IB2020/3 Assessing China’s Climate Change Aid to the Pacific

Climate change is the single greatest challenge faced by Pacific Island countries (PICs) (PIF Secretariat 2018:10). Unsurprisingly, the battle against climate change has been placed at the heart of PICs’ national policies. As Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) Dame Meg Taylor stated, ‘the highest priority for our region is climate change mitigation and adaptation’. Climate change has become a thorny issue in Australia-Pacific relations as PICs accuse their largest donor of falling short of the region’s expectations on addressing climate change. In contrast, the Pacific’s second largest donor — China — has seemingly been under less pressure, although it remains the world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gases. Given these circumstances, this In Brief discusses China’s climate change aid to the Pacific and highlights that China’s various forms of commitments are set to continue, although they are not the highest priority for the government.