Pacific Leaders Sign Historic PRF Treaty

By Eliza Kukutu

Pacific leaders have officially signed the Pacific Resilience Facility (PRF) Treaty, marking a historic step towards establishing the Pacific’s’ first international legal financing institution.

Fifteen countries including the Solomon Islands signed the treaty at the margins of the 54th Pacific Islands Forum Leaders’ Meeting in Honiara last night.

The PRF aims to support climate adaptation and disaster preparedness across Pacific Island nations by providing funding for community-based initiatives, to strengthen resilience in the face of growing climate threats.

In his  address, Chair of the Pacific Islands Forum and Prime Minister, Hon. Jeremiah Manele described the PRF as a transformative initiative that will empower Pacific nations to better manage climate risks , and reduce reliance on slow and complex international climate finance systems.

“The PRF is the Pacific’s response by the Pacific, for the Pacific to structural barriers for our smaller nations in accessing global climate financing, which is still too slow, too little, too complex and unpredictable.”

” It will be a game-changing institution to enable finance, financial flows to address the existential threat that our people face and ensure that no one is left behind,” said Manele.

The PRF was endorsed by Pacific Leaders to be the first Pacific-led, owned and managed, community-centered, transformative climate and disaster resilience financing vehicle in the Pacific.

The Leaders’ Declaration on the Establishment of the PRF was made at the 52nd Pacific Islands Leaders Forum Meeting in Cook Islands in 2023.

Its establishment supports the goals of the 2050 Strategy for the Blue Pacific Continent, as it aims to ensure communities in the region are resilient and better prepared to address climate-related challenges.

Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum, Baron Waqa, described the signing of the PRF treaty as a milestone in Pacific history, as it is the first treaty signed by Pacific leaders at a Forum meeting in 40 years.

” The treaty that is before us was co-drafted with our forum members and I take this opportunity to thank all our officials for their tireless efforts. On our way to Honiara, our PRF team conducted six PRF treaty missions with forum members.”

” We will continue this work with all members to ensure the treaty’s safe passage to ratification and entry into force and to commence programming, co-design, consultations,” he said.

With the signing of the treaty now complete, attention turns to ratification, funding mobilization, and implementation planning.

Secretary General Waqa confirms that preparations are underway for the PRF to become operational by 2026, with a partner roundtable meeting scheduled for September 23rd in New York, during the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).

SIBC News understands that the PRF aims to raise USD 500 million in initial capital by 2026, and eventually collect USD 1.5 billion by 2030 to help Pacific countries deal with the impacts of climate change.

Countries that have announced their pledges for the PRF includes Australia ( AUD $100 million), Saudi Arabia (USD$50 million), the People’s Republic of China (USD$500,000), and the United States (USD$5 million).

The government of Nauru has also pledged AUD $1 Million to be phased over a period of five years.

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