Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka in a powerful speech delivered during the United Nations General Assembly, emphasised the critical importance of economic prosperity to the security and resilience of Pacific nations, particularly Small Island Developing States (SIDS).
The Prime Minister highlighted the unique challenges faced by these nations in engaging with the global economy and called for urgent reforms to address their vulnerabilities and support their economic development.
“At the outset, we stress the importance of economic prosperity to the security of our Pacific countries and in building economic resilience to future shocks. “Strengthened economic pathways are critical in our quest for economic recovery, sustainable development and sovereign independence,” the Prime Minister said.
The Prime Minister stressed the role of strengthened economic pathways in achieving economic recovery, sustainable development, and sovereign independence.
“There is an imbalance of power held by global financial institutions; and there is a lack of representation of developing countries (including the Pacific) in the global discourse on international standards and norms.
“The existing global financial architecture perpetuates global economic inequality leading to unequal access to resources and opportunities.”
The Prime Minister highlighted the disproportionate burden placed on small administrations by global public finance management and anti-money laundering standards.
He emphasized the power imbalance in global financial institutions and the lack of representation of developing countries, including those in the Pacific, in discussions on international standards and norms.”
The continuous struggle to advocate and engage in multilateral conversations around access are proving very costly for SIDS and could potentially impede pathways for transformative action to economic progress, integration and resilience.”
