The Interim Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Development Forum Mr Amena Yauvoli this afternoon received the visiting Resident Co-Director of the University of Hawaii’s East-West Center’s Pacific Islands Development Program (PIDP) Dr Gerard Finin, at the PIDF Secretariat in Nasese, Suva.
The Pacific Islands Development Program (PIDP) was established in 1980, to assist Pacific islands leaders in advancing their collective efforts to achieve and sustain equitable social and economic development.
Dr Finin’s visit was to brief the PIDF on the PIDPs plans for 2015 especially their proposed Pacific Islands Conference of Leaders (PIC) meeting in Washington DC scheduled for later this year. PIC is made up of 20 heads of government from the Pacific islands region. The Conference now meets once every three years.
The two sides also discussed the upcoming PIDF Third Leaders Summit from 12 to 14 August 2015 and how they can work collaboratively for the event.
Speaking after the meeting Mr Yauvoli said,
“I am pleased that we can meet with the Head of the PIDP an important regional partner for the PIDF in the area of leadership and the green economy.Both our organisations work with Leaders of the Pacific and as we shift the Pacific to an inclusive, resilient and low-emission society we will require a distinct way of decision-making to negotiate disagreements, build trust among stakeholders and foster a long-term common vision. As the Secretariat of the Pacific Islands Conference of Leaders the PIDP can assist the PIDF in this process and I look forward to working closely with them in this area.”