The President of Vanuatu attends a reception at the Italian Embassy in Canberra for the FAO forum

The President of Vanuatu attends a reception at the Italian Embassy in Canberra for the FAO forum

(ANSA) - ROMA, 04 NOV - Vanuatu’s President, Nikenike Vurobaravu, and the Speaker of Parliament, Stephen Dorrick Felix, were among the guests at the reception that the ambassador to Canberra, Nicola Lener, organized in Port Vila on the occasion of the “Solutions Forum” with the Pacific Small Island Developing States (PSIDS), co-hosted by the Government of Vanuatu and the FAO, in which Italy is participating as an observer with a senior official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The event was attended by a FAO delegation led by Deputy Director-General Maurizio Martina, members of the diplomatic corps accredited to Vanuatu, and representatives from various delegations of Pacific states participating in the Forum. In his remarks to the participants, Ambassador Lener attributed Italy’s presence at the Forum to the country’s long-standing commitment to food security and its links to climate change, both bilaterally and multilaterally, with a particular focus on countries on the front lines of addressing these challenges, including the PSIDs. Among the bilateral programs, the ambassador highlighted the PSIDs Partnership, through which Italy has funded 70 projects in the Pacific since 2007—projects proposed by the PSIDs themselves— particularly in the sectors of sustainable agri-food systems, renewable energy, water security, and energy efficiency, totaling $39 million, part of which came from the MASE Climate Fund. Looking ahead to COP31 in Antalya, Ambassador Lener also mentioned Italy’s substantial commitment to climate finance, which has increased over the years to the current level of approximately 3.8 billion euros, intended in part to strengthen the resilience of the small Pacific island states. In this context, the ambassador finally highlighted the importance Italy attaches to the role of the United Nations hub in Rome—and in particular the FAO—in transforming current challenges in the Pacific into opportunities for development and inclusion. The event in Vanuatu marks the third in-person edition of the “Solutions Forum,” following those in Samoa (2022) and Fiji (2024), and takes place from November 3 to 6 under the theme “Solutions for a Resilient Blue Pacific: Scaling Innovation and Financing Agrifood Systems Transformation.” Read article...