PRE-COP31: Fiji Takes Centre Stage as Pacific Unites for Climate Action

Fiji takes centre stage in global climate discussions this week as Pacific leaders, ministers and international partners gather for the Pacific Pre-COP31, bringing the priorities and collective voice of the Pacific directly into the global climate agenda.

Ahead of the high-level discussions, Pacific solidarity and shared purpose was reflected yesterday at an Ecumenical Sunday Service in Nadi, where regional leaders, delegates and stakeholders came together in faith and unity for the important week ahead.

Organised by the Pacific Conference of Churches, the service provided a powerful Pacific opening to Pre-COP31 — bringing participants together around a common commitment to ensure that the voices and lived experiences of Pacific communities remain at the heart of international climate action ahead of COP31 in Antalya, Türkiye.

In his address at the church service, Prime Minister Honourable Sitiveni Rabuka highlighted the significance of the Pacific Pre-COP31 and the opportunity it provides for the region to speak collectively on the climate challenges confronting Pacific peoples.

“So, this week, I ask the leaders who come to our shores to do three things. We ask them to, come, see, and listen with an open heart to those on the front line. We ask them to come ready to accelerate and deliver the effort needed to keep our promise – to honour our shared moral and legal obligation, to limit global average temperature rise to 1.5 degrees.

“Every fraction of a degree of human-driven warming moves us beyond the balance set by God’s creation, and inflicts further harm on homes, villages, and livelihoods. We ask them to come with the courage to face down the fossil fuel addictions and greed that continue to fuel this crisis, for we cannot in good faith allow it to unfold and grow any further,” Prime Minister Rabuka said.

As Pre-COP31 begins today in Fiji, and with the world’s attention turning to the Pacific, this historic climate conference provides a timely opportunity to demonstrate Pacific leadership, elevate regional priorities and ensure that the experiences of communities on the frontline of climate change inform global decisions.

The Leaders’ events in Tuvalu and Fiji on 5 and 6 October will bring global decision-makers directly to the Pacific, providing a high-level bridge to the formal ministerial discussions.

This will be followed by the Ministerial Pre-COP in Fiji on 7 and 8 October, where discussions will focus on key political and negotiating issues to be advanced ahead of COP31.