COP23 President Backed Up By Experienced Team

Supporting Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama during his presidency of COP23 will be a team of experienced Fijians who will lead negotiations intended to go a long way in saving this planet. The team includes Chief Negotiator Ambassador Nazhat Shameem Khan, Climate Champion Minister Inia Seruiratu and Climate Ambassador Deo Saran.

Plus, there are officials and advisors, mostly Fijian and others with globaly acknowledged expertise in climate policy and experience in previous COPs.

Climate Negotiator, Mrs Khan, will do the detailed negotiations in the plenary sessions. And as President, Mr Bainimarama will have a roving brief, presiding over the main events and having the ability to intervene at other times. “To give encouragement where needed and especially to use my authority and powers of persuasion to iron out any impasse. To keep people focused and hold the show together,” Mr Bainimarama said in New York while addressing fellow Pacific leaders.

He has asked Pacific leaders to bring the two zones in Bonn closer together. One is the Bula Zone where the formal governmentto-government negotiations take place.

The other, the Bonn Zone some distance away, will be the climate action zone for non-state actors whether they be representatives of state or local governments around the world, NGOs, other civil society organisations and interfaith groups, the private sector and ordinary citizens.

“I want you to join me in spending a great deal of time in this climate action zone, interacting with the various players and ordinary people.

“We will have a pavilion in which you can base yourselves. And we can take our inclusive Pacific way of doing things – of listening to others and genuinely respecting their views - and transpose it onto the global scene to advance the cause of climate action.”

In Fiji’s case, Mr Bainimarama intends to bring our Bula Spirit to Bonn – to showcase the Pacific’s unique culture and way of life. “And we are also harnessing the Talanoa Spirit – a word we share with our Tongan and Samoan neighbours – to promote the concept of dialogue on climate change that is inclusive, respectful, non judgmental and achieves concrete results.”

Photo: Jyoti Pratibha Timoci Cikamatana’s spouse works for the United Nations. He is at the United Nations Headquarters assisting the Fijian Delegation during the Ocean Conference. Here he is at the Talanoa Room, keeping the kava flowing.