Small Island Developing States

Small Island Developing States (SIDS) are low-lying coastal countries. They share similar problems because of their size. Some of these problems are: small but growing populations, limited resources, and long distances from other countries.

A map of the Small Island Developing States.

The SIDS were first seen as a distinct group of developing countries at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in June 1992. The Barbados Programme of Action was made in 1994 to help the SIDS to develop.

List of SIDS

Currently, the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs lists 44 small island developing states. These are broken down into three geographic regions: the Caribbean; the Pacific; and Africa, Indian Ocean, Mediterranean and South China Sea (AIMS). Each of these regions has a regional organisation for cooperation: the Caribbean Community, the Pacific Islands Forum and the Indian Ocean Commission.

• Caribbean

1. Anguilla
2. Antigua and Barbuda
3. Aruba
4. Bahamas
5. Barbados
6. British Virgin Islands
7. Dominica
8. Grenada
9. Montserrat
10. Netherlands Antilles
11. Puerto Rico
12. Saint Kitts and Nevis
13. Saint Lucia
14. Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
15. Trinidad and Tobago
16. United States Virgin Islands

• Pacific

1. American Samoa
2. Cook Islands
3. Fiji
4. French Polynesia
5. Guam
6. Kiribati
7. Marshall Islands
8. Micronesia
9. Nauru
10. New Caledonia
11. Niue
12. Northern Mariana Islands
13. Palau
14. Samoa
15. Solomon Islands
16. Tonga
17. Tuvalu
18. Vanuatu

• Africa Indian Ocean Mediterranean South China Sea (AIMS)

1. Bahrain
2. Brunei Darussalam
3. Cabo Verde
4. Comoros
5. Maldives
6. Mauritius
7. Monaco
8. São Tomé and Príncipe
9. Seychelles
10. Singapore

Other websites

• About SIDS, United Nations Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States Archived 2013-01-31 at the Wayback Machine
• AOSIS Members, Alliance of Small Island States Archived 2008-09-24 at the Wayback Machine
• SIDS Network Small Islands Development States Network Archived 2013-02-14 at the Wayback Machine