PRE-COP23 CLOSES, THE FESTIVAL OF LIGHTS GOES UP WITH A BANG, WE GET GREEN BONDS, EVERYONE BUGGERS OFF TO BONN.. AND NOW WE WAIT..

To Bonn we go...

Politicians, lawyers, academics, scientists, key advisors and lobbyists from around the world descended upon our island nation this week. Here to begin preliminary rounds of discussion, before heading to Bonn, member parties were advertised "An objective of the Pre-COP was to allow the leaders of member parties to frankly exchange views of key political deliverables, rather than technical details, for the upcoming Conference of the Parties – COP23."

The 23rd session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 23) to the UN Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) will take place at the headquarters of the UNFCCC Secretariat in Bonn, Germany. Presided over by the Government of Fiji, the UN Climate Change Conference will include the 23rd session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 23) to the UNFCCC, the 13th session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the Meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (CMP 13) and the 47th sessions of the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA 47) and the Subsidiary Body for Implementation (SBI 47). It will also include the fourth part of the first session of the Ad Hoc Working Group on the Paris Agreement (APA 1-4) and the second part of the first session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement (CMA 1-2).

Coral Reef Guardian representatives were present alongside Greenpeace South Pacific, Pacific Islands Development Forum Secretariat and other key local climate action organisations for informal discussions with leaders such as Prime Minister of Fiji, Mr Voreqe Bainimarama, as well as Mr Anote Tong, ex-president of Kiribati, a country that has suffered worst from the preliminary affects of climate change.

Fiji is set to issue the first sovereign green bond from a developing country, prime minister Frank Bainimarama revealed on Wednesday. With technical support from the World Bank, the Pacific island state aims to raise 100 million Fiji dollars (USD$50m) to build resilience to climate change and support a shift to 100% renewable energy.

In a statement issued by the bank, Bainimarama touted the move as an example of financial innovation to protect the vulnerable.

“The Fijian people, along with every Pacific islander, live on the front lines of climate change,” Bainimarama said. “The rising seas, changing weather patterns and severe weather events are threatening our development, our security and the Fijian way of life, along with the very existence of some of our low-lying neighbours."

“I have made access to climate finance a key pillar of our upcoming COP23 presidency, and we are proud to set an example to other climate-vulnerable nations by issuing this green bond to fund our work to boost climate resilience across Fiji.”

Fiji is recovering from a direct hit by Cyclone Winston in 2016, the strongest tropical storm recorded in the southern hemisphere. The economic losses were estimated at nearly a third of the country’s GDP – and climate change is predicted to increase the intensity of storms.

Green bonds are a mechanism to raise funds for climate-friendly projects, offering a kind of low-risk package that appeals to institutional investors. A small but emerging sector of the market, “green” bonds are set to reach $134.9 billion in value this year, according to the World Bank.

As highlighted by Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama, this year’s pre-COP event:

-Had more people, more nations and more members from the wider Grand Coalition present.
-Had added Partnership Days to give practical meaning to the Presidency’s vision of a Grand Coalition.
-Was different because it was hosted at the heart of one of the most vulnerable regions on earth.

“We needed you to come here to see it and feel it for yourselves....And I am sure that many of you will leave with a much better understanding of what is at stake,” he said. “Bringing the pre-COP to Fiji and widening its scope has also had a very beneficial impact on the understanding of Fijians and Pacific Islanders generally about this process and its relevance to their lives."

“I wondered whether COP would really fire the imaginations of my own people."

“Whether this would be seen as just another conference in Fiji in a great location that had little relevance to ordinary people."
“But one of the best things about the Fijian presidency in my mind so far is that we are already making a difference at home.

“Imaginations have been fired."

“We are bringing the Paris Agreement to Fiji and the Pacific.”

Well my imagination has been fired up, like the firecrackers that exploded all night last night, as it was the Hindu festival of lights , Diwali. A metaphor maybe, hopefully Fiji's leadership in Bonn will be a shining light in the darkness.. maybe.

I wish us all the best in Bonn.