The Government of Samoa, the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP), and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) launched a series of regional trainings for enhancing capacities on climate resilience under the Project for the Capacity Building on Climate Resilience in the Pacific at the Pacific Climate Change Centre (CBCRP-PCCC) on 11 November 2019 at the PCCC.
The first training of CBCRP-PCCC took place from 11-15 November targeting the Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs), aiming to strengthen participants’ technical capabilities of the remote sensing technology and its application, and an overview of hazard and risk assessment for further adaptation actions in the region.
Participants from Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu and Tokelau are attending the week-long training.
The training covered basic knowledge of hazard and risk assessment, and practice model application to inform decision making and activities to increase climate resilience. The training is being delivered together with Japanese experts from the Remote Sensing Technology Centre of Japan (RESTEC), and Disaster Risk Management experts from the Pacific Community (SPC).
“With urbanisation spreading around the coast, many industrial and commercial activities are becoming more concentrated around the main urban areas and along coastline,” said Ms. Peseta Noumea Simi, Chief Executive Officer of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Samoa.
“At the same time, we also see the demand for coastal recreation and tourism development, continuing to increase. Such concentration of demand, and results of these activities competing with each other results in increasing environmental or cultural heritage conservation.
“The integrated use of remote sensing data and GIS will enable you to advise and contribute towards development and management plans for a variety of priority national development projects.”
The PCCC, hosted by SPREP under the bilateral assistance from the Government of Japan to Samoa, aims to deliver four functions, knowledge brokerage, applied research, capacity building and innovation, in response to the climate change needs of the Pacific region.
“Japan has been promoting a green, low-carbon, resilient and sustainable development for a very long time and remains committed to Climate Change Actions in the Pacific, which was proven when JICA recently launched the ‘CBCRP-PCCC’ project during the Eighth Pacific Leader’s Meeting (PALM 8) last year to support the operationalisation of the Capacity Building Function, which is one of the four main functions,” said Mr. Akihiko Hoshino, JICA Resident Representative of JICA Samoa Office.
This training is the first one of the 12 tailor-made trainings delivered through CBCRP-PCCC within its three-year project period, ending in June 2022. The training courses would cover adaptation, access to finance, and mitigation.
The courses will target government officials and practitioners of non-state stakeholders in the PICTs.
“We are pleased to also have collaborated with the Secretariat of the Pacific Community – SPC to develop and deliver this course. It is important to build where there is synergy and avoid duplication,” said Ms. Tagaloa Cooper, Director of Climate Change Resilience of SPREP.