Excellencies,
Distinguished participants,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I would like to thank the International Atomic Energy Agency for inviting me to address the Second International Conference on Climate Change and the Role of Nuclear Power.
With only seven years left to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, we are in danger of breaking the promise of the 2030 Agenda.
Only 15 per cent of the assessable SDG targets are on track. At the same time, the climate crisis is spiraling out of control.
If the current trends continue, we will overshoot the 1.5 degree Celsius tipping point by 2035.
But there is hope. Just last month, at the SDG Summit and the Climate Ambition Summit, world leaders demonstrated their resolve to accelerate action and fast track a much-needed rescue plan for people and planet. They committed to bold, ambitious, accelerated, just and transformative actions aimed at effecting a systemic shift that supports a better, greener, fairer future for everyone everywhere.
Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Nuclear energy holds the potential to play a significant part in realizing this vision.
Nuclear power contributes to emissions reduction today, and can do more in the future, especially when compared with gas or coal alternatives.
Nuclear technology also benefits a multitude of sectors. It helps in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer and other major diseases, prevents food from spoiling and creates new crop varieties.
Whether this contribution expands into the future will, however, depend on how countries evaluate nuclear power technologies against the rapidly growing renewables and other clean alternatives in shaping the energy transition.
A comprehensive assessment of the long-term management of nuclear waste and nuclear safety, as well as the cost competitiveness of nuclear power, will also be critical.
IAEA’s continued leadership will be crucial in informing a just, inclusive and equitable energy transition.
As the Secretariat of UN-Energy, the Department of Economic and Social Affairs is committed to strengthening its cooperation with all UN-Energy members, including IAEA.
Let us together chart the way towards a sustainable and equitable world for us and for future generations.
Thank you!