Samoa’s hosting of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in 2024 is an opportunity for the island nation to showcase the impact of climate change.

That is the view of the Commonwealth Secretary General, Patricia Scotland, during an interview with Pacific News Service (PACNEWS) on the sidelines of the 10th OACPS [Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States] Summit in Luanda, Angola which ended on Saturday. 

CHOGM will bring together delegations from 56 nations from across Africa, the Caribbean, Europe, Asia and the Pacific.

Ms. Scotland told PACNEWS that the meeting in Apia is a chance for the members of the organisation to witness the reality of life in the Pacific.

“Well, it’s a great pleasure to have the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting hosted in the Pacific on a small island such as Samoa, which is beautiful," she said. 

"What it will do it will be enable all the member states to taste and see the reality of what living in the Pacific is like.

“The great opportunities, the great beauty, but also the great danger, the great challenge, the great threat."

Last Friday the Commonwealth Secretary General held a bilateral meeting with Samoan Prime Minister Fiame Naomi Mata’afa. PACNEWS understands they discussed preparations for the CHOGM meeting.

Prime Minister Fiame spoke on behalf of Pacific ACP states at the 10th OACPS Summit in Luanda, Angola. 

Climate change remains the single greatest threat to the Pacific and is expected to be a topic of discussion among the Leaders during CHOGM in 2024.

“You know, sometimes it’s hard to understand what others are experiencing until you step into their shoes. You see through their eyes," added Ms. Scotland. 

"You hear what they hear, and you feel what they feel, and we know that the beauty of the Pacific, the big blue Pacific is now under real threat. The demands for security are there.“

"And if we want to preserve the beautiful Blue Pacific, we’re going to have to fight for it. So it’s a great moment for the whole Commonwealth, from the biggest country, India, 1.31 -1.4 billion people to the smallest of us now, Nauru, to come together in the beautiful big Blue Pacific and to understand better what we’re all fighting for."