Thorig: SIDS DOCK will enable strong partnerships around renewable energy

Minister of Environment and Energy Thorig Ibrahim has said that Small Island Developing State (SIDS) DOCK will serve as an enabling platform to develop strong partnerships around renewable energy with other governments, non-profit organizations and the private sector.

The minister made this remark in his statement at the SIDS DICK Launch Event in the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), on 30 September 2015.

Thorig said that Maldives is proud to be in the first group of signatories to the Memorandum of Agreement on establishing SIDS DOCK back in 2009, and continues to envision the organization as a central part of the answer for SIDS in addressing energy needs, and realizing the fervent commitment to sustainable development.

“Like many of our fellow SIDS, we are highly reliant on imported petroleum products to supply our energy needs due to our remote location. The high cost burden of these fossil fuels, due to the current oil price fluctuations and high transportation costs, contributes to the Maldives’ vulnerability and runs counter to our desire to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions. As such, the Maldives looks forward to SIDS DOCK enabling a transition towards a low carbon future for island states, and further heralding a global transition,” he said.

He also announced that the Maldives already has a project underway spearheaded through SIDS DOCK focused on off-grid electrification.

Reiterating Maldives’ commitment to SIDS DIÒCK, Thorig said, “By speaking with a clear voice on issues of climate change and particularly sustainable development, SIDS have been able to be heard despite our small size. This first formalized institution for SIDS is a promising first step to legitimize our concerns and position within the United Nations, and harness public and private investment to realize not only our newly agreed Sustainable Development Goals, but a truly sustainable future in the Maldives and all SIDS.”

SIDS DOCK is an initiative among member countries of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) to provide SIDS with a collective institutional mechanism to assist them transform their national energy sectors into a catalyst for sustainable economic development, and help generate financial resources to address adaptation to climate change.