Coalition Govt reinforces commitment to address climate change and reduce carbon emissions
THE Assistant Minister at the Office of the Prime Minister, Sakiusa Tubuna has affirmed the Coalition Government’s dedication to tackling climate change and reducing carbon emissions in the forest and land-use sectors. The commitment was reiterated at the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Carbon Credits between the First Nation (Fiji) Resources Foundation and the Aboriginal Carbon Foundation (AbCF) from Australia. Asst Minister Tubuna highlighted Fiji’s leading role in the Pacific region’s climate change arena, both in the carbon compliance market and the Carbon Voluntary market.
He emphasised that Fiji’s forests, which encompasses 60 per cent of the landmass, are communally owned by indigenous Fijians and hold vast potential for poverty alleviation through monetisation in the Carbon Voluntary Market – a rapidly growing billion-dollar industry.
“The active participation of the private sector and civil society in engaging forest owners in the Carbon Voluntary Market is a proactive stance that aligns with the Fiji Government’s Sustainable Development Goals on Poverty Alleviation,” Asst Minister Tubuna stated. He emphasised that the newly launched agreement would support the government’s commitment to reducing carbon emissions from the forestry sector through the voluntary carbon market, utilising internally approved voluntary standards.
The MoU was signed recently by First Nation (Fiji) Resources Foundation chairperson, Dr Akanisi Kedrayate and the Aboriginal Carbon Foundation (AbCF) chief executive officer, Rowan Foley from Australia.
By leveraging the potential of Fii’s forests, the partnership aims to advance the country’s ambitions of reducing carbon emissions while promoting economic opportunities for indigenous communities.
Dr Kedrayate stated, “We are pleased to with AbCF on this MoU to accelerate climate action”. “This agreement is an important milestone for both our countries in working together to meet our respective climate targets.”
“We hope that it will spur climate investments, enable innovation but most importantly for the First Nation (Resources) Foundation ensure that all our AbCF dealings are beneficial, equitable and just to our natural resource owners,” she said.
Asst Minister Tubuna further added that the Coalition Government remains determined in its pursuit of a sustainable future and stands committed to addressing climate change and promoting environmental stewardship.