Antigua & Barbuda is set to host the 4th International Conference on Small Island Developing States (SIDS4) from May 27-30, 2024.

This event is a crucial gathering of global experts to discuss a range of important topics for island nations including climate change, economic diversification, social inclusion, and institutional capacity building.

The aim is to identify policy pathways to empower SIDS communities and create a roadmap for resilience and prosperity.

The success of SIDS4 will depend on clear pathways for island states to overcome various challenges such as debt sustainability, decreasing productive capacity, increasingly devastating climatic events, and constraints in accessing climate finance.

These solutions should be grounded in the best available science and good practice.

To prepare for this significant event, the groundwork was laid at the SIDS Future Forum.

This two-day hybrid event in New York brought together academic and civil society leaders from around the world.

The forum was co-hosted by the global affairs think tank ODI, which hosts the Resilient and Sustainable Islands Initiative (RESI), the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS), the UK Government, United Nations Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States (UN-OHRLLS), UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA), and Island Innovation.

The March 4-5 forum saw the presentation of 12 policy-focused research papers commissioned by RESI.

These papers offered cutting-edge analysis on the key thematic agendas and challenges outlined in the zero draft of the SIDS4 outcome document, namely: (i) Resilient Economies; (ii) Safe and Prosperous Societies; (iii) A Secure Future; (iv) Environmental Protection and Planetary Sustainability; as well as (iv) means of implementation. This analysis will be presented in a way that is radical in ambition, focused in extent, and plausible in terms of recommendations.

These knowledge-sharing sessions elucidated key development challenges and potential solutions for island states.

The discussions helped establish collaborative links between island stakeholders ahead of SIDS4 in May where a guiding policy structure for SIDS will be agreed upon for the coming decade.

Antigua & Barbuda’s Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN, Tumasie Blair, described the country’s vision for the ten-year framework as “extremely bold.” He stated that the UN system has failed SIDS for the last thirty years.

However, the SIDS Future Forum and SIDS4 provide an opportunity for a reset and a rethink of minds.

The Permanent Representative of Samoa to the United Nations and Chair of AOSIS, H.E. Fatumanava-o-Upolu III Pa’olelei Luteru, expressed that the future of SIDS demands dedicated solutions and collaborative action.

He urged island states to bring the national, regional, and global levels together and to lead by sharing experiences and best practices within and across sub-regions.

Dr. Emily Wilkinson, Chair of the SIDS Future Forum and Director of RESI, emphasized the need for genuine partnerships and firm commitments from development partners to support the implementation of the SIDS agenda.

She urged SIDS and development partners to consider what a package of measures of assistance would look like for SIDS and to formulate a strategy for elevating SIDS’ special circumstances in international arenas, including debt reform.