PRE-COP31 | Pacific Resilience Facility Epitomises Pacific Ownership, Agency and Leadership

Minister for Foreign Affairs and External Trade, Honourable Sakiasi Ditoka, has reaffirmed Fiji’s strong support for the Pacific Resilience Facility (PRF), describing it as a bold expression of Pacific ownership, agency and collective leadership in responding to the region’s climate and resilience challenges.

Speaking at the PRF Community Talanoa Side Event in Nadi this morning, Minister Ditoka said the establishment of the PRF represented a significant step by Pacific leaders to develop a response shaped by Pacific priorities.

“The Pacific Resilience Facility puts communities in the driving seat, because they know their own challenges and their own solutions.”

Minister Ditoka acknowledged the leadership of Pacific Islands Forum Leaders and Pacific Islands Forum in advancing the Facility, as well as the contribution of governments, development partners, civil society organisations, NGOs and Pacific communities.

He said the PRF had emerged at a critical time, as Pacific communities confronted increasingly severe climate impacts, including droughts and extreme weather events threatening food security and livelihoods.

The Pacific’s experience, he stressed, highlighted the urgent need to remain within the 1.5°C pathway, with the impacts of climate change already being felt directly by local communities.

The PRF demonstrates that Pacific countries were taking greater ownership of their resilience priorities and solutions. He emphasised that Pacific ownership did not mean working in isolation, but building meaningful partnerships around Pacific priorities and leadership.

Minister Ditoka also stressed the importance of ensuring that the Facility was sufficiently agile to respond to urgent community needs.

“We intend to grow it into a reliable and predictable source of funding. And we have stressed that agility is essential: we must be able to deploy water-storage tanks at scale, well before the rains stop.”

Fiji, he said, would continue to support the PRF as a practical expression of Pacific agency and collective action.

“Fiji fully supports this Pacific-owned, Pacific-led response. Through the PRF, we will rebuild and strengthen resilience. Lets maintain the momentum and commitment.”