[Source: Ministry of Commerce, Trade, Tourism and Transport/Facebook]

The Indo-Pacific Economic Framework can be a trailblazing agreement that could answer present-day challenges faced by Small Island Developing States.

This was the sentiment shared by Permanent Secretary for Commerce, Trade, Tourism, and Transport Shaheen Ali during the IPEF informal dialogue hosted by the United States in Paris, France.

Ali says this is the first time a large negotiating bloc has taken a decisive step to include SIDS like Fiji in such dialogue.

In his statement to the IPEF, Ali shared the challenges faced by small nations such as access to global markets, integration into international trade and the ever-present threat climate change poses to sustainable development.

He also stated that Fiji looks forward to discussing how these hurdles could be overcome through innovative solutions.

[Source: Ministry of Commerce, Trade, Tourism and Transport/Facebook]

Fiji is the first Pacific Island to join the IPEF and is eager to contribute, with the key focus on climate-conscious engagements in the four negotiating pillars of the Framework.

The informal IPEF briefing was attended by Fiji, Australia, Brunei, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.