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EU Statement – UN High Level Political Forum: Official meeting on Small Island Developing States

09.07.2026
New York

9 July 2026, New York - Intervention delivered on behalf of the EU and its Member States by Marie-Aurélie Vernin, Team Leader SDGs at European Commission DG INTPA, at the Official meeting on Small Island Developing States: Strategies for SDG success at the 2026 High Level Political Forum for Sustainable Development

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Mr Chair, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union and its Member States.

 

The European Union and its Member States are a reliable and long-term partner for Small Island Developing States, combining political engagement and sustainable investments. 

 

The EU recognises the SIDS’ unique vulnerabilities, including climate exposure, debt pressures, remoteness, limited economic diversification, and difficulty accessing concessional finance, while also recognising their strategic importance and leadership role in ocean and sustainability issues.

 

The EU and its Member States actively support partners in implementing the Antigua and Barbuda Agenda for SIDS (ABAS) 2024-2034 and see it as the central framework for the next decade of action for SIDS. We are active in the roll-out of ABAS which focuses on ocean governance, biodiversity protection, sustainable blue economies, and reform of the international financial architecture.

 

Team Europe support remains substantial – around EUR 7.4. billion in bilateral ODA to SIDS between 2021-2024, funding through multilateral channels, and EIB credit lines to local credit institutions. 

 

Mr. Chair 

Global Gateway is the EU’s main investment offer to SIDS. Global Gateway supports sustainable investments that help SIDS improve connectivity, diversify economies, strengthen resilience, mobilise private investment and develop sustainable infrastructure in line with national priorities. It moves beyond a traditional donor-recipient model towards mutually beneficial partnerships based on ownership, transparency, high standards, local value addition and long-term impact.

 

For instance, Global Gateway has now mobilised around EUR 380 million in Cabo Verde. This includes support for electricity generation, grid and storage systems; digital connectivity, including submarine cable infrastructure; sustainable port modernisation; and wind power expansion with battery storage.

 

Other Global Gateway examples are also directly relevant to SIDS priorities. The Green-Blue Alliance for the Pacific supports climate action, resilience and the sustainable use of natural capital, including through sustainable agri-food systems, eco-tourism, e-business, digital solutions and circular economy approaches. It also supports renewable energy, including the hydropower scheme in Fiji, expected to almost double renewable electricity production per year. In the Caribbean, the EU is also working with partners to address sargassum as both an environmental challenge and an economic opportunity. 

 

In addition, since 2025, we fund on-demand technical assistance through the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) to support the SIDS to ratify and implement the UN Agreement on the Conservation of Marine Biological Diversity of Areas beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ Agreement).

 

Our shared priority should be clear: to ensure that SIDS have the institutions, capacities, partnerships, data and finance needed to implement ABAS effectively and accelerate delivery of the SDGs. 

 

I thank you.