Fiji’s Permanent Secretary for Environment and Climate Change, Dr Sivendra Michael, has called for a fundamental shift in how climate finance is accessed by Pacific nations, arguing that current international models are failing the region.
Speaking at the Pacific Resilience Facility (PRF) side event on Thursday, Dr Michael emphasied the need for direct and simplified access to climate funding to meet the urgent needs of Pacific communities.
“The current international climate finance modalities are, in many cases, not fit for purpose for Fiji’s context and needs,” Dr Michael said.
“Accessing funds from international financial institutions involves significant administrative burdens and lengthy processes that put a strain on our human resources and institutional capacity.”
Dr Michael expressed strong support for the PRF, a Pacific-led, owned, and managed initiative recently endorsed to be headquartered in Tonga.
“We recognise the urgent need for this facility for our Pacific communities and are fully supportive of the PRF.
“We need to see ourselves in the PRF because it is our community-centred facility,” he said.
The PRF, designed to provide climate resilience funding directly to Pacific communities, aims to cut through the red tape that often hampers the delivery of crucial financial resources.
Dr Michael pointed out that much of the climate financing allocated to Fiji is currently consumed by third-party management fees due to the administrative challenges small government administrations face.
“Direct access to financing that entrusts the chosen implementers with the authority to manage development funds is increasingly important to ensure government systems can deliver climate action outcomes without dependency on temporary third-party support,” he said.
Dr Michael emphasised the PRF’s role as the first regionally owned international organisation specifically designed to address these challenges.
“The PRF in its design will aim to simplify access to climate finance,” he said “This is transformative resilience in action.”
He also highlighted the limitations of traditional project design models, which he described as “too rigid and linear” to respond effectively to the ongoing and evolving impacts of climate change.
“We must co-design PRF programming so that it is culturally and locally contextualised; this is the only way to achieve truly sustainable resilience,” he added.
With the PRF set to begin grant distribution by 2026, Dr Michael called for ambitious scaling up of the fund to match the region’s urgent needs.
“A recent United Nations report notes that the climate adaptation financing needs in the region are around US$230 million annually. To generate that amount, the PRF will have to be a US$4 billion fund. That is the scaling up we need to match our level of ambition and our actual needs,” he emphasised.
Dr Michael referenced the target set by Pacific leaders of US$1.5 billion for a 1.5c temperature increase, highlighting the need for significant contributions from development partners.
“We echo the call from the Prime Minister of Cook Islands that our aspirations should be big, given the need in the region,” he said.
“The 1.5 billion for a 1.5C increase is compelling and would provide much-needed funding for the PRF and our communities.”
He welcomed recent pledges totaling US$137 million, including US$20 million from the United States and AUD$1 million from Nauru, and acknowledged support from partners like Australia, Saudi Arabia, China, and the United Kingdom.
“We are pleased that the UN Secretary-General is supportive and will help facilitate a fundraising and pledging event on the margins of the United Nations General Assembly,” he added.
Dr Michael praised the decision by Pacific leaders to establish the PRF as a testament to their commitment to transformative resilience.
“The road to establishing the PRF hasn’t been easy; doing anything new and different never is,” he said.
“But this facility represents a new way of development cooperation globally, one based on trust and respect.”
He urged all stakeholders, including governments, communities, civil society, and the private sector, to collaborate on building a resilient future.
“We sincerely look forward to the collaboration between our Forum Member Governments, the Kingdom of Tonga, our development and funding partners, our youth and communities, our private sector, and our stakeholders, to successfully establish the PRF,” he said.
