SUVA, July 25 (Xinhua) -- The Global Employers Climate Action Forum opened in Suva on Wednesday under the theme Fiji Declaration: Resilient Businesses and Communities.
Fiji's Attorney-General and Minister responsible for Climate Change Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum said the Fijian government, businesses and citizens were at the front line of climate change and needed to show how they could work together to drive positive change.
He told the participants that they must set a bold example on how the public and private sector must work together to drive decisive climate action.
Discussion at the forum focused on scaling up private sector climate finance, promoting climate insurance and building resilient businesses and support for blue and green businesses.
Khaiyum said Fiji's national energy provider, Energy Fiji Limited, was continuing to grow its renewable energy portfolio, investing in hydro dams, and in large scale solar farms in the near future.
More Fijian manufacturers and tourism operators were installing solar rooftop panels. For example, the Coca-Cola factory outside of Suva now operates a 1.1 MW solar rooftop system; the largest privately-funded solar grid in the South Pacific.
Another great example of private sector investment was the development of the Nabou Biomass Power Plant outside Sigatoka that uses biomass for clean energy generation.
These are a few examples of how the private sector can help bridge the sustainable financing gap brought about by limited government resources, which was particularly important in developing countries like Fiji and the rest of the Pacific.
"We also need government donors and multilateral development agencies to help provide measures that de-risk investments," Khaiyum added.
