Intro: China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued Cooperation?Between China?and?Pacific Island Countries in 2022. The document demonstrates cooperations between China and Pacific Island Countries?(PICs) in trade,?investment, ocean affairs,?environmental protection, disaster prevention and mitigation, poverty alleviation, health?care, education, tourism, culture, sports. This policy content is excerpted from chapter IV of this factsheet.
Full Text: Cooperation?Between China?and?Pacific Island Countries
Ocean Affairs and Environmental Protection
In 2017, China hosted the China-Small Island States?Ocean-related Ministerial Round?Table with the theme of “Blue Economy?and Ecological Islands”. Senior representatives from?Samoa, Fiji, Vanuatu and Niue?attended and addressed the meeting, which adopted and published?the Pingtan Declaration.
In light of?the needs of PICs, China has shared its?environmental protection experience and helped PICs improve environmental management capacity. In recent years, China has hosted multiple?seminars?for PIC officials, including on environmental protection and management, water pollution treatment, and water resource protection.
Climate Change
China takes PICs’?special?conditions?and concerns on climate change very seriously, and has been committed to helping them strengthen capacity to tackle?climate change.
In April 2022, the China-Pacific Island Countries Climate Change Cooperation Center was officially launched in Shandong Province of China.
Since?2019,?China has held three South-South cooperation training sessions?for PICs?under the theme of?“Tackling Climate Change for?Green?and Low-carbon Development”. China has also provided multiple batches of supplies to PICs to tackle climate change.
China has attached?importance to strengthening?renewable energy cooperation with PICs,?and supported?Chinese?enterprises in?joining?the construction of hydro-power stations in?countries such as PNG and Fiji.
Disaster Prevention and Mitigation
Since 2006, China has?carried out?earthquake mitigation cooperation with PICs.?It has helped countries such as?Samoa, Vanuatu?and Fiji to?build?seismic networks?and enhance earthquake monitoring?capacity.
In December?2021,?the China-Pacific Island?Countries?Reserve for Emergency?Supplies was officially?launched?in Guangdong Province of?China.
China?provided?immediate humanitarian aids when?PICs?were hit by natural disasters.?In January 2022, a large-scale volcanic eruption struck?Tonga,?which?triggered?disasters such as tsunami?and?ash?fallout.?The Chinese government was highly concerned?and acted immediately, making China?the first country in the world to?provide assistance to Tonga.