SOLOMON Islands has presented national papers on key regional issues during the Forum Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (FFMM) in Suva, Fiji, from 14–18 August.
Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and External Trade, Collin Beck, confirmed this on Sunday after returning from the meeting.
Speaking on SIBC’s talkback show, Beck said Solomon Islands highlighted the need for a collective regional approach to visa-free travel, unexploded ordnance (UXO), nuclear discharge, tuna, and climate change.
On visa arrangements, Beck said Pacific integration over the past 54 years has mostly been at the bilateral level.
“We are trying to ask that there be a regional approach. We would like the Pacific Directors of Immigration to look at this issue and come up with some form of arrangement so we can move freely within the Pacific,” he said.
On UXO, Beck acknowledged the support of the United States, Australia and Japan in clearing World War II ordnance but stressed that Solomon Islands wants to see a broader, coordinated regional effort.
He also raised concerns about nuclear issues, noting that while the 40-year-old Rarotonga Treaty covers nuclear-free arrangements in the region, the situation has changed due to geopolitics, militarisation, and the continued discharge of nuclear waste into the Pacific Ocean.
On tuna, Beck underscored the need for the Pacific to secure greater benefits from its resources. He said 61 percent of tuna catch comes from Solomon Islands waters, contributing to 26,000 jobs across the region.
“The region is getting about US$500 million from fishing licences. Currently, the export value is US$1.2 billion. But if we develop projects like Bina and other processing facilities to convert tuna into export products, this could grow into a US$6 billion industry,” he said.
On climate change, Beck said Pacific Leaders are working to sign the Pacific Resilience Facility, a regional financing mechanism to strengthen disaster preparedness and build climate resilience.
