“They do not need to go away their ancestral land, even when they’re bankrupt,” Jaap van Hierden stated.
He was appointed by the Secretary-Normal as the primary United Nations Resident Coordinator within the North Pacific to supervise ongoing improvement efforts in a distant area of hundreds of small, flippantly populated islands that function stewards of the huge ocean and the planet. .
He is proper united nations information Simply earlier than the Fourth Worldwide Convention on Small Island Growing States (SIDS4) is about to be held within the twin Caribbean islands of Antigua and Barbuda. He defined how the United Nations Multi-Nation Workplace (known as MCO Micronesia) was created, the place 13 United Nations businesses at the moment function.
“This largely unexplored and fairly pristine a part of the Pacific is just not well-known. Except for Palau, these international locations should not but resort locations.
Other than receiving some funding from america, all 5 international locations within the area – Palau, Federated States of Micronesia, Marshall Islands, Nauru and Kiribati – seem to have been forgotten and left behind by the worldwide group.
This triggered the necessity for Micronesian leaders to have interaction more and more successfully with the United Nations and its Normal Meeting, which in flip led to a evaluate of the United Nations Multi-Nation Workplace and the following creation of my place.
The entrance traces of local weather change
Upon arrival, I rapidly discovered that Micronesians are on the entrance traces of local weather change, with the Marshall Islands and Kiribati liable to disappearing beneath the waves of the ocean inside the lifetimes of our kids. Many low-lying outer islands in Palau and Micronesia face comparable existential dangers, together with the 4 states of Yap, Chuuk, Pohnpei and Kosrae.
© UNICEF/Lasse Bak Mejlvang
Employees construct boundaries alongside Tuvalu’s shoreline to fight sea erosion.
Micronesians have been advocates for our collective battle in opposition to local weather change and leaders and advocates in emphasizing the significance of analyzing vulnerability alongside a number of dimensions.
In addition they contribute to ongoing “loss and harm” discussions, which ought to assist them adapt successfully to rising sea ranges and worsening climate occasions.
Encouragingly, they’re fulfilling their tasks as stewards of the huge ocean by the institution of marine protected areas and United Nations Academic, Scientific and Cultural Group (UNESCO) World Heritage and Biosphere Reserves.
steward of the ocean
Nevertheless, the Micronesians are extremely dispersed, numbering lower than half 1,000,000 folks, all unfold out over small islands with small populations, and so they have neither the economies of scale nor the economies of scale we discover in international locations or subregions of comparable geographical scope Expertise and assets.
Nonetheless, as stewards of our huge oceans and seabeds, we can not enable them to turn into susceptible, and I’m happy that the United Nations is stepping up its engagement in Micronesia to make sure that nobody is left behind and that we assist construct for all A greater future.
“Increasing our UN footprint”
We rapidly discovered that our island is small, with solely about 30,000 folks on Pohnpei, our subregional host, a lot of whom journey to america for training or work.
Nevertheless, we persevered and inside two years of arriving in Pohnpei in late 2021, we established a completely practical United Nations Micronesian Operations Management Workplace. Coordination Workplace and established a completely practical resident area workplace.
The brand new workplace allows the United Nations group to maneuver its work from Fiji and Samoa to Pohnpei. This expands the United Nations footprint in Pohnpei from 5 in 2021 to 13 at this time.
“Being right down to earth could make an enormous distinction”
On the identical time, I labored intently with the governments of Micronesia and Pohnpei to put the groundwork for the design and building of the carbon-neutral United Nations Home of Micronesia, which might incorporate Micronesian historical past and tradition Its design and landscaping.
An effort that features convention services will assist us convey extra United Nations occasions to Micronesia and allow Micronesian leaders to have interaction with worldwide leaders and specialists of their residence nation. The Pohnpei State Legislature has allotted the land and progress goes effectively, with the ultimate design and building launch ceremony to be held quickly.
Not surprisingly, fieldwork has had a big impact on recognizing and understanding the event and humanitarian challenges and alternatives in every of the 5 international locations of Micronesia and the 4 states of Micronesia. To speak this successfully inside our UN crew, I journey ceaselessly and have interaction with authorities counterparts, embassies, improvement companions, civil society, religion leaders, chambers of commerce and communities.
Collectively we aspire to attain transformational change that leaves nobody behind and helps create a greater future for all, the place our planet, with its restricted pure assets and distinctive biodiversity, is a key stakeholder.
United Nations Resident Coordinator
- The United Nations Resident Coordinator, generally known as the Resident Coordinator, is the highest-level consultant of the United Nations improvement system on the nation degree.
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On this occasional sequence, UN Information invitations resident coordinators to weblog on problems with significance to the United Nations and the international locations they serve.
Study extra in regards to the UN’s work in Micronesia right here.
