Save mountains to lead sustainable development

We cannot fail in protecting and ensuring the sustainable development of mountains, said Rene Castro, FAO Assistant Director-General, during the “Leading Sustainable Mountain Development” side-event at the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF) on 16 July 2018 in New York.

Organized by the Permanent Mission of Andorra and in partnership with FAO, the Mountain Partnership, UNDP and the Permanent Missions of Argentina, Chile, Italy and Switzerland, the event focused on advocating for policies and actions in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda at the country level and building a coalition of key mountain governments within the Mountain Partnership. It looked at ways to increase the visibility of mountain issues in the national processes for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda, considering the vulnerability of mountain ecosystems and mountain people – 1 out of 3 of whom are food insecure.

Delivering opening remarks, Silvia Calvó Armengol, Minister of Environment, Agriculture and Sustainability of Andorra, stressed the importance of mountains for sustainable development in general and for Andorra, and highlighted in the VNR presented at the HLPF.

Castro noted that one out of every three mountain dwellers is at risk of food insecurity. He urged the importance of advocating for pro-mountain policies and building a coalition that can increase the visibility of mountains in the 2030 Agenda.

Grammenos Mastrojeni, Chair of the Mountain Partnership Steering Committee, highlighted that financing sustainable mountain development was not a cost but an investment that had to be made.

Alejandro Verdier, Deputy Permanent Representative of Argentina to the United Nations, presented the Andean Mountain Initiative to regionally implement global commitments.

Jorge Iglesias, Deputy Permanent Representative of Chile to the United Nations, recalled the vulnerability of mountain ecosystems and highlighted that that vulnerability affects mountain and non-mountain populations, as healthy mountains are critical for water, biodiversity and the provision of ecosystems services.

Christoph I. Lang, Adviser at the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, highlighted that it was crucial to promote sustainable agriculture to ensure sustainable mountain development.

Giorgio Grussu from the Mountain Partnership Secretariat explained how the Collect Earth tool resulting of a FAO / Google partnership was being used to gather date in support of SDG target 15.4.2 Mountain Gren Cover Index.

Yoko Watanabe from the UNDP Global Environment Facility (GEF) Small Grant Programme (SGP) stressed the importance of involving local communities in identifying priorities for investments in mountain areas and implementing actions.

The Mountain Partnership is a United Nations voluntary alliance of governments, intergovernmental organizations, civil society and the private sector. It currently has 335 members including FAO.