by Charley Piringi
Pacific Island Ministers for Disaster Risk Management have reaffirmed their collective commitment to stronger political leadership, coordinated regional action, and inclusive, community-driven resilience across the Blue Pacific Continent.
Meeting in Koror, Palau, last week, the Ministers adopted the Koror Declaration, a renewed pledge to strengthen disaster preparedness and climate adaptation in a region increasingly battered by cyclones, droughts, sea-level rise, and other climate-driven crises.
“This declaration is a call to act together, to protect our people, strengthen our systems, and ensure that Pacific resilience is Pacific-led,” the Ministers said in a joint statement.
Chair of the DRM and Vice President Raynold B. Oilouch and Palau, earlier said, “Through the enhanced regional cooperation and mechanisms we are establishing this coming week, we are building the resilience our islands need to safeguard our people, our cultures, and our way of life for generations to come.”
The declaration commits Pacific nations to fully implement the 2050 Strategy for the Blue Pacific Continent and the Framework for Resilient Development in the Pacific (FRDP), aligning national policies with regional and global disaster risk reduction goals.
Among the key outcomes:
- Endorsement of the Pacific Humanitarian Response Coordination Mechanism (PResCoM) to improve regional disaster response.
- Support for the Pacific Regional Framework on Climate Mobility to address displacement caused by rising seas and extreme weather.
- A commitment to enhance early warning systems and improve the use of space-based data for faster, life-saving decision-making.
- A pledge to mobilise sustainable financing through both domestic budgets and global partnerships, ensuring communities can adapt without increasing debt burdens.
The Ministers also endorsed the creation of a Pacific DRM “Troika” Champion, composed of outgoing, current, and incoming meeting chairs, to lead high-level advocacy for the Pacific in global disaster and climate discussions.
The Koror Declaration follows the Nadi Declaration of 2022 and builds momentum toward the Pacific’s 2025 Strategic Agenda for Disaster Risk Management, focusing on inclusive, integrated, and well-funded resilience across all island nations and territories.
The declaration states “No one should be left behind, from atoll communities facing inundation to urban families hit by floods. Our resilience must begin with our people.”
