Fiji attends the historical signing ceremony of the joint declaration between the commonwealth and United Nations Office for outer space affairs

The Fiji High Commission in London joined the fellow Commonwealth member states in witnessing the historical signing of the Joint Declaration between the Commonwealth Secretariat and the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA), held at the Commonwealth Secretariat headquarters, Marlborough House in London – United Kingdom.

The event symbolised the shared vision for the future, where Space provides various fundamental services, particularly Science and Data-based solutions. It reinforced the reality of the challenge of Climate Change, highlighting the significance of Accurate and Timely data.

Fiji expressed gratitude for being one of the Commonwealth member states where this work was piloted and was later supported by the Solomon Island and Vanuatu. This again demonstrated the importance of such tools for developing states, especially the vulnerable small states. This included geo-spatial data, earth observation and initial work.

The Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, Shirley Botchwey highlighted that the event was more of a practical and powerful statement of intent, and the Commonwealth plays a fundamental role in this undertaking; providing already made platform for data and information exchange. She further highlighted that Climate change, Food Security and climate threats have triggered the importance of space technology, particularly for the provision and availability of real time and accurate data.

The UNOOSA Director Ms. Aarti Holla-Maini highlighted the importance of space solutions, stating that the technical tools and diplomatic skills are important attributes offered by Commonwealth Secretariat and UNOOSA. She emphasised the Commonwealth and UNOOSA have the absolute advantage of a Convening Power – including disaster preparedness and space law, and that such critical partnership will lead the provision of technical support for Space Law, Earth observation and the provision of space image.

A panel discussion at the launch looked at the importance of Remote sensing, Earth observation and geo spatial technologies for early warning and in ensuring that tools are accessible to all.

Fiji emphasised the importance of connectivity and the critical roles of human capital, as source of capacity to make decision through the information available. This momentous event signifies the importance of the Global village that we are in, and the multiple crisis faced, underpinning the role that Space Technology plays in addressing these issues.