‘Preferred partner': Baron Waqa calls for stronger US commitment
'Alakihihifo Vailala
, PMN
Pacific Islands Forum SG Baron Waqa, left, and New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon met in Wellington last week.
Photo:
Facebook / Christopher Luxon
Baron Waqa, the secretary general of the Pacific Islands Forum, says the United States continues to be the region's partner of choice, but adds that there is a need for greater involvement from Washington on crucial issues like climate change.
Waqa reassures Pacific communities and international partners that regional leaders are more united and determined than ever, despite recent diplomatic tensions involving New Zealand, Kiribati, and the Cook Islands.
During his official visit to New Zealand this week, Waqa gave an exclusive interview to
PMN News
.
He described current disagreements between Forum members as natural and healthy.
"It's not uncommon," Waqa says. "We've had in the past many rifts, they just don't see things eye-to-eye, but that's quite healthy, there's a show of maturity in our family.
"But at the end of the day, there's still that respect for each other as members of this bigger, greater foreign family, which is good."
Waqa's comments come in light of New Zealand's cancellation of its $102 million development programme with Kiribati and the lack of consultation from the Cook Islands over a comprehensive partnership agreement signed earlier this year with China.
"The forum stands ready to assist if there's any real concern there by anyone and wanting our assistance to mediate them," the former Nauruan President says, adding that no official request has been made as yet.
Waqa also met with NZ Deputy PM Winston Peters during his official visit to New Zealand.
Photo:
X / Winston Peters
Waqa reflects on recent meetings with international partners, including discussions with US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau.
"The partnership between the United States and the Pacific is very, very important, and that's what we're hearing from them as well," Waqa says.
"That is, I think, the most important for the Pacific because we want to engage with America, with the United States and they are our preferred partner."
He says that despite disagreements on issues like climate change, the need for more US involvement in the Pacific is vital to changing perspectives.
"That means we can continue to discuss our concerns, our vulnerability. We have to present it to them so they understand.
"No, I'm not too concerned because we have to respect them; they just came out of a big election, a big win for them, so no, we can discuss climate issues with them, why not, why not."
Waqa also addresses ongoing discussions about visa-free travel between Pacific nations and New Zealand.
"We know very well that New Zealand decide for themselves, but we always ask them and we're always putting it to them to consider having some kind of a reciprocal arrangement with the rest of us."
Looking ahead to the upcoming Pacific Islands Forum Leaders' Meeting in the Solomon Islands, Waqa emphasises that Pacific leaders are focused on asserting the region's collective priorities, particularly climate change, economic resilience, and the Pacific Resilience Facility (PRF).
He says United Nations Secretary General António Guterres has been invited to attend this year's meeting.
"They'll probably be sending some senior officials as well, but he'll be in the Pacific then. He's intending to attend some important programmes, but we would like to coordinate and see how well we can fit him into our own programme, the PIF leaders."
-This article was first published by
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We can have more jobs, higher wages, and a chance for every New Zealander to get ahead, but that means restoring a culture of ambition, aspiration, prosperity, and achievement. It means backing every farmer, every small business owner, every innovator, and every entrepreneur to compete and win. It means backing every Kiwi who backs themselves. And it means taking the action necessary to make it happen. Just look at our farmers and growers – and the action we've taken to unleash growth in rural New Zealand. Look, you might have noticed that dairy prices are pretty strong right now. Our dairy exports are up 16 per cent, meat and wool exports up 8 per cent, and horticulture exports up 19 per cent. But ask any farmer and they'll tell you prices come, and prices go. Hope isn't a strategy – and just letting the good times roll on isn't enough. If we're serious about unleashing the potential of our rural communities, we need to make our own luck. And ultimately that means unshackling farmers from the red and green tape holding their businesses back. I could run through all the policies and detail – but I'll give you one example of where it's making a difference. Here in Canterbury, broken freshwater rules introduced by the previous government effectively shut down dairy conversions, leaving New Zealand's most profitable industry utterly unable to grow. Now that Todd McClay and Chris Bishop have fixed it, 15,000 more cows have been approved here in Canterbury in just six months. We can have more growth, more exports, more jobs, and higher wages for every New Zealander – but we have to say yes to letting it happen. Construction and infrastructure are also top priorities. Years of rampant inflation, high interest rates, and the resulting painful recession have taken their toll on New Zealand's construction industry. I understand the frustration. We can't keep replicating the boom-bust cycle driven by unsustainable levels of spending, that as Labour showed, only ever ends in skyrocketing debt and record interest rates. The construction industry deserves a credible, sustained pipeline of projects, so they have the confidence to invest long term. Equally though, the public deserve real, cost-effective projects – that make a difference in their community at a good price. Let's get real – taxpayers can't drive to work on a business case, or an engagement survey. Endless paperwork and bureaucracy might keep consultants in business, but it won't do anything for economic growth. Unlike Labour, I can't promise the roads or bridges we design will win awards for urban design and cultural protection, but unlike Labour you will actually drive on them. And I can say that confidently, because our party, the National Party, has a track record of delivery. Spend one day here in Christchurch and you'll see exactly what I mean – modern, reliable highways, criss-crossing the city that just work. Or visit Waikato, or Kapiti, or the expressway north of Auckland to see the impact our Roads of National Significance programme has made for those communities. After years of pain, it will take time for the impact of falling interest rates to be felt in the construction industry. But we're doing everything we can to get the industry moving now. Before Christmas this year, more than $6 billion of projects will get underway. Projects like the Brougham Street upgrades here in Christchurch! The Otaki to Levin expressway! The Melling Interchange! Or – Ryan Hamilton and Tama Potaka – brand-new medical school at Waikato University! Private sector construction activity is also critical. New roads make a difference because people and freight are there to use them. That's why we have a massive programme of work clearing away the jungle of red tape which is slowing construction down in New Zealand. We've already achieved a lot – and more reform is happening right now. Fast Track is rolling, with more than 50 applications underway. And I'm incredibly excited to say that just yesterday the very first consent was released for upgrades at the Ports of Auckland, with construction set to kick off as soon as possible. A flood of legislative amendments will become law by the end of this month, unshackling construction of housing, renewable energy, infrastructure, and a range of other sectors. We're backing businesses to invest in more plant and equipment through Investment Boost, so the trucks, machinery, tools, and utes they need to grow are more affordable. And in just the last week, thousands of new building products from offshore have been approved for use, ushering in competition and driving down the cost of construction, for basic materials like plasterboard, doors, and windows. And of course, later this year is the big one – when Chris Bishop, having already achieved more reform to the RMA than any other Minister in decades, introduces legislation to finally do what so many have tried and failed to do before. Knock off the RMA, for good. The result will be transformative, as we bring an end to the red tape parade that plagues farmers, business owners, and builders all around the country. Of course, there will always be activists and opposition who don't want growth. Like the people who tried to stop cruise ships coming to Milford Sound, or an apartment getting built on a gravel pit on K Road in Central Auckland. Or people happy to shut down a gold mine in Otago, putting 700 jobs at risk. Or those defending a derelict death-trap – the Gordon Wilson Flats in central Wellington – when Victoria University has plans for more student accommodation in a city that desperately needs it. Each of those cases have now been resolved, but let's get real. If we want to make New Zealand an attractive place to build a career and raise a family, we need high-paying private sector jobs that create opportunity and keep our economy moving. Take a look at Australia. If they shut down their mining industry, or their energy industry tomorrow, as Labour and the Greens want to do here, I guarantee you would see fewer Kiwis moving across the ditch. And if the activists won here at home – pulling cows off the Canterbury Plains, taking cruise ships out of Milford Sound, or closing a gold mine in Otago, more would leave tomorrow. We can't afford to leave any stone unturned, shut down whole sectors, or just sit around and hope that conditions will improve. Creating more economic opportunities out of the underutilised DOC land is a great example of how we can make that mission a reality. It's not well known, but a whole third of this country is managed by the Department of Conservation – huge tracts from the most pristine parts of our National Parks to areas of grassland used for grazing and inaccessible land. And with such a massive footprint, it's no surprise that there are a range of great Kiwi businesses already operating on the DOC estate – from guided walks and ski fields, to filming documentaries, grazing sheep and cattle, or hosting concerts and building cell phone towers. And that includes some of our most iconic destinations, that Kiwis love, and visitors keep coming back to visit time and time again. But to do any of that you need a concession – essentially a permit – to stay within the rules and make sure the environment is protected. There's huge potential for growth on DOC land, so we're making real efforts to process those consent applications faster, with around 1,600 approved so far this year. But despite that progress, the concessions regime is fundamentally broken. Right now, an application has to clear more than 100 different plans, strategies, and documents that guide decision making – many of which are out of date and sometimes contradict each other. The process is too slow and too uncertain. All that uncertainty is degrading the quality of our visitor experience, because without a reliable process, business owners can't confidently invest in their business. At times, the impact on the ground has been baffling. E-bikes are tightly controlled because the law forces DOC to treat them in many areas more like a 4-wheel drive than a mountain bike. And growth in tourism on the Routeburn is being held up because the trail crosses artificial boundaries, with different rules and different limits. Meanwhile, DOC, who should be focused on protecting the environment, is forced to spend millions of dollars every year fighting appeals. At the heart of the issue is the Conservation Act, which is nearly 40 years old and now unworkably complex. And the effect has been to strangle economic activity on a third of New Zealand's land – when we should be unleashing growth, creating jobs, and increasing wages all across the country. So, in the spirit of saying yes to more jobs, more growth, and higher wages, today I can make two announcements. First, we're going to fix the Conservation Act to unlock more economic activity through concessions – like tourism, agriculture, and infrastructure, in locations where that makes sense. That means more certainty for businesses, less bureaucracy, and much faster decisions, so the businesses that should be operating can get up and running. There will still be restrictions to protect our amazing natural environment – so of course it won't make sense for businesses to be operating on every part of the DOC estate. But where it does make sense, we need to get to the 'yes' much faster – instead of being bogged down in process and uncertainty. If we're serious about keeping Kiwis at home, creating jobs, and increasing wages for all New Zealanders, we can't afford to keep saying no to every opportunity that comes our way. At the same time, sites that are truly special to New Zealanders should be protected. Which is why my second announcement is that we're giving DOC more support, by introducing a charge for foreign visitors at high volume sites. Initially, we will be looking at four locations – Cathedral Cove, Tongariro Crossing, Milford Track, and Mount Cook – where foreigners make up more than 80 per cent of all visitors. I have heard many times from friends visiting from overseas their shock that they can visit some of the most beautiful places in the world for free. It's only fair that at these special locations, foreign visitors make an additional contribution of between $20 and $40 per person. For the conservation estate that will mean $62 million per year in revenue, which will be directly re-invested into those same areas, so we can keep investing in the sites that underpin so much of our tourism sector. At the same time, there will be no charge for New Zealanders to access the conservation estate. It's our collective inheritance and Kiwis shouldn't have to pay to see it. Finally, the man responsible for delivering all of this – Tama Potaka, our great Minister of Conservation, Hamilton legend, can you stand up! Tama, thank you for all of the incredible work you do as part of our economic team, ensuring New Zealand's best days are ahead of us. The best part of this job – by a country mile – is the people. Every week I have the privilege of getting out of the Beehive, and meeting extraordinary New Zealanders who – like me – believe our country's best days are ahead of us. The loud, proud, and excited types. And the rugged, humble, quiet types. Kiwis who – in tough times – make the impossible possible every single week. Kiwis who work all day, and often all night, just to leave a better future for their children and grandchildren. We're doing everything we can to make that a little easier. In difficult times and in a world full of uncertainty, it's never been more important to stay focused. We have the potential. We have the team. And we have the plan. So, let's keep working.
