Vice President Hussain Mohamed Latheef has urged the international community to deliver predictable adaptation funding, solid legal protections, and long-term policy integration to confront the growing threat of sea level rise. Delivering the national statement at the High-Level Plenary Meeting on Addressing the Existential Threats Posed by Sea Level Rise during the 81st Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA 81), Vice President Latheef declared that vulnerable island nations cannot resort to retreat and must instead focus on building robust climate resilience.
Recalling that the Maldives first alerted the UN General Assembly to this danger nearly forty years ago leading to the historic 1989 Malé Declaration—the Vice President noted that early warnings have now turned into immediate existential threats to infrastructure, livelihoods, and island economies across Small Island Developing States (SIDS). To effectively counter these impacts, he outlined three critical priority areas requiring urgent global intervention.
First, Vice President Latheef emphasized that adaptation financing for SIDS must be significantly scaled up to be accessible, predictable, grant-based, and concessional. He stressed that financial support must reach vulnerable nations early enough to mitigate risks before disasters strike, while also advocating for a dedicated international tracking mechanism to accurately monitor sea level rise over time.
Second, addressing international legal protections, he asserted that rising sea levels must not undermine established maritime boundaries, lawful baselines, or state entitlements. Regardless of physical geographical changes caused by coastal erosion or land submergence, a nation’s legal identity, sovereignty, and United Nations membership must remain permanently protected under international law.
Finally, the Vice President called for resilience to be embedded directly into core national policies, public infrastructure planning, and long-term economic strategies. He highlighted that the Maldives is already implementing these measures through its updated Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), urging bilateral and multilateral partners to back these efforts. Concluding his address, Vice President Latheef called on global leaders to translate international commitments into concrete action to secure the future of low-lying island states.
