The UK Government has announced that the British High Commission (BHC) in Suva, Fiji have formed a partnership to deliver climate finance projects in Pacific Island countries.
The two-year partnership aims to drive sustainable finance initiatives in Pacific economies to promote decarbonisation, reduce poverty, and tackle the effects of climate change.
The main commitments of the plan are to empower institutional capabilities by appointing climate finance experts within governmental roles who will drive sustainable projects, and conduct strategic feasibility studies to gain more knowledge to pursue sustainable development.
If the partnership proves successful, the second phase will have the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) oversee investment, supported by the UK’s Small Island Developing States Capacity and Resilience Programme. Can you add what the GGGI is here? Just a sentence or two.
British High Commissioner, Dr. Brian Jones, comments: “The UK has nothing to teach the Pacific about resilience, but we have experience of working with large-scale global finance and have heard from Pacific partners that support and advice to access climate funding, absorb and implement it, is critical to progress in this area. We are excited to work through GGGI to offer technical expertise directly to Government institutions, to build sustainable capability to spend climate finance available here in the Pacific.”
Pacific regional director at GGGI, Katerina Syngellakis, states: “This collaborative programme builds on GGGIs experience in the region supporting Pacific Member States in accessing climate finance as partners embedded within government institutions. We are enthusiastic to be partnering with the UK to continue to advocate for and build capacity for climate finance for the Pacific.”
Laimonas Noreika, co-founder of HeavyFinance, adds: “It's great to see the UK's unwavering commitment to fostering positive change on a global scale. Such a partnership exemplifies the kind of proactive and collaborative action the world needs to address the urgent challenges of climate change. By strengthening access to funding and promoting sustainable projects, this initiative is not only enhancing the resilience of Pacific nations, but also sets a powerful example for international cooperation.”