UNITED NATIONS - / MaximsNews Network / 25 May 2009 -- Tokyo, Japan - Pacific island Heads of State and Government united their voices last week in Tokyo to call Japan and the world’s attention to the plight of their small nations in the face of worsening water circumstances.  

Before a hand-picked audience of Japanese political, government, business and academic leaders, the Pacific islands’ Presidents and Prime Ministers made a compelling case for their small island nations’ water predicament: namely, water shortages for some, flooding events for others, lack of adequate infrastructure facilities and equipment for most, deteriorating water quality conditions, and alarming sea level rise threats for all. 

Organized by the Japan Water Forum and the Asia-Pacific Water Forum (APWF), and supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan and The World Bank Tokyo Office, the significance of the roundtable chaired by H.E. Mr. Yoshiro Mori, former Prime Minister of Japan, lies in the fact that Mr. Mori committed to personally hand over his Chair’s Summary to sitting Prime Minister H.E. Mr. Taro Aso, in advance of the fifth Pacific Islands Leaders Meeting (PALM 5) held in Hokkaido later in the week. 

Mr. Mori and Japan’s strong endorsement of water security issues were heralded by the Pacific leaders, in speeches where transpired the hopes and aspirations these small island nations have for Japanese support.

To be sure, key excerpts from the speeches highlighted the Pacific Island nations’ heavy reliance on outside assistance for tackling their water woes, their nations’ gratefulness for Japanese assistance, the complexity of the web of challenges facing them, and their resolve in fulfilling the commitments and policy recommendations stemming from the 1st Asia-Pacific Water Summit, held in Beppu, Japan in December 2007.

“In the Federated States of Micronesia, water and sanitation is a priority area in our Strategic Development Plan and we are working to address them. Our development aspirations have also been hampered by a lack of water and sanitation structures as well as relevant human capability and technical know-how. […] I reaffirm my government’s full support of Ministers for Water Security Initiative in the Asia-Pacific Region” –H.E. Mr. Emanuel Manny Mori, President of the Federated States of Micronesia.

“In recent years, Government—with the kind assistance of Australia and Japan—purchased and installed approximately two hundred (200) water tanks to individual houses which resulted in eighty (80) percent of households on Nauru having rainwater tanks. A significant amount of these households however, have poor gutter conditions and connections to their tanks thereby resulting in inefficient collection of water. There are also safety concerns with the rainwater harvested from asbestos roofs or where there is dust from phosphate processing” –H.E. Mr. Marcus Stephen, President of the Republic of Nauru.

“The Government of the Republic of the Marshall Islands aligns itself in support of the Ministers for Water Security Initiative in Asia Pacific. […] At the regional level, I believe there exists a critical need for coordination and re-focusing of donor programs and project designs. There is a need to develop capacity and skills of Pacific island states in water management; skills in implementing projects to improve the environmental sustainability of water supply and usage. National capacity must be built if regional initiatives are to be of any effect.” –H.E. Mr. Litokwa Tomeing, President of the Republic of the Marshall Islands.

“The right to freshwater is one of the most fundamental human rights. As government leaders it is our responsibility to satisfy that right to life and water.” –H.E. Mr. Johnson Tribiong, President of the Republic of Palau.

“The Water Sector Plan also recognizes that with the implementation of improvements in water resource management and access to water supply and sanitation Samoa would make considerable strides in achieving the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) number 7 target” –H.E. Mr. Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi, Prime Minister of the Independent State of Samoa.

“Mr. President [Yoshiro Mori], perhaps we can adopt a “rubgy approach,”: Japan can play the pivotal key role, at fly-half, […] in directing us the remaining 14 team members to play the supporting moves to build a sustainable environment for the Pacific, with water and sanitation at the forefront” –H.E. Mr. Feleti Sevele, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Tonga.

Ms. Seiko Hashimoto, State Secretary for Foreign Affairs, also made a personal analogy in her introductory comments, outlining the need for the human body to be hydrated with clean potable water in order to reach its optimal performance, in remarks inspired by her extended Olympian career.

In his concluding statement, H.E. Mr. Anote Tong, President of the Republic of Kiribati noted that it is “evident from interventions coming from leaders around the table that we are facing problems in various forms with regards to water and sanitation. It is also evident from the discussions held at this meeting that there is a genuine desire from leaders in our countries to turn to the issues confronting them in terms of water and that we can only achieve much of the solution to our problems through effective partnerships”.

H.E. Mr. Yoshiro Mori in his Chair’s Summary stated that “the roundtable meeting called for ‘water security’ to be mainstreamed in national development agendas, with the recognition that more investments and regional cooperation are needed. In addition, participants agreed to facilitate cooperation and coordination among various sectors involved in water in each country as well as promoting the APWF Ministers for Water Security Initiative, which aims to send a strong message regarding regional water issues to the international community”.

Knowing full well the scale and complexity of the water challenges facing these small Pacific islands, their unified voice evidently needs resounding echo in order to etch progress.

 

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