Bilateral relations, trade and climate change dominated talks held this week in Suva between senior officials from the Fijian Government and the Swiss Government.
Switzerland’s senior official responsible for the Asia Pacific region, Ambassador Johannes Matyassy, Assistant State Secretary of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, conducted bilateral meetings with Acting Permanent Secretary for Foreign Affairs Mr. Esala Nayasi.
Facilitated by the Fijian Embassy in Switzerland, this visit represents the first high-level visit by a Swiss-based official to Fiji on bilateral matters, and it is hoped that bilateral relations will be strengthened through concrete cooperation as a result of this visit.
Key priority areas discussed included cooperation on climate change and disaster resilience through a comprehensive vulnerability assessment programme, the possible signing of a Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation, and cooperation in multilateral affairs. The Swiss Government’s continued assistance and cooperation with the Fiji Mission in Geneva was duly appreciated.
The Switzerland delegation visit program included a half-day trip to the village of Daku, in the province of Tailevu, which has been identified as one of the 45 most vulnerable communities to the impacts of climate change in Fiji. This trip provided an opportunity for discussion and interviews with community members on the impact of climate change. In addition to that, Daku serves as a Climate Change adaptation project that is implemented through the involvement of multi-stakeholders.
It was highlighted at the discussions that the community had been living with the impact of climate change from the time of their ancestors; the option for relocation never came to mind. “A village project actually started in 1994 where funds were raised to enable the villagers to improve and reclaim their village."
This visit represents the priority that the Fijian government places on highlighting the realities of climate change effects faced by communities in Fiji and the need to implement measures that can address these effects.