Minister of Rural and Maritime Development Sakiasi Ditoka

The Ministry of Rural and Maritime Development will work on expanding its collaboration under the trilateral partnership with Australia and Indonesia to foster better disaster response.

This was highlighted by the Minister of Rural and Maritime Development Sakiasi Ditoka in parliament on the trilateral initiative that is currently being developed.

Ditoka adds that this proposed partnership will be a major step towards advancing regional stability, fostering resilience and promoting shared development across the Pacific.

The minister adds that the MOU prioritized cooperation in various thematic areas, including disaster risk management, humanitarian response, climate change and sustainable economic growth.

He adds that Fiji was invited for a peer-to-peer exchange with Indonesia, which was designed to enhance collaboration in disaster risk management.

“The mission had several key objectives to engage with Indonesia’s national and provincial governments to exchange best practices in disaster risk reduction and humanitarian assistance, and to explore future areas for cooperation. So, Speaker Sir, the programme included engagements at regional, national, sub-national and community levels.”

Ditoka says that he had a bilateral meeting with Indonesia’s Foreign Minister, where they outlined Indonesia’s priorities for Pacific cooperation, focusing on climate change, disaster risk reduction and response, and the blue economy.

He adds that Australia has supported disaster preparedness activities in Fiji, such as the AU$1.2 million Disaster Resilience Program and the Cyclone Recovery Program which rehabilitated critical infrastructure damage during Tropical Cyclone Yasa.

The minister says that the draft MOU for Fiji-Indonesia cooperation, initiated in 2022, is now under review to reflect the new strategic objectives emerging from this trilateral initiative.