The UK is providing targeted funding and expertise to support
Pacific-led climate action, Indo-Pacific Minister will tell a meeting of
regional leaders in Tonga later this week.
Minister West's first overseas travel saw her arrive in New
Zealand Sunday (25 August) for discussions focused on climate,
defence and trade before travelling to Nuku'alofa on Tuesday 27
August to attend a meeting of the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF).
Ahead of the meeting, Minister West said:
The Government is seeking to reconnect the UK with partners
around the world and to return to the forefront of international
climate action.
The climate crisis needs global, long-term action – but we must
also take rapid steps to support countries on the frontline, like
our partners in the Pacific.
That is why the UK is supporting Pacific-led action to equip
vulnerable communities facing the impacts of climate change with
£12.9m in new funding.
The programmes being announced are:
- Technical support worth £1.3 million to establish a new
Pacific Resilience Facility, a regionally-governed investment
fund through which countries will be able to access long-term,
reliable climate finance;
- £5 million further funding for the UK's Transforming Energy
Access (TEA) Pacific programme, which supports early testing and
scaling of new technology to provide communities with clean,
affordable energy. Among the projects already being supported by
the TEA fund are a solar & hydrogen powered ‘mini grid'
system providing clean water and oxygen to a remote hospital in
Papua New Guinea, serving 15,000 people;
- Technical assistance and training worth £2 million to develop
evidence-based financial and climate finance policy, provided
through the International Monetary Fund;
- £3 million for the Pacific Regional Environment Programme
(SPREP), the foremost Pacific-led organisation for environment
and nature conservation;
- £1.6 million for the new Digital Earth Pacific programme, a
regional initiative which monitors how environments are changing
over time through satellite data, enabling governments and
communities to better understand and respond to the impacts of
climate change.
In addition to climate action, the Minister will discuss UK work
to strengthen defence and economic links with PIF members
including through police training and the UK's Trade Partnerships
Programme. While in Tonga the Minister will also celebrate the
role of sport in tackling gender inequality, with the delivery of
UK-funded rugby kit for local women and girls' teams.
In Wellington, talks focused on joint action to protect regional
and global security including support for Ukraine and New
Zealand's ongoing contribution to Operation
Interflex, which has so far trained over 30,000 Ukrainian
troops in the UK. Minister West will set out the UK's ambition to
reach zero carbon electricity by 2030 with a visit to Octopus
Energy, a UK clean energy provider. Clean energy cooperation is
among the sectors boosted by the implementation of the UK-New
Zealand Free Trade Agreement (FTA), which entered into force in
May 2023 and is expected to increase total two-way trade by 60%
by 2035.
Since taking office in July 2024 Foreign Secretary has pledged to reconnect the UK
with global partners to ensure security and prosperity at home
and around the world. This includes pushing for global
coordinated action to address the climate and nature emergency,
in partnership with countries facing its worst impacts.
Notes to editors
New funding for the Transforming Energy Access Pacific programme
includes:
-
a £4m contribution to the World Bank's Accelerating
Sustainable Energy Transition (ASET) programme, which will
increase renewable energy generation capacity and enhance the
financial and environmental sustainability of the power
sector in the Pacific (including Papua New Guinea, Solomon
Islands, Vanuatu, Fiji, Samoa, and Tonga)
-
and £1 million to support the Pacific Community's Framework for Energy
Security and Resilience in the Pacific (FESRIP) including
development and implementation of robust national energy
policies and regulations, capacity development and improve
gender balance in the energy sector.
