Fiji will host the Pacific Islands Forum leaders meeting as chair next year when the Forum enters its 50th year.
Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama noted this in his address at the Fiji National Consultation workshop on the 2050 Strategy of the Blue Pacific Continent held in Suva yesterday.
“By that time – I pray – the worst of the coronavirus will indeed be behind us,” Mr Bainimarama said.
“As leaders gather at our shores, Fiji’s leadership of this Forum will determine the quality of regionalism that emerges from the ashes of this pandemic; and this strategy will be at the heart of our ambition.”
Mr Bainimarama said the changes brought by the global pandemic and climate emergency tested our resilience every day.
However, he added the silver lining was that they also revealed the power of Pacific co-operation.
“In a moment of darkness, as we’ve wrestled with both COVID-19 and the devastating arrival of severe Cyclone Harold, the Pacific Islands Forum was at the centre of our region’s response – serving as a pathway for humanitarian aid and assistance to communities enduring the one-two punch of coronavirus and climate change.”
