Honiara, Solomon Islands — Pacific Island Forum Leaders signed the Agreement to Establish the Pacific Resilience Facility (PRF) at the 54th Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting (54PIFLM), marking a defining moment for the Blue Pacific continent as the region establishes its first Pacific-led, owned, and managed climate and disaster resilience financing facility dedicated to communities at the front line of climate change, and the first International Financial Institution to be collectively owned by Pacific Governments.
The PRF is a community-centred, transformative grant investment facility designed to deliver simplified and direct access to climate and disaster resilience finance for Pacific communities across all Pacific Islands Forum Member Countries.
With operationalisation targeted for 2026, the PRF will play a crucial role in helping communities access climate finance, ensuring that no one is left behind.
Prime Minister of Solomon Islands and Chair of the Pacific Islands Forum, Hon. Jeremiah Manele, stated, “The PRF is an idea whose time has come, and is a manifestation of our deeper collective desire for emancipation for the Blue Pacific. This is ours. This is the Pacific’s response, by the Pacific, for the Pacific, to structural barriers for our small island nations in accessing global climate financing, which is still too slow, too little, too complex and unpredictable. Iumi tugeda, we are now establishing the PRF as our very own first international financial institution.”
Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum, Baron Divavesi Waqa, added, “It was a special day in our Pacific history. The last time a Treaty was signed at a Leaders' Meeting was 40 years ago. This is an initiative close to our Leaders’ hearts, and we commend the foresight of our Leaders to birth this vision for our people of the Blue Pacific. The Treaty that is before us has been co-drafted with our Members, and we take this opportunity to thank all our officials for their tireless efforts that have led to this moment in time.”
Hosted by the Government of Tonga, the Prime Minister of Tonga, Hon. Dr. 'Aisake Valu Eke, said, “This bears witness to what we can achieve by our solidarity and our unity, when Iumi Tugeda Act Now. There is power in our agreement today. Our words will breathe life into this institution. We are manifesting our shared vision to establish the PRF as a new innovative way of doing business in climate financing, signalling that climate equity and justice is a right, and that the time for tired narratives is gone and the time for action is NOW.”
Following the PRF Treaty signing, the PRF convened a PRF Partners Talanoa with CSOs and Private Sector on the margins of 54PIFLM at the University of the South Pacific, Solomon Islands Campus. General Manager of the Pacific Resilience Facility, Finau Soqo, said, “With the Treaty now signed by our Leaders, we are commencing programming co-design with our Members, communities, civil society, private sector and implementing partners to execute our Leaders mandate to be ready for the first call for pilot project proposals by the 55th Forum Leaders Meeting in Palau in 2026.”
The PRF Treaty is envisaged to enter into force in early 2026. In the lead-up, Members will complete domestic ratification processes in parallel with Member programming co-design consultations.
The Treaty signing paves the way for the High-Level PRF Partners Roundtable Talanoa at the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA80) to galvanise fundraising efforts to reach its capitalisation target of US$500 million by the end of 2026, building on the US$159 million already pledged up to 54PIFLM.
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About PRF:
The Pacific Resilience Facility (PRF) is endorsed by Pacific leaders as the first Pacific-led, owned, and managed community-centred, transformative climate and disaster resilience financing vehicle in the Pacific.
