The Fijian government chairing this year's Pacific Climate Change Roundtable said Friday it is pleased with the progress of discussions over the past three days.

The meeting started Wednesday at the Fijian resort town of Nadi.

According to the Ministry of Information, Esala Nayasi, Political and Treaties Division director of Fiji's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said the meeting has progressed well as far as the government of Fiji is concerned.

"It has been a good platform for the exchange of views and experiences and there is a lot that countries in the region can learn from one another. Sharing information throughout the region is always difficult, so these types of platforms can really assist us," Nayasi said.

"It is informal in nature, so it allows for interactive discussions and it is open to development partners and all relevant stakeholders. It's an opportunity to put politics aside and talk climate change and how we can advance policies and strategies in our individual countries in order to better serve our communities... For us, there are a lot of lessons and good practices that we can learn from the experiences in other countries," he added.

A highlight of the sessions was a review of the integrated approach being taken in Choiseul, Solomon Islands, under the Choiseul Integrated Climate Change Programme, said the Ministry of Information, adding that the project aims to link activities across sectors, including agriculture, livestock, fisheries, forestry, education and meteorology, at the provincial and community levels.

"This is something Fiji is investigating further, the integrated approach at the provincial level. We would like to have a closer look at the concept in Solomon Islands and see how this model fits with what we are trying to achieve in Fiji," said Nayasi.

Various departments and levels of government in Pacific island countries and territories are responding to climate change across multiple sectors, with assistance from intergovernmental agencies including the Secretariat of the Pacific Community and support from donors and development partners. Enditem

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