Australia commits FJ$157m as Pacific Resilience Facility launches

The Pacific Resilience Facility (PRF) was officially activated after Australia committed AUD$100 million (FJ$157 million), a move Pacific leaders hailed as a major shift towards community-driven climate finance.

Australia’s Foreign Minister Penny Wong said the facility was more than a fund and represented a promise that Pacific communities would not face climate threats alone, as she deposited Australia’s instrument of ratification.

Ms Wong said the PRF reflected Australia’s commitment to listen to Pacific leaders, respect regional priorities and act in partnership.

The initiative is designed, owned and managed by the Pacific region.

She said Australia’s FJ$157 million contribution doubled its support to the Green Climate Fund and represented a deliberate investment in a system that puts communities at the centre while making climate finance faster and more accessible for adaptation, loss and damage.

Fiji’s Minister for Foreign Affairs and External Trade, Sakiasi Ditoka, said the ratification marked an important shift in how the region addresses the climate crisis.

The PRF is designed to provide predictable, grant-based financing for community-level initiatives.

It aims to cut through complex global funding systems to ensure frontline communities have a direct and simplified pathway to access climate finance.

The facility also allows Pacific nations to shape how funds are governed and distributed.

Mr Ditoka said Fiji joined several Forum members, including Tonga, Nauru, the Republic of Marshall Islands, Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Cook Islands and New Zealand, which have already ratified the agreement, reflecting growing regional commitment.

He said the mechanism represented a Pacific-led solution to a Pacific problem.

“It will help mobilise new and predictable climate financing as more countries complete their ratification processes,” Mr Ditoka said.

Ms Wong also called on international partners to contribute to the facility ahead of COP31.

She stressed the need to fully capitalise the fund and deliver on the vision of Pacific leaders for resilient and climate-secure communities across the region.