June 2014: UN Member States identified six clusters of priority for the multi-stakeholder partnership dialogues (Partnership Dialogues) that will take place as part of the Third International Conference on Small Island Developing States (SIDS). The conference will take place from 1-4 September 2014, in Apia, Samoa, under the overarching theme, ‘The Sustainable Development of SIDS through Genuine and Durable Partnerships.’

The Partnership Dialogues will serve as a forum to build on existing partnerships and to launch new ones to advance the sustainable development of SIDS. The six clusters of priority areas that the dialogues will address are: Sustainable Economic Development; Climate Change and Disaster Risk Management; Social Development in SIDS, Health and Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs), Youth and Women; Sustainable Energy; Oceans, Seas and Biodiversity; Water and Sanitation, Food Security and Waste Management.

The Division for Sustainable Development (DSD) of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs Division (UN-DESA) prepared the SIDS 2014 Partnerships Briefs in consultation with the UN System through the Executive Committee on Economic and Social Affairs. In its preparation of the brief, DESA: reviewed key priorities related to SIDS in the selected priority area; reviewed existing north-south, south-south and triangular partnerships in the selected priority area; and identified gaps in the priority area. [SIDS Conference Website]