After four days of deliberation, the Fourth International Small Island Developing States (SIDS) Conference came to a close in the Caribbean this week.
With the closing, the Antigua and Barbuda Agenda for SIDS (ABAS) was adopted by the representatives.
Antigua and Barbuda’s Prime Minister Gaston Browne said the meeting went beyond talks and encompassed several areas including debt sustainability and climate justice.
He said the representatives had also discussed the possibility of visa-free travel between all SIDS.
A Centre of Excellence was also launched on the final day of the meeting, which also consists of a data hub to help SIDS members bridge the data gap.
Meanwhile, the head of Fiji’s delegation and Minister for Rural Development, Sakiasi Ditoka, said the conference was a way to band together to fight for climate justice.
“What we all need to do is to make sure there’s a fairer and more equitable economic system to allow us to be able to deal with the issues,” he said.
“Those are the things that we might find in the outcome document; to make the financial architecture of the world’s financial system more forgiving, perhaps so as to have more concessions for those of us in the SIDS countries.
“I believe that one of the main themes of this SIDS is to be able to help us to handle the economic pressures that SIDS countries are facing.”
More than 5000 people attended the four-day event.
