By Pita Ligaiula in Koror, Palau
Pacific Islands Forum leaders are expected to decide next week where partners will sit within the Forum’s regional architecture, with new guidelines potentially setting rules for access, privileges and the graduation of partners.
Forum Deputy Secretary-General Esala Nayasi said the decision on the placement of partners would be considered at the 55th Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting in Palau, with implementation expected to begin next year.
“On the second issue, the decision this year will be on the placement of partners,” Nayasi told Pacific journalists in Palau.
He said the decision would be followed by the development of governance guidelines covering how partners engage with the Forum.
“There is an expectation that following this decision, they will also have the governance guide, and that would mean the formulation of guidelines for partners in relation to access, privileges, and also graduation, where appropriate,” he said.
Nayasi said the work on the guidelines was expected to be completed next year.
“So we expect that work to be completed next year,” he said.
He said implementation of the new arrangements for strategic partners could also begin next year, depending on the decisions taken by leaders.
“But out of the decisions that leaders will make here, the implementation of it in terms of strategic partners, if all goes well, based on expectations that we have, then the implementation will start next year,” Nayasi said.
Nayasi also clarified the position of civil society and the private sector within the Forum’s regional architecture.
He said they were not considered external partners but were part of the Forum’s wider regional system.
“In relation to civil society, we don’t regard civil society as partners, just like the private sector.
“They are part of us, they are part of the original system, so to speak. That is why they always have a different dialogue session with our leaders, aside from the Forum dialogue,” he said.
Nayasi said civil society and the private sector would continue to engage with Leaders during the Forum Leaders Meeting.
“And you’ll see that this year as well,” he said.
He said their place within the regional architecture would be among the issues discussed by leaders and considered as part of the review of the regional architecture.
“Where do we see them within the architecture? That is part of the issues that we’ll be discussing next week, and also will be taken forward to next year, with the implementation of the review of the regional architecture process and decisions,” Nayasi said.
He said civil society and the private sector were regarded as stakeholders and needed to be included in regional policy development.
“So we always see private sector and civil society as part of us, rather than partners, so we are regarded as stakeholders,” he said.
Nayasi said their involvement was important to ensure regional policies were linked to national priorities and communities.
“These are issues that we also need to look at in terms of their place within the regional architecture, to ensure that any work that we do, any policies that we write, it has to be inclusive,” he said.
“And that would mean that civil society will play an important role in aligning and linking policies to the national and also to our communities.”
The partnership review is part of the wider work to strengthen the Forum’s regional architecture and determine how external partners engage with the Pacific region.
