Media Advisory: Consultation on the 11th European Development Fund

A regional programming consultation will take place this week on 27 February 2014 at the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat in Suva, Fiji. The objective of the consultations is to agree on the priority areas in which the European Union’s cooperation with the Pacific will focus for the 11th European Development Fund (EDF), covering the period 2014-2020. Representatives of the fifteen Pacific ACP countries, three French Pacific Overseas Countries and Territories, regional and international organisations, civil society organisations, the European Union and development partners are going to take part in the consultation, which is jointly organised by the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat (PIFS) and the European Union. News media are invited to send a reporter and cameraperson/photographer to the following events on 27 February 2014: 9am-9.30am 

Opening Statements by Co-chairs (Tuiloma Neroni Slade, Secretary General of the PIFS and Regional Authorising Officer; and Dirk Meganck, Director Asia, Central Asia, Middle East/Gulf and Pacific, European Commission) 9.30am-10.15am Signing of the Financing Agreement for 10th EDF Adapting to Climate Change and Sustainable Energy (ACSE) project and the Launch of cooperation between PIFS, the Melanesian Spearhead Group Secretariat, and the Office of the Chief Trade Adviser under the Pacific Integration Technical Assistance Project (PITAP), followed by a group photo. 5.30pm Press Conference at the conclusion of the consultation. VENUE: Ryoichi Jinnai Conference Centre, Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat, Ratu Sukuna Road, Suva, FIJI. Please provide the name(s) of your journalist(s) attending the press conference to the Secretariat’s media team via media@forumsec.org or contact Mereseini Tuivuniwai on +679 999 8677 by 3pm, 26 February. Press passes will be made available to journalists at the Secretariat guardhouse. 

Journalists are requested to bring with them photo identification. ENDS For media enquiries and/or to arrange an interview please contact: Delegation of the European Union for the Pacific Suva, Fiji, Tel: (+679) 3313-633 Email: Delegation-fiji-media@eeas.europa.eu Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat: Diane Abad, Communications Adviser (+679) 868 5166 Email: media@forumsec.org Background Information The European Development Fund (EDF) is the main instrument for delivering EU development cooperation funding under the Cotonou Partnership Agreement with African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) States. Each EDF covers a six-year period, however the 11th EDF will cover the period 2014-2020. The 15 Pacific ACP countries include Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Timor Leste, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu. During the consultative meeting in Suva on 27 February, delegates will discuss issues including: • Overview of the Pacific Regional Indicative Programmes and lessons learned from the past and ongoing cooperation; • Overview of the 11th EDF regional programming guidelines; • Update on Pacific Plan review; and • Links and complementarities between regional priorities, and initiatives launched within the Pacific ACP countries. The meeting will include group discussions which will allow participants to develop strategic options for each of three sectors of intervention, as a basis for the definition of the Regional Indicative Programmes for the 11th EDF resources.