Acting Attorney General and Minister for Economy Faiyaz Koya [Source: Fijian Government]

Fiji is concerned by the lack of long-term commitment for climate finance from the developed world.

This was highlighted by Acting Attorney General and Minister for Economy Faiyaz Koya while addressing the Climate and Development Ministerial meeting this week.

Koya stresses that the same amount of commitment shown to containing COVID-19 should be given to fighting climate change.

“We have developed vaccines in record times, implemented lock downs across borders in collaboration and mobilized financial resources and fiscal relief measures at rapid scales. I do not see why the same cannot be done for an even greater threat that is climate change. We must not forget that the existential threat of climate change will persist much longer than any Pandemic.”

He says there is also an urgent need for more uniformed access to climate financing for developing countries.

“Moreover, we in the Pacific have multiple inherent vulnerabilities that result in higher cost of service delivery, and our governments end up spending much more per capita than any other nations. Such issues need to be incorporated and addressed through long term climate and development finance commitments which bring certainty and predictability to finance flows.”

During the meeting Fiji called on development partners and investors help in structuring new financial products such as blue bonds and debt for nature swaps that are tailor made to Small Island Developing States blue financing ambitions.