The Canadian government has provided $15.3 million for the Climate Finance Access Network Initiative for Pacific Island nations.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says that small countries had limited capacity to navigate the complex world of climate finance.
He says they often lacked the dedicated technical support needed to develop projects through to their implementation stages.
He had discussed this challenge with Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama during their virtual meeting two weeks ago.
Through the Climate Finance Access Network, Pacific Island countries will now be able seek funds to develop specialist skills and expertise to work with Governments in accessing climate finance.
Fiji’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Satyendra Prasad says in accessing climate funds especially from the private sector remains a steep challenge for many Pacific island states.
He says the investment requirements of the private sector require different sets of skills in Government agencies.
Prasad says without a strong blend of private and public sector investments, many Pacific states will be unlikely to achieve their ambitious climate action targets adding the support by Canada is a crucial investment in human resource.
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