Representatives of our Pacific Islands Forum Members;
Senior Government Officials, Representatives from UNDOALOS
Partners, Ladies and Gentlemen
It is indeed a pleasure to welcome you all to the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat.
I have very recently been passed the ropes to steer our Pacific Vaka with our Blue Pacific continent Leaders and people.
Already I can see that Ocean governance is a vast area of importance for decision makers, policy makers and experts of whom I see in the room today.
Overall, the Secretariat with the help of CROP and stakeholders have been working on Ocean and Environment Pillar of the 2050 Strategy for the Blue Pacific Continent.
These are very relevant to this week and next weeks discussions on ocean governance and BBNJ.
Workshops for the BBNJ are important as Capacity building is important for People centred development.
Having our experts from across Member countries is needed to bridge the gap on coherence and information sharing.
I would like to thank the Office of the Pacific Ocean Commissioner and my friend Dr. Filimon for the arrangements organized here.
It is my intention that the Workshop is a conducive opportunity to share perspectives and learn how to domestic the implementation of the BBNJ Treaty after ratification.
We have but One ocean, hence the need to protect, sustainably manage our resources for the descendants of the Blue Pacific Continent.
The BBNJ has been instrumental in recognizing Traditional knowledge and the special circumstances of Small Island Developing States.
As a region, our efforts must support the protection of our member identities and interest especially as big Ocean States.
I thank OPOC for leading the coordination and advocacy role on Ocean matters across Forum member countries.
I also wish to encourage our CROP members of which are represented here today to continue to work closely with OPOC and PIFS on ocean and environment matters.
Having coordination and coherence puts less burden on our member countries so I look forward to the work that Dr. Manoni, our Pacific Ocean Commissioner and his team will lead on in this workshop.
No work on the Ocean can be done alone, therefore, we need genuine partners in this area of importance.
The Pacific Ocean Commissioner has been mandated by the Forum Leaders to lead the coordination of BBNJ implementation and support member ratification processes.
I therefore look forward to hearing about the outcomes of this meeting and workshop.
I wish you all the very best in the next couple of days.
And count on the work of the Commissioner and his team to deliver our priorities on Ocean.
Tubwa kõrI.
God bless you all. I thank you all very much.
Secretary General, Mr Baron Waqa
Excellencies, Distinguished Delegates and Senior Officials
Colleagues from the UN DOALOS
Ladies and gentlemen
Bula Vinaka and a very good morning to you all. To those of you have who have travelled far and wide to be here this morning, I offer my warm Pacific Greetings and thank you for taking out the time to be with us here,
As your Ocean Commissioner, I have the pleasure in welcoming you all to the Opening of the Regional Ocean Governance and BBNJ Workshop this morning.
- The Pacific region has for a long time advocated for and demonstrated global, regional and national ocean governance. It is no surprise, given the centrality of the ocean to our cultures, our identities and our livelihoods.
Ocean governance concerns how we manage the ocean and resources.
While our countries and territories are now separated by lines and boundaries on maps, the ocean is not – she is an interconnected system of climate, marine life, energy, life, culture, ancestors, and spirituality. She does not distinguish between our activities in our national jurisdiction or beyond national jurisdiction.
In 2024, we now live in a time where these lines and boundaries have the upmost importance to statehood, and to the rights of our people in this interconnected world.
It is in this context that it is necessary to have in place governance systems that balance our boundaries against our intrinsic interconnectedness, governance systems that reflect the very nature of our ocean. Ocean governance must unify us as stewards to manage how all stakeholders engage with our ocean.
At the international level, we recall when the Pacific all came together to support UNCLOS, the overarching legal framework that governs the ocean and the activities therein.
The BBNJ Agreement is the outcome we all strived for, jointly and collectively. Let us continue the momentum of paddling together, by laying the groundwork for the effective implementation of the Agreement.
At the regional level, the architecture of ocean governance has gone through several reforms and consultations. The Pacific had in place a hierarchy of different actors who are involved in establishing ocean mandates, making decisions, planning and implementing ocean priorities in the region. These include Forum Leaders, regional organizations, and the multistakeholder Pacific Ocean Alliance. The region has in place regional agreements, declarations and policies to support our Ocean.
Nationally, we see more and more countries turn their minds to modern ocean governance mechanisms – through for example the establishment of national ocean committees, special-envoys on oceans and national ocean policies.
Locally, our people and communities have been managing the ocean for generations but are now facing increasing ocean stressors. Traditional marine management supports sustainable use of our Ocean, and we must continue to recognize and learn from these systems and traditional knowledge held by indigenous peoples and local communities.
Initiatives such as this regional workshop (and I anticipate more to follow soon, whether it be regional, sub-regional or national) will help guide our actions as we strive to better understand this highly complex Agreement, and how it relates to the UNCLOS.
I thank the Secretary General for availing his time to open the workshop. And for his continuous Leadership in Ocean matters together with our partners here this morning.
Let me again take this time to welcome you all and wish you a pleasant and enriching workshop. Vinaka vakalevu and God bless you all.
