Fourth Report - The UK Small Island Developing States Strategy

We welcome the Government’s publication of the Small Island Developing States Strategy 2022–2026. Being a firm, committed supporter of SIDS in addressing their developmental and environmental challenges is not only morally right; it is also in the UK’s geopolitical interest. However, we are concerned that, given the absence of measurable objectives in the strategy, the UK’s commitment to SIDS may slip down the Government’s priority list over time.

The Government must honour the commitment it made to provide the Committee with a written update on progress in delivering the SIDS Strategy across the six areas of focus by 30 September 2024. Points that the report should cover are listed in Annex

We recognise that there could be risks in moving towards the use of vulnerability- based measures in determining ODA eligibility. However, such a move is necessary for ensuring that vulnerable SIDS have the opportunity to access UK aid. It will remain for individual donor countries to determine where the need for ODA is greatest.

The UK Government should use its membership of, and influence within, the OECD to advocate that ODA eligibility criteria be reformed to reflect SIDS’ vulnerabilities. This could take the form of a ‘small island exception’ as employed by the World Bank or a Multidimensional Vulnerability Index (MVI), such as that currently being considered by the United Nations.

Accessing climate finance from international organisations such as the Green Climate Fund is a challenge for Small Island Developing States. As co-chair of the GCF in 2024, the UK is well-positioned to push for reforms that benefit SIDS. The UK Government should use its co-chairmanship of the Green Climate Fund’s board to advocate for policies that will improve SIDS’ access to GCF resources, consistent with the commitments outlined in its 2024–27 Strategic Plan—especially in the area of simplified application procedures.

The UK Government should use its co-chairmanship of the Green Climate Fund’s board to advocate for policies that will improve SIDS’ access to GCF resources, consistent with the commitments outlined in its 2024–27 Strategic Plan—especially in the area of simplified application procedures.

We are concerned that the UK labels the climate finance it provides via multilateral development banks as “grants”, but that these are disbursed in the form of loans to recipient countries.

The UK Government should ensure that any climate finance it reports as grant funding is disbursed to recipient countries as such, and not in the form of loans. (Paragraph 33) 42 The UK Small Island Developing States Strategy

As a major shareholder of the World Bank and IMF, the UK is well-placed to take the lead in advocating for governance reforms that secure better representation for SIDS on these bodies. While this Committee recognises that better board representation would not guarantee that SIDS would enjoy seamless access to finance, it would at least ensure that their voices are heard when decisions on how to allocate finance are being made.

Therefore, in addition to using its own influence within international financial institutions to advocate for reforms that benefit SIDS, the UK Government should also explore how SIDS might be better represented on the World Bank and IMF boards, potentially using the Green Climate Fund’s governance structure as a guide. (Paragraph 36) Loss and damage

The Committee is concerned that, given its importance to Small Island Developing States, the UK SIDS Strategy makes no mention of issues of loss and damage. We are also disappointed that, having stated its aspiration in the SIDS Strategy to “lend [ … ] our voice to advocate for issues important to SIDS internationally”, the UK opposed the SIDS’ position and supported the hosting of the Loss and Damage Fund in the World Bank, even if this was on an “interim” basis. However, as holder of a seat on the Loss and Damage Fund board, the UK now has the opportunity to advocate in favour of the SIDS’ position in decisions over how finance will be disbursed.

Now that the agreement is in place, the UK Government should use its seat on the Loss and Damage Fund board to advocate that the Fund disburses its funding in the form of grants.

The Committee welcomes the Government’s £60 million pledge to the UNFCCC’s Loss and Damage Fund, but is disappointed that this is drawn from previously announced commitments. The Committee understands the Minister’s contention that wider funding streams are needed, but until these are agreed upon, it befalls to donors such as the UK, who have historically been responsible for higher emissions, to plenish the Fund.

The UK Government should pledge new and additional funding to the Loss and Damage Fund. (Paragraph 45) Legal implications of sea level rise

The issues of legal statehood and maritime zone continuity provide the UK Government with an opportunity to exercise international leadership in supporting SIDS to address an existential threat.

In the light of the ILC’s impending report on the topic, the UK Government should commit to working with like-minded states to explore ways of (i) formally recognising the continuity of Small Island Developing States’ legal statehood, should all their The UK Small Island Developing States Strategy 43 inhabitable land disappear due to sea-level rise and (ii) recognising countries’ legal maritime zone boundaries as fixed, even if their coastlines retreat due to sea level rise. (Paragraph 49) Capacity building

This Committee acknowledges and welcomes the UK Government’s efforts to ensure that its capacity-building programmes in Small Island Developing States are driven by local needs. However, these efforts can be undermined by short-term funding horizons.

In its partnerships with SIDS, the Government should therefore commit to making multi-year funded programmes the norm.

We commend the UK’s active support for SIDS’ collective action and international advocacy. However, SIDS’ inter-regional co-operation remains underdeveloped and under-resourced.

The Government should consider providing a small amount of direct funding annually to the Alliance of Small Island States Secretariat to support its work of amplifying SIDS’ collective voice in international fora. The 4th SIDS Conference in May presents the ideal forum at which to announce this. (Paragraph 61) Gender

Given the disproportionate impact of SIDS’ environmental and economic challenges on women and girls, it was disappointing to see no explicit mention of gender in the UK SIDS Strategy.

In its approach to SIDS, the FCDO should ensure that the gendered impacts of SIDS’ environmental and developmental challenges are identified and addressed, and that UK support for SIDS is designed and implemented in a way that considers the impact of any interventions on women and girls. It should: (Paragraph 69) a) ensure that the FCDO’s bilateral aid programmes with SIDS, as well as centrally managed programmes, are on track to meet the commitment, outlined in the White Paper, that 80% of bilateral aid programmes have a focus on gender by 2030; b) support SIDS in collecting gender-disaggregated data to map the differential impact of development challenges and policy interventions on women and girls; c) make the promotion of gender equality an explicit, discrete investment criterion of the Blue Planet Fund. 44 The UK Small Island Developing States Strategy Oceans

Given that the UK SIDS Strategy sets out “Ocean and Biodiversity” as an area of focus, it is concerning that the Government has ostensibly deprioritised the ratification of the Global Ocean Treaty by failing to designate the Parliamentary time necessary to pass the prerequisite legislation in this Parliament.

The Government should prioritise the laying before Parliament of the primary legislation necessary for ratifying the Global Ocean Treaty before the next election. (Paragraph 75) Wider Climate Leadership

This Committee is concerned that the UK Government’s domestic policies are making it difficult for the UK to be seen as a serious partner to SIDS—the countries likely to be hit hardest by a failure of the international community to meet the agreed target to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

This Committee urges the Government to implement the next steps on domestic opportunities for climate leadership outlined in the Climate Change Committee’s January 2024 Briefing Note. (Paragraph 80) The UK Small Island Developing States Strategy 45