Tuvalu Wants Australia’s Help to Lead With a Climate Focus
Tuvalu has launched a longshot bid to head the Commonwealth and put climate action firmly on the world’s agenda – and it wants Australia’s backing.
Tuvalu will put forward its candidate to be the next Commonwealth secretary-general at CHOGM in Rwanda on June 24.
CHOGM is the meeting of Commonwealth heads of government, who would also vote on the next leader. Deputy PM Richard Marles would represent Australia.
Off the back of Australia’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Penny Wong’s whirlwind tour of the Pacific, it was also an opportunity for the new Labour government to make good on some of its election pledges on the climate and diplomatic fronts.
“It would go a long way if Australia was to support a Pacific candidate for the secretarygeneral position,” Tuvalu’s Foreign Minister, Simon Kofe, told The New Daily.
“It would really send a very strong message to the Pacific that this government is willing to work with us.”
Tuvalu is one of the most vulnerable countries to rising sea levels and certain areas are already routinely submerged by king tides.
Some have called for the population to be relocated, but Tuvaluans remain determined to protect their home.
Sir Iakoba Taeia Italeli
Their candidate to lead the Commonwealth is former governor-general, Sir Iakoba Taeia Italeli, an ex-police officer who worked his way up to the highest ranks of government.
“Few understand the effects of climate change better than Tuvaluans,” Sir Italeli told TND.
He said his advocacy would serve to benefit all Commonwealth countries, be they low-lying Caribbean islands or larger countries in Africa or Asia experiencing severe weather events.
“I think national interest often gets in the way,” he added.
“People are looking at what they think is best for the country, instead of what is best for the world.”
Sir Italeli believes now is a chance to push for the first-ever leader of the Commonwealth from the Pacific Islands.
Election
The election of the Commonwealth’s secretarygeneral usually follows a regional rotation where every continent gets a turn in charge.
It’s currently the Caribbean’s turn. Dominican-born British politician Baroness Patricia Scotland has held the post since 2016 and was due for re-election in 2020, but the pandemic postponed CHOGM for two years and thus extended her initial term.
Australia, the United Kingdom and Canada voiced disapproval over Lady Scotland’s handling of the office and are looking to oust her before the next full term starts in 2024.
In 2020, for example, Australia cut $800,000 in funding and withheld a further $500,000 from the organisation in protest over an alleged cronyism scandal that centred around the Baroness.
Sir Italeli bills himself as a consensus-building candidate who can overcome the regional squabbling and resolve the current scandals.
He claims to count on the support of several Pacific nations, and from within the African bloc.