Niue targets $30.3m to fund ocean protection plan

Niue has announced a first-of-its-kind sustainable funding initiative to ensure the long-term conservation of its sovereign waters.

Niue’s Premier Dalton Tagelagi, who is attending the United Nations General Assembly this week, said the ocean conservation commitments or OCCs would be managed by charitable trust Ocean Wide.

Under the plan, individuals or companies can pay US$148 (NZ$251) to protect 1km² of ocean from threats such as illegal fishing and plastic waste for 20 years, he said.

“Niue hopes to raise more than US$18 million [NZ$30.3m] from the scheme by selling 127,000km² units, representing the 40% of its waters that form a no-take marine protected area.”

Tagelagi’s announcement came as more than 70 countries, including Pacific Islands Forum member states Palau, Solomon Islands, Fiji, Tuvalu, Federated States of Micronesia, Samoa, and New Zealand, signed up to conserve biodiversity on the high seas.

The global pact, biodiversity beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ), was agreed upon in March and formally adopted by the UN in June.

The Pacific Islands Forum said the BBNJ – a crucial tool to meeting the target set last year – would protect 30% of the Earth’s land and sea by 2030, also known as the “30 by 30”.

“The treaty still needs to be ratified on a national level before it goes into effect.”

Located between Tonga and the Cook Islands and 2800km from Aotearoa, Niue is a raised 269km² coral atoll with a population of 1700 people.

It is also part of New Zealand’s realm, so the NZ Government provides Niue with aid and assistance in running its affairs, and the island’s citizens are New Zealand citizens.

Tagelagi said the trust, or NOW, was set up to support Niue’s ambitious conservation goals and “foster a sustainable blue economy environment for the people of Niue”.

He said the government would sponsor 1700 OCCs, one for every resident of Niue.

The premier said his people always had a close connection with the sea, inheriting knowledge about the ocean and sea from their ancestors.

“And they will want to be able to pass it on to the next generation in sustainable health,” Tagelagi said.

“As a small island nation, Niue’s vast marine territory island holds immense ecological, cultural, and economic value to our people. Its ecosystem services also provide regional and global environmental benefits.

“The ocean is everything to us. We are also proud that several NGOs and private donors have already committed to sponsoring the first OCCs: the Blue Nature Alliance, Chris Larsen and Lyna Lam, and Conservation International.”

Most Niueans fish to sustain their livelihood, the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation said, “although there are some small-scale commercial operations and occasional offshore industrial-scale fishing”.

“Unregulated fishing can deplete fish stocks, which then cannot replenish, while plastics can be ingested by or entangle marine wildlife.

“Human-caused climate change has led to warmer and more acidic oceans, altering ecosystems for underwater species.”

Tagelagi said Niue was also vulnerable to rising sea levels and at risk of more intense tropical storms charged by warmer air and waters.

The government announced on Monday that Pacific Catastrophe Risk Insurance Company was ready to strengthen Niue’s disaster resilience efforts.

Financial Secretary Doreen Siataga said virtual meetings with the company had focused on exploring the potential for a tropical cyclone parametric insurance policy coverage.

“This initiative marks a significant step forward, building upon the productive discussions that initially unfolded during the 2023 Forum Economic Ministers meeting in Fiji, where the PCRIC team had the opportunity to engage with the Niue delegation.”

The UN General Assembly ends on Saturday, NZ time.