ADDRESSING one of the “most formidable challenges facing Pacific Island nations”—the urgent need for institutional and financial resilience against escalating natural catastrophes—PCRIC Board Chair Siosiua ‘Utoikamanu has called for regional unity and visionary leadership.
He delivered this message at the opening of the three-day Pacific Regional Disaster Resilience Financing Workshop in Suva.
“Our future security is fundamentally predicated upon the strength of our regional partnership,” Utoikamanu told senior officials, donors, and partners, emphasizing that the Pacific’s shared geographic vulnerabilities demand collective solutions and decisive action.
Since its inception in 2016, the Pacific Catastrophe Risk Insurance Company (PCRIC) has played a pivotal role in disaster risk management, providing immediate financial support to member nations after disasters while also building long-term capacity for climate and disaster risk financing.
“We provide rapid equity and essential cash support to member nations in the immediate aftermath of a disaster, ensuring that fiscal stability is maintained during periods of crisis,” said ‘Utoikamanu.
He highlighted that natural disasters in the Pacific are far from theoretical, as “these events exert profound pressure on national budgets, disrupt essential services, and threaten the development gains we have painstakingly secured over decades.”
The three-day workshop, convened with support from the Asian Development Bank, CDP, SPC, and others, aims to deepen regional understanding, close gaps, and refine strategies for disaster risk financing.
‘Utoikamanu urged participants to leave not only with technical knowledge but with “a renewed sense of sovereign ownership,” calling them to serve as “the architects of resilience within your respective administrations.”
He concluded with a challenge to Pacific leaders: “The efficiency of disaster risk financing is not solely dependent on institutional mechanism. It requires visionary leadership… Your leadership is the bridge between theoretical preparedness and the practical protection of our people.”
As the region faces the increasing frequency and cost of disasters, the workshop is set to drive robust discussion and greater collaboration to protect the Pacific’s future.