STATEMENT BY MISS SEEMA GAIL PARKASH, FIRST SECRETARY, PERMANENT MISSION OF THE REPUBLIC OF SINGAPORE TO THE UNITED NATIONS, AT THE GENERAL DEBATE OF THE SECOND COMMITTEE, 8 OCTOBER 2015

Mr Chairman,

          I would like to align Singapore with the statements made yesterday by South Africa, on behalf of the Group of 77 and China; Indonesia, on behalf of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations; and the Maldives, on behalf of the Alliance of Small Island States.  As this is the first time Singapore is taking the floor, allow me to congratulate you and the members of your Bureau on your appointments.  My delegation is confident that under your able leadership, we will work productively and constructively and reach successful outcomes in our work. 

2        To say that it has been a busy year for the Second Committee is an understatement.  We should all be proud of the fruit of our long days and sleepless nights – the seminal 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, Addis Ababa Action Agenda and Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030.  But we also need to resist the temptation to simply sit back and enjoy our collective achievements, for much work remains ahead of us.  

3        As the Second Committee turns its attention to the implementation of these Agendas and Framework, some of the tasks ahead are immediately apparent.  We need to consider how best to operationalise the specific outcomes contained therein.  These include: (i) the established mandate of the High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) on Sustainable Development; (ii) the dedicated follow-up and review for the Financing for Development outcomes and the means of implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which is integrated with the follow-up and review framework of the 2030 Agenda; and (iii) the review of global progress in the implementation of the Sendai Framework, as part of the General Assembly’s integrated and coordinated follow-up processes to United Nations Conferences and Summits.  These are just a few examples. 

4        While these may appear to be questions of modalities, how we operationalise the specific outcomes contained in these Agendas and Framework will have a substantive impact on their implementation.  In our view, due care and attention would need to be paid to ensure that any outcome of our deliberations is inclusive and consensual, so as to garner buy-in from all countries and stakeholders.  Hence, in considering these issues, Singapore believes it is important to remain cognisant that all countries will have to select from the menu that is the 2030 Agenda to adapt solutions to their own national priorities and unique circumstances.  It is also important to remember that the 2030 Agenda, the Addis Ababa Action Agenda and the Sendai Framework are three distinct, but interrelated and mutually-reinforcing, processes.  We should also bear in mind that the outcome of the 2015 Paris Climate Conference will affect our implementation of all three.  As climate change is a global challenge affecting all countries, the Second Committee must underscore the need for a strong and meaningful outcome at the upcoming Conference of Parties (COP) 21 in Paris in November.

Mr Chairman,

5        The current session of the General Assembly also affords important opportunities to ensure that pre-existing processes and commitments advance the implementation of the 2030 Agenda.  I would like to highlight three examples.  First, the Second Committee will consider, under agenda item 21, the United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III), which will take place in Quito, Ecuador from 17 to 20 October 2016.  We must endeavour to ensure that Habitat III is well-positioned to deliver a New Urban Agenda that fully supports the achievement of SDG 11, which aims to make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.  Singapore’s firm belief, rooted in our own development experience, is that urbanisation can be harnessed as a powerful driver of sustainable development.

6        Second, the Second Committee will consider, under agenda item 20(b), the establishment of the Small Island Developing States (SIDS) Partnership Framework and how to improve UN system support for SIDS.  These are a direct follow-up to the outcomes of the S.A.M.O.A. Pathway, the 2014 programme of support for SIDS.  SIDS are vulnerable and feel the weight of global challenges most intensely.  Hence, it is important to consider how the SIDS Partnership Framework and improving UN system support for SIDS can best contribute to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the Sendai Framework by SIDS.  Singapore will do our part to support our fellow SIDs in this endeavour.

7        Third, as all of you are aware, the UN commemorates World Toilet Day in the context of Sanitation for All on 19 November every year, in accordance with General Assembly resolution 67/291.  This year, Singapore is working with the relevant UN agencies on a commemorative event themed “Toilets for Health: Better Sanitation for Better Nutrition”.  By highlighting how access to safe drinking water, sanitation and hygiene has a positive impact on nutrition, we hope to demonstrate the inextricable linkages between the SDGs and the importance of moving beyond silos to achieve the 2030 Agenda.

Mr Chairman,

8        I think it is safe to say that the heavy workload of the Second Committee in previous General Assembly sessions is set to continue.  Apart from the resolutions traditionally considered by the Second Committee, there will be new resolutions, not least those that seek to operationalise the specific outcomes of the 2030 Agenda, the Addis Ababa Action Agenda and the Sendai Framework.  However, the adoption of these Agendas and Framework also raises the question of how the Second Committee can best support their implementation; and relatedly, whether to continue with “business as usual” in its own organisation of work.  These are not easy questions.  In this regard, Singapore urges the Second Committee to devote the necessary time for the thorough discussions that these questions deserve, even if this means continuing those discussions after the Second Committee concludes its programme of work in November this year.

Mr Chairman,

9        The work that lies ahead of us is daunting.  It will require the spirit of common purpose and compromise that every delegation brought to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the Addis Ababa Action Agenda and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030.  In this regard, Singapore stands ready to continue engaging constructively in all aspects of the work of the Second Committee. 

10      I thank you.

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