Pacific Leaders Unite to Launch Groundbreaking Climate Fund

Pacific leaders convened during the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) to formally launch a memorandum aimed at attracting investors to the Pacific Resilience Facility (PRF). This initiative stands as the first Pacific-led, owned, and managed regional climate financing facility, designed specifically to support local communities in their efforts to combat climate change. The memorandum was signed at the 54th Pacific Islands Forum Leaders summit held in Honiara.

As part of this collaborative effort, Ireland announced a significant contribution of €3 million to the PRF, shortly before the upcoming PRF talanoa in New York. Additionally, Portugal pledged €1 million, while the UNGA President, Annalena Baerbock, confirmed Germany’s commitment of €5 million, initially promised at COP29. These contributions bring the total pledges to an impressive US$166 million.

Regional Commitment and Next Steps

In terms of regional participation, Nauru has officially deposited its instrument of ratification, becoming the second country to do so after Tonga, the host of the PRF. The treaty is expected to come into force in early 2026. Finau Soqo, General Manager of the PRF, informed RNZ Pacific that the next critical step involves ratifying the treaty and completing the programming co-design consultation, with a proposed launch set for Palau next year.

Simultaneously, the United Nations marked the 30th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration, which advocates for gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls globally. During a high-level meeting commemorating this milestone, Hilda Heine, President of the Marshall Islands, emphasized the slow progress in achieving gender equality across the Pacific region. “We are not moving fast enough with island-tailored strategies in a nation where one out of two women experience violence,” she stated, calling for stronger core efforts to address these issues.

Advocacy for Women’s Health and Leadership

Heine stressed the necessity of prioritizing women’s health, particularly through initiatives like mass cervical cancer screening and prevention. She highlighted the long-lasting impacts of the nuclear legacy in the region, including health challenges related to cancers and reproductive health. “The unseen weight of caregiving” further complicates the situation, she noted.

Ruth Cross Kwansing, Kiribati’s Minister for Women, echoed the importance of gender equality as a fundamental Pacific value. She expressed her nation’s commitment to the Beijing Declaration, advocating for collaboration to achieve global gender parity. “As one blue Pacific continent, we stand united in strength and diversity, championing gender equality and social inclusion as core values of our shared identity,” she stated.

Kwansing represents one of just five women parliamentarians in Kiribati, acknowledging that while achieving 10 percent representation is progress, more must be done. “All gains are a testament to the determination of Pacific women and a changing narrative that recognizes women not just as contributors, but as key to the Pacific’s evolution and progress,” she concluded.

The discussions and commitments made during the UNGA reflect a growing recognition of the intertwined challenges of climate change and gender inequality in the Pacific region, signaling a hopeful path forward for both initiatives.