20 December 2018: Preparations for the midterm review of the SIDS Accelerated Modalities of Action (SAMOA) Pathway in September 2019 are underway at the global and regional levels. The UN General Assembly (UNGA) has requested the UNGA President to finalize organizational arrangements for the review, and to encourage governments and the UN system to attend the review at the highest possible level. The UN has issued a set of Criteria and Norms for partnerships for SIDS.

The SAMOA Pathway is the outcome of the Third International Conference on SIDS, which took place in Apia, Samoa from 1-4 September 2014. The document covers the period 2015-2025, and promotes international assistance to address challenges faced by small islands.

During its 71st session in 2016, the UNGA decided (resolution A/RES/71/225) to convene a one-day high level review of progress made in addressing SIDS’ priorities through the implementation of the SAMOA Pathway. The UNGA also decided that the high-level review would result in “a concise, action-oriented and intergovernmentally agreed political declaration.” The review meeting is scheduled to take place on 27 September 2019, at UN Headquarters in New York, US.

In a resolution adopted in December 2017 (A/RES/72/217), the UNGA decided to convene, in 2018, a series of SIDS regional preparatory meetings and an interregional meeting for all SIDS, in order to undertake a review of progress in the implementation of the Samoa Pathway at national and regional levels. Consequently, a series of regional preparatory meetings took place in Mauritius, Tonga and Belize in May, June and August 2018, respectively, culminating in the Inter-regional Preparatory Meeting, which convened from 30 October to 1 November 2018, in Apia, Samoa. The Apia Outcome adopted at the meeting reaffirms the SAMOA Pathway as the overarching framework for guiding SIDS in their global, regional and national development efforts, and as an integral part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It is expected to serve as a basis for the midterm review.

On 20 December 2018, the UNGA adopted another resolution (A/RES/73/228) on follow-up to and implementation of the SAMOA Pathway and the Mauritius Strategy for the Further Implementation of the Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of SIDS. By that text, the UNGA:

• Welcomes the establishment of the network of SIDS national focal points, which is “aimed at providing a vital link between the global, regional, and national levels to facilitate coordination, information sharing and planning on the implementation of the SAMOA Pathway” and the SDGs, and its inaugural meeting of SIDS national focal points of 29 October 2018; and
• Reiterates its request that the UN Secretary-General submit a report on the follow-up to and implementation of the Samoa Pathway, making it available, on an exceptional basis, in early 2019, so it can support the intergovernmental consultations and be considered by the UNGA at its 74th session.

Also in preparation for the midterm review, the UN has made available a document comprising a series of SIDS Partnership Criteria and Norms to strengthen the monitoring and review of partnerships for SIDS. According to the document, a genuine and durable partnership for SIDS is one that is in line with the following SIDS Partnership SMART criteria: SIDS-specific; measurable and monitorable; achievable and accountable; resource-based and results-focused; and that sets a timeline for implementation and ensures transparency by all parties. According to this summary, the Criteria and Norms result from the series of regional partnership dialogues that took place on the margins of the midterm review preparatory meetings to advance the SAMOA Pathway and the 2030 Agenda in SIDS by increasing stakeholder capacity in forging multi-stakeholder partnerships. The norms and criteria were developed by the co-chairs of the Steering Committee on Partnership for SIDS, Belize and Ireland, stemming from the discussions held during the regional partnership dialogues.

In other SIDS news, the following countries will conduct voluntary national reviews (VNRs) for the first time in 2019: Fiji, Mauritius, Nauru, Palau, Saint Lucia, Timor-Leste, Tonga and Vanuatu. The VNRs were called for by the 2030 Agenda to facilitate the sharing of national experiences, including successes, challenges and lessons learned, with a view to accelerating the implementation of the SDGs. These reviews are presented yearly by a number of countries at the UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) held under the auspices of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). [High-Level Midterm Review Website]