Relocating communities: Tonga and the Solomon Islands call for more action now

Relocating communities is already happening in Tonga and the Solomon Islands. During the regional dialogue on Loss and Damage earlier in Samoa earlier this month, it was evident that the emotional toll of having to relocate because of the rising waters or forced displacement due to a natural disaster, communities are left with very little choice but to move. 
It’s been four years since the volcanic eruption in Tonga and subsequent tsunami forced displacement of communities from the outer islands to the mainland. Maikolo Fonua says there is still a lot of work to be done in terms of emotional trauma support. 
“Every time there is a tsunami warning like that earthquake in Europe. It triggers the memory of the tsunami so there is still a lot of work to be done in terms of the support, emotionally, mentally,” he said.
“Assessing the impacts on the children, still a lot of work to be done to deal with the trauma”
Maikolo Fonua says: “Some of them, they experienced shock, in terms of the changes of their livelihoods. Some of them rely on fishing for example, for their day to day subsistence but since they moved to the main island they can’t do fishing like they used to. There’s an extra cost of traveling out from the mainland to fish.”
In the Solomon Islands, relocating communities is already being done because of the rising sea level however relocating entire communities is very complicated according to its National Coordinator for Loss and Damage, Derek Mane. 
Relocation assessments have been done in two ways. 
“One is the outer communities moving inland to their traditional ancestral lands, which is much easier process”. 
However, relocating communities is not an easy exercise because it’s not just the physical movement of people from one area to another. 
Derek Mane says there is a lot of work to be done, such as the critical consideration of governance. 
“This is a complicated case, because now we need to decide which provincial government has the ordinances, in terms of moving a group or community of people to a province”. 
“In our basis assessments, relocations can be done in two ways, one is atoll communities moving in land to their traditional ancestral land. The challenge is with relocating the Atoll communities like the Lord Howe communities (Polynesian inhabited atoll Islands). They are isolated from the major Islands. These atolls are more at risk and their case would be much more complicated because the atolls are where they live and inhabit. They will need to move to the main islands, which are customarily owned by other people; therefore, we will have to look at which provinces have ordinances to accommodate them in terms of relocation.’
Derek Mane says that the assessment of existing governance frameworks in the Solomon Islands local government bodies, only one provincial government have an existing ordinance with the Solomon Central Island Province. 
The Solomon Islands will be holding their national dialogue in October
Meanwhile, Maikolo Finau from Tonga says it is now time to act and to mobilize funds to help the communities sharing what he hopes to see as an outcome to the second regional dialogue and the Pacific Climate Change Roundtable in Samoa.  
“I’m hoping to see some actions because there have been a lot of dialogue not just Pacific loss and damage but there are other dialogues around climate change so I think the impacts of climate change, the impacts of loss and damage is evidenced. We have enough evidence but we need to find ways to mobilize funds so we can assist the communities now”
“We can’t continue this dialogue and delay the actions. What I’m saying is we need more action in terms of loss and damage and climate change in general.”

END.

This story was produced by BCN News Editor/Head of News Ms G.Esther Pavihi who was part of the Pacific Media Team covering the meetings earlier this month in Samoa. The team’s attendance is made possible with funding support from the Loss and Damage Capability and Capacity (LDCC) Project with the Government of New Zealand. 

The Pacific Regional Loss and Damage Dialogue 2025 was held from 11-12 August at Taumeasina Island Resort. It follows the inaugural Pacific Youth Dialogue on Loss and Damage, held from 7- 8 August, at the same venue in Samoa. The Pacific Regional Loss and Damage Dialogue 2025 and the inaugural Pacific Youth Dialogue on Loss and Damage are made possible with funding support from the Loss and Damage Capability and Capacity (LDCC) Project with the Government of New Zealand. 

Hosted by the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP), the dialogues brought together Pacific governments, youths, civil society, academia, NGOs, and the private sector to collectively advance the region’s priorities on Loss and damage.