Focusing on Ocean Diplomacy, India is all set to host the 2nd Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC) Summit in Jaipur on Friday. Heads of State and officials from 14 Pacific Island countries have started arriving in New Delhi to discuss initiatives to reduce carbon foot-printing by promoting renewable energy and promote trade and investment.
India is also keen to have technology tie-ups with some of these Pacific Island countries, as being located close to the Equator, they are ideal for country’s space programmes.
“We propose to share our experience and expertise in renewable energy, particularly the solar sector which is of particular importance for the sustainable development of Island countries because India as well as the Pacific Island countries are in the forefront of facing adverse impact of climate change… One of the main objectives of this Summit is to promote India’s trade and investment with these countries which of course is far below our potential,” said Anil Wadhwa, Secretary (East).
The Summit is an ideal forum for India to strategically increase its engagement in the resource-rich South Pacific region given the fact China is fast increasing its footprint in this area. The island nations participating in the FIPIC Summit are Fiji, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Cook Islands, Kiribati, Micronesia, Solomon Islands and Tonga.
During the First Summit held last year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a number of initiatives. These included an annual grant-in-aid to each of these 14 Pacific Island countries of about two lakh US dollars. Officials said already a number of projects in the areas of solar energy, disaster mitigation, construction sector, information technology, infrastructure, health and social sectors have been undertaken and a substantial number of Indian companies have participated in these projects.
India has also undertaken a number of bilateral cooperation programmes including training of diplomats from these countries. In addition, various experts from a number of fields have visited some of the Pacific Island countries for capacity building. India is also providing 229 ITEC slots and 33 scholarships to the Pacific Island countries.