Papua New Guinea puts $millions into Tuvalu’s fight to hold on to land

Papua New Guinea (PNG) is putting PGK25 million (about NZ$9.95 million) into Tuvalu’s efforts to reclaim and protect land from rising seas.

PNG Prime Minister James Marape announced the five-year commitment during the Pre-COP31 Leaders’ Segment in Funafuti.

He said PNG would provide PGK5m (NZ$6.22m) each year from the government's national budget.

The first PGK5m has already been transferred to Tuvalu’s Treasury to support immediate coastal protection work.

The money will support Tuvalu’s work to reclaim land and strengthen its coastline as sea levels rise.

The funding comes as Pacific leaders gather ahead of COP31 to push for more climate finance and practical action for communities already dealing with the effects of climate change.

Pacific leaders are calling for climate finance to deliver practical support for communities already facing the impacts of rising seas and climate change. Photo/Pacific Islands Forum

Marape says PNG wants Pacific countries to be able to protect their people and remain on their own land rather than being forced to relocate.

“My position since 2019 has been that relocation should not be the first answer,” Marape said ahead of his visit to Funafuti this week.

“We must explore every possible option to reclaim and protect land so that the people of Tuvalu can remain in their own country, retain their sovereignty and identity, and continue living in their homeland.”

Tuvalu is using land reclamation and coastal protection projects to help protect homes, schools and other vital infrastructure from rising seas. Photo/Facebook/Fiji goverenment

The funding will support the Tuvalu Coastal Adaptation Project, which is already working to reduce the threat from coastal flooding and rising seas.

Tuvalu is among the Pacific nations most exposed to sea-level rise. Its main island of Funafuti has already seen major land reclamation work as the country looks to protect homes, schools, and other key infrastructure.

Marape says the support is also about showing what Pacific countries can do for each other while they continue to call on larger economies to provide more climate finance.

“But we need more than voices and statements. We need action, climate financing and technology. Major emitting nations must take responsibility and assist countries already living with the consequences of climate change,” he said.

Watch Marshall Islands' Minister-in-Assistance to the President and Environment, Jess Gasper on this week's Executive Committee of the Warsaw International Mechanism for Loss and Damage associated with Climate Change Impacts (WIM ExCom) meeting in Majuro.

Tuvalu Prime Minister Feleti Teo welcomed the commitment as the two countries highlighted the need for practical regional support in the face of a climate crisis that threatens land, homes and communities.

“Declarations alone cannot physically fix eroding coastlines without substantial capital and resources,” he said.

“Because the real test of this pre-COP is not more speeches and promises, but actions that we will carry from Tuvalu to Fiji, to COP 31 in Tekia, and beyond. We should not have to borrow a way out of a crisis we did not create," Marape said.

The PNG contribution comes as the Pacific pushes to keep the 1.5°C warming limit within reach and secure more funding for climate adaptation ahead of COP31 in November.

The region’s own Pacific Resilience Facility is also seeking more funding, with current pledges still well below its long-term target.

The Pre-COP31 discussions in Tuvalu and Fiji end on Thursday. COP31 kicks off in Türkiye in November.