New Zealand’s Deputy Prime Minister and Associate Foreign Affairs (Pacific Region) Minister Carmel Sepuloni will lead a Pacific Mission to Solomon Islands, Fiji and Tonga – the first to be undertaken since COVID-19.
Sepuloni will be accompanied by Minister for Pacific Peoples Barbara Edmonds, Minister for Climate Change James Shaw and a delegation including Parliamentary and NGO representatives, iwi, business and community leaders and Pacific youth.
Sepuloni says the Pacific region remains the NZ Government’s foreign policy priority, and that includes continuing to strengthen New Zealand’s relationship with the Pacific family.
She says the Pacific Mission provides an invaluable opportunity to strengthen relationships even further and reaffirm commitment to working alongside the Pacific family to respond to challenges together.
Sepuloni says she is excited that alongside being able to reconnect with the Pacific face-to-face, they can also showcase the breadth and depth of this reconnection, their engagement and their leadership in the Pacific region.
She further says tackling climate change together, which has become a harsh reality in New Zealand, continues to be of urgent importance.
Sepuloni says with a focus on climate change and a strong delegation, their message on the Pacific Mission is clear and that is they are committed to working together in partnership, to tackle the challenges our region faces like climate change, cost of living pressures, global inflation and heightened strategic competition.
The Pacific Mission will depart for Honiara on Sunday 16 April and return on Friday 21 April.