“Integrated resilience” across the Pacific is a key strategy to combat the region’s challenges, the Pacific Islands Forum leaders meeting has concluded.
In its communique issued as the week-long gathering ended on Aug. 30, the 18 member states highlighted climate change and environmental degradation as posing grave risks.
“Leaders ... emphasised the importance of solidarity in the face of many challenges and opportunities before the region, including economic growth, sustainable development, resource management and partnerships,” the document states.
The group also recognised the importance of the Forum and its “critical role to bolster regional development and regional cooperation.”
Specific issues included the need for economic growth, innovation, and technology and “continued health and education challenges.” Currently, 62 percent of the region’s critical health facilities are within 500 metres of a coastline.
To transition away from this, the Forum has developed a plan for what it calls the Climate Resilient and Environmentally Sustainable Health Care Facilities (CRESHCF) and called on the international community to provide more finance to support the program.
Health is also affected by the ongoing health workforce crisis, uneven distribution of staff across the islands, and loss of skilled professionals to areas outside the Pacific.
Disaster Resilience Fund
They also restated their commitment to the Pacific Resilience Facility as the first Pacific-led, member-owned and managed, and people-centred climate and disaster resilience financing facility.In his opening address to the Forum, U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres announced support for the capitalisation of the Facility, which has an initial financing target of US$500 million by Jan. 1, 2026, and a longer-term goal of US$1.5 billion.
The United States, China, Saudi Arabia, and Australia have all contributed to this fund, and the communique says the leaders are urging other dialogue partners to make contributions so the fund can meet its targets.
In reference to the geopolitical issues faced by Pacific countries as Western allies seek to contain Beijing’s influence in the region, the communique says, “Leaders reaffirmed the strength of collective efforts, despite the varying perspectives and further emphasised the need to be flexible in adapting with the evolving strategic environments.”
The decision to accede to Beijing’s demands to remove mention of Taiwan from the document but not to remove the “development partner” status from the country itself is one such example of this approach.
Geopolitical Issues
They also endorsed the terms of reference for a new “Troika-plus” mission to New Caledonia after that country’s president and France’s ambassador to the region reached an agreement.It comes after months of unrest in the country that was triggered by a proposal to change electoral laws and allow long-term residents, mostly French and European migrants, to vote. Indigenous Kanaks felt this would dilute their rights.
Tonga Prime Minister Siaosi Sovaleni said the visiting mission had two main objectives.
“To gather information to better understand the situation in New Caledonia, including interviews and field visits with all stakeholders relevant to the resolution of the crisis,” he told reporters.
“Second, to support the ongoing efforts by the state and the government of New Caledonia to call for peace and stability, a de-escalation of ongoing violence and promotion of dialogue between the parties.”
The delegation—consisting of leaders from the Cooks Islands, Solomon Islands, Tonga, and Fiji—would also report back with recommendations to forum leaders, he said.
It has failed, however, to advance its call—made since 2019—for Indonesia to allow a U.N. human rights mission to visit West Papua, which it controls. This year’s communique only briefly mentioned the issue, merely noting previous discussions.
Applications by Guam and American Samoa for associate member status were endorsed, but on the understanding that a review of the Forum’s structure was ongoing.
Some of the strongest language in the communique referred to the closing of overseas bank operations in the Pacific.
The leaders expressed “grave concerns” about the negative socioeconomic impacts of de-banking, which threatens the ability of Pacific Islanders to receive much-needed remittances sent by family working and living in other countries.
This year’s forum drew a record number of attendees, including the largest-ever delegation from Beijing and the U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell, underscoring heightened geopolitical interest in the region, despite being home to some of the smallest and most remote nations in the world.
