SINU hosts maritime and security cooperation workshop
By Lachlan Eddie
The Solomon Islands National University (SINU), in collaboration with the University of Adelaide, is hosting a two-day (23rd to 24th July 2025) workshop focused on enhancing maritime security coordination in the Pacific.
The workshop has brought together maritime and security experts and partners from across the Pacific region and internationally. It is being held at SINU’s Ranadi Campus under the theme “Charting a Shared Course: Enhancing Maritime Security in the Pacific.”
In his keynote address, SINU Vice Chancellor Professor Transform Aqorau said the theme evokes the image of a vaka (canoe) and the vast Pacific Ocean.
“It reminds us that the ocean connects us rather than divides us, bonding the fates of our islands into one blue Pacific continent of shared stewardship. We, Pacific Islanders, may be custodians of small land masses, but we are also guardians of immense ocean spaces,” Professor Aqorau said.
In an interview with local media, Professor Joanne Wallis from the University of Adelaide highlighted the security challenges currently facing the Pacific Ocean due to the interests of other countries in the region.
“The Pacific Ocean is incredibly important, but it faces a number of challenges. However, there are also opportunities, and it is time for an important conversation about how those opportunities and challenges can be addressed,” she said.
Professor Wallis added that partner countries will pursue their own interests, which will inevitably affect Pacific Island nations. “We want to develop a better understanding of these dynamics,” she explained.
The outcomes of the workshop will be published on the University of Adelaide’s project website, Pacific Maritime Security Cooperation, which can be found on the university’s homepage.
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