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Major Speeches |
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Back to Major Speeches
May 29, 2007
Statement by
H.E. Kessai H. Note
Food & Agriculture Ministers’ Meeting
Majuro, MH
May 29, 2007
Yokwe kom aolep im Anij en Kejerramon kijwoj.
- Mr. Speaker
- Traditional Leaders
- Cabinet Ministers, Senators, Mayors
- Members of the Diplomatic Corps,
- Members of the Public Service Commission,
- Ministerial Secretaries and Agency Heads,
- Representatives from the Civil Society and the Private Sector,
- Media Representatives
- Invited Guests,
A very special welcome to our friends from overseas:
- His Excellency Dr. Jacques Diouf, Director General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations,
- Ministers of Agriculture and Senior Officials of FAO Pacific member countries,
- FAO Representative in the Pacific Dr. Vili Fuavao and your capable staff,
- Charge d’ Affairs Dr. Massimo Carnelos of the Intalian Embassy in New Zealand,
- Representatives from Regional Organizations and Observers,
- The Organizing Committee and support staff of this conference
- Ladies and Gentlemen,
On behalf of the Government and the people of the Marshall Islands, I welcome you all to Majuro on the occasion of the 7th South-West Pacific Ministers for Agriculture Meeting.
I am confident that we have made all possible arrangements to facilitate and make your stay as comfortable as possible. We hope that at the end of this important meeting that you take home with you fond memories of your visit to our humble islands.
The Marshall Islands is honored to host this vital Regional Conference on Food and Agriculture. It is one way of showing our commitment to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization on its global mandate in the fight against poverty and hunger.
Needless to say, the FAO has greatly impacted positive development in the Region for many years.
Through the FAO programs, like the Technical Cooperation Program and the Regional Program for Food Security, projects have been implemented in fisheries, forestry, livestock, food processing, horticulture, plant protection, policy and planning, atoll cultivation, coconut utilization, replanting and rehabilitation, and many more.
Like the other Pacific nations, the Marshall Islands has benefited tremendously from these programs and we are indebted to this forum and the FAO for the valuable assistance provided thus far.
We are also very grateful to the Government of Italy as the main donor of the current Regional Program for Food Security. I wish to acknowledge the presence of Dr. Massimo Carnelos, Charge d’ Affairs, who is representing the Government of Italy. Please convey our sincere appreciation to your Government for its much-needed assistance.
FAO’s assistance in the Pacific has and will continue to complement the many ongoing efforts that exist in the Pacific Region to curb the many challenges of food security and sustainable development, which are all interlinked.
Such challegenges, to name a few, are natural disasters, climate change and sea level rise, water scarcity, trans-boundary animal diseases, pests and disease, energy crises and distortions in the international trade regime.
With respect to the distortion in the international trade regime and its related challenges, increased globalization is placing on our region an ever present need for stronger and enhanced regional cooperation among countries.
Let us be mindful of our collective ownership and responsibility for regional and international peace; be aware of our vulnerability to global tensions and conflicts, the increasing socio-economic disparities and violence in the world.
We share a vision of all people of the Pacific living in peace and harmony, protecting and safeguarding our natural habitat, cultural history, identity, and our common goal to provide a secure and sustainable future for our children.
In doing so, we need to address the important issue of socio-economic disparities, develop a joint vision for development in the Pacific to suit our needs and reassert our right to self-determination, our sovereignty and control over our resources in order to resist the negative effects of globalization. In doing this, stronger cooperation aolong the lines articulated in the Pacific Plan, will provide a stronger voice and safeguard against outside detrimental influences.
Although we play a very minor role in the global industry, small island developing countries face the greatest impacts from mounting climate change and sea level rise due to harmful levels of carbon dioxide in the world’s atmosphere. Over the last 10 years, at numerous international meetings, Pacific leaders have expressed strong concerns about the effects of climate change and sea level rise. Effects include increased storm events, recurring drought, severe flooding, coastal erosion, inundation of our taro patches, damage to our vegetation, degradation of coral reefs, and decreasing fish stocks, among others.
Food security and sea level rise are interconnected. Currently, the relative rate of sea-level rise in the RMI is 4.5mm a year, which equates to 45cm over the next 100 years. With the average height of land in the RMI being approximately 2m, and many more near shore areas being less than 1m, this means it won’t be long before our country is completely inundated. Climate change poses the greatest threat to the long-term survival of human life in the RMI, and neighboring island countries. We are the primary victims of global climate change. There is no doubt in my mind about the urgent need and moral obligation to act urgently.
Having said that, I urge the agricultural ministers of the South West Pacific to concentrate on reforming the agricultural sector as a crucial contribution to our joint struggle against global climate change and its detrimental effects.
Promoting the production of local and indigenous food products is one way to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. Concentrating on growing healthy local staple food and raising small livestock, processing a larger amount of local food crops as well as fish, has the potential to improve employment, income, and to supply a good share of the local food to the growing domestic market.
At the same time, this approach contributes to improved livelihoods for outer island farmers, and traders, as well as the urban population. We need to identify innovative ways to make this work better.
Over the last 10 years, Pacific countries have increasingly turned to regional and international bodies such as the United Nations, to help find solutions to problems caused largely by external factors such as globalization and climate change. In this connection, I refer to the 1999 decision of the Republic of the Marshall Islands – as well as other South West Pacific countries present here today – to apply for membership in the Food and Agricultural Organization of the Untied Nations.
Mr. Director-General, this is a reflection of the trust we have placed on FAO and its programs. FAO’s pioneering role in promoting good agricultural practices, sustained fisheries and forestry management, and improved nutrition for healthier lifestyles have increasingly become important milestones to guide the Pacific in key decision-making processes.
Similarly, FAO’s program on climate change – in particular the attention to mitigation of climate change impact, and adaptation of agricultural systems to climate change, are fully supported and encouraged.
Agricultural ministers attending this meeting in majuro will thus be looking at further developing practices aimed at increasing the resilience of agricultural production systems to the vagaries of weather and climate change, including national and regional climate change monitoring systems, as well as data and information collection and dissemination.
However, international assistance is needed – now more than ever before. My own country of the Republic of the Marshall Islands, like otheres, continues to seek considerable investments and comprehensive assistance, including much needed policy re-orientation to address the interlinked issues of food and agriculture security and climate change.
Mr. Director-General, FAO’s special program for food security in the Pacific is a crucial vehicle – both at the policy level as well as in mobilizing human and financial resources – to steer our joint efforts and further stimulate both regional as well as national action to address both climate change and improving the productivity of our agricultural and food systems.
With these goals and appeals in mind, I am honored and very pleased to declare the 7th South-West Pacific Ministers of Agriculture Meeting officially open.
Good luck in your deliberations.
Komol tata, and God speed.
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