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adaptation projects
Jakarta Post
Thu, 7 May 2009
Bali, Indonesia ----- Facing the acute danger of rising sea waters, Pacific island nations
proposed the Asian Development Bank (ADB) establish a special climate fund to help
them finance climate adaptation projects, reports Jakarta Post .
Speaking on behalf of Pacific Developing Member Countries (PDMC), Papua New
Guinea’s (PNG) finance minister Patrick Pruaitch, told the bank's board of governors
meeting that climate change poses significant threats to their islands.
Even now, the frequency and intensity of natural disasters is increasing in Pacific islands
nations, he said.
“We propose that the bank consider the establishment of a Regional Climate Change
Fund that supports programmes and projects that aim to strengthen adaptation measures
that PDMCs have prioritized,” Mr Pruaitch said.
The PDMCs are: the Cook Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, the
Marshall Islands, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, the Solomon Islands, Timor Leste,
Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu and Palau.
Mr Pruaitch added the proposed climate fund should have a simple process that allows
PDMCs to access the financial resources.
He noted that easy access to funding would be instrumental to PDMCs, as these countries
rely heavily on external assistance to support development priorities.
Because of such difficulty in accessing funds, Mr Pruaitch called on the bank to open
wider access to its concessionary Asian Development Fund to PDMCs.
“This is especially important in the current global environment where PDMCs are finding
it more difficult to borrow funds to develop much needed infrastructure essential to
support national priorities,” he said.
Apart of financing, Pruaitch also asked the bank to have a more prominent presence in
PDMCs by relocating its Sydney office to a PDMC, increasing the number of resident
offices, and recruiting more staff from PDMCs.