Distinguished Heads of Agriculture and Forestry Services in the Pacific
Subregional Coordinator for the FAO Subregional Office, Ms Xiangjun Yao
Director for the Lands and Resources Division of The Pacific Community, Ms Karen Mapusua
Members of country and partner delegations,
Ladies and Gentlemen.
Mālō e lelei and greetings. I am pleased and honoured to welcome you all to this ‘ Ninth Session of the Pacific Heads of Agriculture and Forestry Services’ meeting. I am very heartened to see so many of you in attendance, despite the many commitments competing for your time, and despite the logistical difficulties a virtual meeting brings, with time differences and connection issues. Your presence today reaffirms the importance of this platform, one which provides us with an opportunity to come together to share and plan as a region.
Before I continue, please allow me to convey a sincere ‘ Malo 'Aupito’ to Dr. Tukana and the Government of Fiji for their excellent stewardship of the Pacific Heads of Agriculture and Forestry Services meetings over the past years. Fiji’s commitment to bring to the fore and put into action our region's growing recognition for a coordinated regional approach for our Agriculture and Forestry sectors is now coming to fruition. The strengthening of our regional structures and focus will further support us in our own work back home in each of our countries. As Tonga steps in to take over the helm of this very important meeting, it is my, and my government's hope, to continue to guide our region to ensure that the decisions and work generated from this platform take into consideration the unique characteristics of our region and the many opportunities available to us to reinvigorate and rejuvenate our agriculture and forestry sectors.
A thank you is also in order to The Pacific Community and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations for your support towards making this meeting possible.
Ladies and gentlemen,
It should not be lost on us that the sectors of Agriculture and Forestry, of which we serve, are the backbone for our Pacific countries. Yes the challenges and barriers facing development in these sectors are many. I do not need to list out for you what these are, we know what they are. I am therefore pleased that in our agenda today, we will be holding wide-ranging discussions, zoning in on opportunities and solutions for the many challenges that we face. The strong focus of our meetings agenda on regional planning and strengthened collaboration is essential for the development of our sectors, however, we must ensure that the tools can also support us at the national level.
I am pleased and heartened to acknowledge the many partners we have present in our virtual room today. I am even more pleased to note that we are joined by our Civil Society and Private Sector partners. Strong partnerships are essential to ensure our actions are holistic and have a sustained impact across the Agriculture and Forestry sectors. We have here an opportunity over the coming days to guide the agriculture and forestry agenda for partners to work together and coordinate their work plans, and be more responsive to our needs as a region.
Ladies and gentlemen,
We have a packed agenda before us, and as mentioned above, we have a wide-ranging assortment of technical topics to discuss and debate. I encourage a robust and honest talanoa over the next few days for the betterment of our Agriculture and Forestry sectors.
Thank you, Malo ‘Aupito.
