The Governments of Fiji and the Solomon Islands have signed an agreement on their shared maritime boundary, marking the first boundary treaty to be signed in the Pacific region in 6 years.
The signing was held in Suva, Fiji last night ahead of the Pacific Islands Forum Leaders meeting which begins today.
The Pacific Community is the technical lead on the Pacific Maritime Boundaries work and looks forward to providing continued support to our Pacific Member States to secure our BluePacific.
"Mapping ocean boundaries is a determinative challenge for us large Ocean States in the Pacific. Implementing regional ocean solutions depend on such agreements. They are the foundation of the great Blue Pacific world of sustainably managed ocean space we are looking to build. The signing of this agreement is an important milestone to demarcate our region's 48 shared maritime boundaries,"said Josaia Voreqe Bainimarama, Prime Minister of Fiji.
"This gathering signifies our commitment to the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) to which Fiji and Solomon Islands are both parties. UNCLOS itself is one of the achievements the Pacific region in shaping the international convention as we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Pacific Islands Forum,"said Manasseh Sogavare, Prime Minister of Solomon Islands
"The signing of this boundary brings us a step closer to finalising our Blue Pacific boundaries, achieving SDG Target 14.C, and securing these zones for future generations. This is a top priority as affirmed by Pacific Leaders in their Declaration on Preserving Maritime Zones in the Face of Climate Change-related Sea-Level Rise 2021, which received global recognition at the recent UN Ocean Conference in Lisbon,"Dr. Stuart Minchin, Director General, Pacific Community.
As programme coordinator, the Pacific Community (SPC) supports a range of activities including regional working sessions, workplace attachments, in-country workshops and placements, legal drafting, political advocacy, negotiations, technical assessments and field surveys.
The Programme is supported by a Consortium of partners including the Pacific Island Forum Secretariat, Office of the Pacific Ocean Commissioner, Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA), Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), Geoscience Australia, Attorney Generals Department - Australia, University of Sydney, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT), the Commonwealth Secretariat, GRID_Arendal, the British Government, the European Union and Sweden through the Pacific European Union Marine Programme (PEUMP).
Source: Pacific Community - SPC, Facebook Page