PM Danny Philip, Delegation Arrive Back In Honiara

Prime Minister Danny Philip, Delegation Arrive Back In Honiara

Prime Minister, Hon Danny Philip MP and his delegation arrived back in Honiara today after signing a €2.8 million (about SBD32 million) general budget support with the European Commission in Vanuatu last week.

Prime Minister Philip was among heads of states and governments who converged on Port Vila for the High Level Regional Conference – a Joint Pacific-European Union Initiative on Climate Change – on 04th March.

Solomon Islands is one of only two countries at the Conference that benefited from the European Commission funding – the other being Vanuatu, the host.

Funding from the grant will be spread over three years. It will target climate change adaptation and reduction of vulnerability of people and communities.

Prime Minister Philip was accompanied by the Minister for Development Planning and Aid Coordination, Hon. Snyder Rini MP and the Minister for Environment Climate Change, Disaster Management and Meteorology (MECDM), Hon. John Moffat Fugui MP.

In a statement today, the Prime Minister said he was pleased with the outcome of the conference, in particular the extra funding that Solomon Islands has secured, given that other island states have missed out altogether.

The conference provided political guidance on implementing the Joint Pacific-EU Initiative on climate change.

Acknowledging the EC support, Prime Minister Philip told the Conference: “EU support (for) Solomon Islands’ Climate Change Adaptation Programme and Disaster Risk Reduction under EDF9 through (the) general budget support comes to us on the bedrock of our reform and mainstreaming programme.”

“The SIG-EU partnership is a good example that could be replicated by other countries in the region and a good example that could be adopted by other donors (multilateral and bilateral) in the region,” he said.

Prime Minister Philip also highlighted the Melanesian issue of land ownership which is a vulnerable factor to climate change. 2 P.O.Box G1, Honiara, Solomon Islands, Tel: 677 24465 / 677 21863 / 677 28100 Email: gherming@pmc.gov.sb , Website: www.pmc.gov.sb

“Learning from other Pacific countries like Vanuatu on how they mitigate land issues may help address this very matter in Solomon Islands, given its diverse characteristics in Solomon Islands.”

The Prime Minister also acknowledged the contributions and on-going assistance of other Pacific Island nations through the Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands (RAMSI). Through RAMSI, Solomon Islands is able to undertake structural and public management reforms.

Secretary to Prime Minister, Mr. Jerry Manele and Permanent Secretary for Environment, Climate Change, Disaster Management and Meteorology, Rence Sore also attended.

The Hon Prime Minister also held important discussions in Brisbane over the weekend while on transit to Solomon Islands.

These discussions were largely with experts who have kindly offered to assist the Government in enhancing its capacity in sourcing and securing of project funding.

“The NCRA Government has a comprehensive development program for rural Solomon Islands and needs a helping hand to enable it to deliver on its policy in a timely manner.

“We believe the only way to find out what they have to offer is to listen to them,” the Prime Minister said.

ENDS

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