Our work

This year the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) will expire and will be replaced with a new set of sustainable development goals that will be agreed during a summit of world leaders in September. Including the Pacific voice in these global discussions is essential if we are to ensure the new development paradigm takes into account the key challenges and opportunities facing our region.

PiPP has been engaged in the post-2015 process through its association with the UN Secretary General’s High Level Panel of Eminent Persons, the Government of Timor-Leste, Pacific island governments and the g7+ secretariat. Throughout the final phase of the intergovernmental negotiation to determine the post-2015 development agenda, will continue to support the government of Timor-Leste, through its Permanent Mission to the UN in New York, along with other Pacific island delegations. In doing so we continue to solicit Pacific thinking and research on the priority issues for our region, including climate change, ocean management and conservation, peacebuilding and statebuilding, non-communicable diseases, gender and inclusive economic growth.

The Pacific is increasing in strategic value as global powers ‘pivot’ into the region. Pacific island leaders are looking for ways to accommodate and benefit from this renewed interest in Oceania, and to maintain peace and cohesion while maximising development opportunities. This year we will continue to stimulate informed discussion and thinking around security issues, regionalism, aid effectiveness, multilateralism and bilateral diplomacy. We will work through our existing partnerships and forge new ones, especially with the revitalised peak regional body – the Pacific Islands Forum.

At the national level, we are continuing to witness a changing governance landscape. An emerging younger generation is increasingly impatient to see change, forcing a rethink on how to address the dislocation between politics and citizens and improve service delivery. Under our on-going programme of citizen engagement, we will build on the research and events pioneered in Vanuatu over the last few years to stimulate informed debate and thinking about prevailing governing systems and explore options to strengthen the social contract between the state and its citizens. Our focus this year will be on addressing the gender divide in national decision making. We will also continue our efforts to make essential information, including government budgets and statistics, accessible as another step towards ending the closed-door discussions of public policy. By bringing information and policy discussions together we can offer a richer environment for shaping good policy.

These overarching themes will guide our work programmes for this year, while also responding to pressing issues and demand for relevant information and debate. The following pages showcase our current and past achievements through our commentary, discussion papers, events, features, partnerships and research efforts.