainable Island State Agenda (SISA), “Our ambition and intent are clear: to transform the smallest nation in the Western Hemisphere into a Sustainable Island State by 2040.”

She noted key initiatives including the national ban on single-use plastics, the passage of the Plastic Waste Prohibition and Reduction Bill 2025, and innovative partnerships with local academic institutions and NGOs like Clarence Fitzroy Bryant College’s PROMAR Project and the St. Mary’s Man and Biosphere Reserve’s community sensitization campaigns.

Saint Kitts and Nevis continues to position itself as a bold, principled voice in global ocean and climate diplomacy, advancing solutions that are science-driven, equity-focused, and grounded in the lived experiences of Small Island Developing States.