REMARKS: Secretary General Baron Waqa at the Pacific Resilience Facility Side Event, UNGA79

Forum Chair

Excellencies

Youth and Civil Society Representatives

Ladies and Gentlemen

I wish to express our deep appreciation to the UN Secretary General, António Gutteres for his commitment to our Blue Pacific region and support in mobilising resources for the PRF.

Our gratitude also extends to Deputy Secretary of State Mr. Kurt Campbell for his encouraging message of assurance, and to Secretary General Patricia Scotland KC, who has consistently championed the Pacific cause on the global stage.

A special thank you to His Excellency, Mr James Larsen, Australia's Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations, and his dedicated team, for hosting this important event. We are most grateful for your support.

This week, we have heard many UN members reiterate that humanity faces some of the most challenging times in history and that something needs to change.

The PRF is part of this change. It is the Pacific Islands Forum proactive response to these challenges, driving the change we need to secure a resilient future for all Pacific peoples, who have long been custodians of our ancestral lands and our oceans.

Our youths’ messages this morning is very clear. It is their future that is at stake, and most importantly, their homes.

The Forum Chair highlighted that our first goal is to reach USD 500 million by January 2026.  

Today, we ask you to consider what further role you can play in the achievement of this critical step.

My Team and I’s commitment to you is to finalise, in close collaboration with our Forum governments, the technical legal establishment of the PRF and the next steps in the coming months.

Together, we must be ready to provide adaptation and mitigation support through grants to Pacific communities from 2026. Alongside the 2050 Strategy for the Blue Pacific, the PRF must be our legacy and pact for the future to equip our Pacific communities against the rapid effects and impacts of climate change and related disasters.

I thank you.