7th Space
Following is the text of UN Deputy Secretary-General Asha-Rose Migiro’s
remarks at the General Assembly follow-up meeting to the high-level
thematic debate on climate change, today, in New York:
I am honoured to join all of you this morning, and to speak about
an issue that has emerged as one of the defining challenges of our time
-– climate change.
There is now no question that human activity is the primary driver
of climate change. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has
given us a clear warning: absent a comprehensive and forceful response,
the world faces a catastrophic situation.
Already, the effects are being felt everywhere -– unprecedented
hurricanes and typhoons in the Caribbean, prolonged droughts in Africa
and accelerated glacier melts in Asia and Latin America.
The global reach of these climate events means that this issue
concerns all countries, and affects all people. However, it places a
particularly immediate and severe burden on the poor.
According to the United Nations Human Development Report, on
average, 1 person out of 19 in developing nations can expect to feel
the impact of a climate disaster, compared to only 1 of 1,500 in
Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development countries. And
while most people in rich countries can adapt to some of the change
with little effort -– by adjusting heating and cooling systems or
putting in place flood defences -- the poor rarely have such means.
Thus, as temperature rises and extreme weather events become more
frequent and intense, more poor people are being flooded out of their
homes. Health risks are also being amplified, exposing millions to new
and more frequent epidemics of mosquito-born diseases like malaria and
dengue fever.
Similarly, the increased frequency of droughts in Africa means that
women are walking greater distances to fetch water, often ranging from
10 to 15 kilometres a day. This takes time away from other vital tasks,
imposes an immense physical burden on women, and often confronts them
with personal security risks. This search for water also keeps
children, especially girls, out of school.
These trends would be alarming enough individually, but taken
together they amount to a development crisis –- unless action is taken
on a war-footing, the world will not only miss the Millennium
Development Goals, we will see existing development gains unravel as
well.
This potential development roll-back is deeply worrying, and it
raises unavoidable questions of equity and fairness. Nearly all
emissions driving climate change can be traced back to industrialized
and, to a lesser extent, middle-income and emerging economies. Yet by
far the biggest burden is borne by the poorest and most vulnerable
nations. Quite simply, our failure to address climate change will
condemn the poorest 40 per cent of the world’s population –- 2.6
billion people –- to a future of diminished opportunity.
Responding to climate change now through concrete actions -– both
in the areas of mitigation and adaptation –- remains in every country’s
interest. The ripple effects of dangerous climate change would extend
far beyond the localities of those most immediately affected. We would
have mass migrations and refugee flows, as well as rising tensions that
could lead to wider insecurity.
For these reasons –- both of self-interest and historical
responsibility -– the international community bears a special
responsibility to the countries most vulnerable to climate change. We
must respond by redoubling our efforts to provide substantial
technological and financial assistance to such countries.
International assistance should focus in particular on enhancing
the adaptive capacity and minimizing the vulnerability of poorer
societies. This crucial development goal should be integrated into the
national development plans.
Integration, however, should not imply that adaptation concerns can
be met from within existing resources. In fact, it is clear that
current official development assistance estimates for achieving the
Millennium Development Goals and reducing poverty do not take into
account the added costs of climate change, which will run into the tens
of billions of dollars a year. It is now imperative for international
donors to join together and provide this much needed funding.
For our part, both the Secretary-General and I will continue to
make climate change one of our highest priorities here at the United
Nations. We are encouraged by the attention the General Assembly and
United Nations Member States are giving to this issue. We commend you
Mr. President for your strong leadership in this regard.
Together, I am confident we can still rise to this challenge, and
leave a safer world and a better climate for our children. The
Secretary-General and I look forward to the outcome of your discussions
today, and wish you all a very productive session.
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