Introduction and Background
Vanuatu’s engagement with the United Nations (UN) Rio Conventions1 is a strategic commitment to shape global rules, secure finance and technology, and build partnerships that advance national resilience and sustainable development.

1. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) sets an overall framework for intergovernmental efforts to tackle the challenge posed by climate change. Its objectives are to stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous human interference with the climate system, within a time-frame sufficient to allow ecosystems to adapt naturally to climate change.

2. The United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (UNCBD) focuses on the conservation of biological diversity, its sustainable use, and the fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising from commercial and other utilization of genetic resources. The Convention also covers biotechnology, and all possible domains that are directly or indirectly related to biodiversity and its role in development, ranging from science, politics and education to agriculture, business and culture.

3. The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) aims to combat desertification and mitigate the effects of drought in countries experiencing serious drought and/or desertification, particularly in Africa, through effective actions at all levels. These are supported by international cooperation and partnership arrangements, with a view to contributing to sustainable development in the affected areas.
Vanuatu is Party to all three conventions,2 having signed the UNFCCC in June 1992 (ratified March 1993), the UNCBD in June 1992 (ratified March 1993), and the UNCCD in September 1995 (ratified Aug 1999). Vanuatu coordinateness with other Small Island Developing States (SIDS) through the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) and other negotiating groups to amplify a common Pacific voice across priorities such as finance, capacity building, transparency, technology and gender