Fiji's prime minister calls on Australia to adopt clear climate targets

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Fiji's Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama has called on his friend Scott Morrison to do more to limit Australia's carbon emissions, weeks after the government rejected adopting a zero-emissions by 2050 target. Addressing a virtual renewable energy summit on Wednesday, Mr Bainimarama said the Pacific was facing a dual crisis a crippling pandemic and a warming planet. He warned against reverting to what is easy in the wake of the Covid-19 economic fallout, and instead called for big, bold, blue and green ideas to tackle the existential threat of climate change.

Mr Bainimarama said, Much like a face mask in a country struggling with a large scale coronavirus outbreak, clean energy investments yield far reaching economic, social and health benefits that will span generations. Nations like our neighbours in New Zealand get it. So I ask Australia, and all highly developed nations of the world, what is your true competitive advantage?.

As an example, he pointed to New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who he commended for her pledge to transition entirely to renewable energy sources by 2030.