London- Prime Minister Honourable Josaia Voreqe Bainimarama met with the Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organisation Mr Kitack Lim on the margins of the biennial IMO yesterday.
At the bilateral meeting, Prime Minister Bainimaramaacknowledged the two-pronged IMO strategy which is aimed at reducing the international shipping’s total annual greenhouse gas emissions by at least 50 per cent by 2050, a strategy that Fiji fully supports.
This strategy, he said is crucial in our collective resolve to achieve the long-term goals of the Paris Agreement.
Prime Minister Bainimarama also highlighted about the Pacific Blue Shipping Partnership which is a multi-country initiative that requires half a billion dollars of financing to see the full decarbonisation of our national fleets by 2050.
He saidwhile small domestic fleets were the prime target for emissions, the Bainimarama-led government is also considering Fiji’s jetties and international ports, ship building and ship repairs to be part of this scheme.
Fiji is co-chairing a coalition of Pacific Member States with the Republic of the Marshall Islands, a partnership aimed at reducing emissions through the Pacific Blue Shipping Partnership.
Discussions at the meeting were also focused on the “talanoa” dialogue and the PacificMaritime Technology Cooperation Centre.
Prime Minister Bainimarama said he was pleased to learn about IMO’s adoption of this renowned strategy that aims at enabling countries and stakeholders to contribute information to meet the objectives of the Paris Agreement and support the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
He added Fiji was also honoured to host the Maritime Technology Cooperation Centre (MTCC), a Pacific project which was launched in Suva in 2017.
The project has been very successful in terms of efficient energy consumption and promoting a sustainable maritime transport sector.
Prime Minister Bainimarama also took the opportunity to discuss possible areas of mutual interests.
He proposed to Mr Lim the possibility of having a regional IMO office set up in Fiji as a way of further enhancing the organisation’s relations with the Pacific, and also to have Fiji officials seconded to the IMO headquarters for further learning and training opportunities in the maritime transport sector and the need for more technical cooperation.
Prime Minister Bainimarama also requested that Fiji be considered in the contest for membership of the IMO Council C category, a board which no Pacific island country has ever been a part of.
At the same time, he thanked the IMO Secretary-General for his historic visit to Fiji in July, this year where he witnessed first-hand the country’s maritime transport sector, among other important things.
In response, Mr Lim conveyed his sincere gratitude to Prime Minister Bainimarama and his government for the powerful climate action campaign which has become a world movement.
He assured the Prime Minister that IMO is considering areas of mutual interests to further boost bilateral relations with Fiji and the Pacific region.