THROUGH BOLD PROJECT, SAMOA WORKS TO BUILD RESILIENCE, PRESERVE IDENTITY FOR SUSTAINABLE FUTURE

SAMOA, October 2 - [PRESS RELEASE 3 October 2025, Apia] – Samoa is taking active steps to build resilience by capitalising on a “new era” where Pacific communities placed at the forefront of climate change impacts can begin to systematically define, address and seek support for climate-change induced loss and damage.

The new era follows three decades of advocacy and active engagement by Pacific countries, led by Vanuatu as chair of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) in 1991, for the global community to recognise loss and damage not just as a concept but a lived reality that must be addressed.

On Friday, key environment stakeholders in Samoa gathered at the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) headquarters in Valima for the Building Our Pacific Loss and Damage (BOLD) Response Project Inception Workshop for Samoa as one of the countries under this project.

Assistant CEO Environment Sector Coordination Division of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MNRE), Ms Amituna’i Moira Faletutulu, said the workshop is an important milestone for Samoa to transition from planning to implementation.

“Loss and Damage as we know refers to climate impacts beyond what we can adapt to. These are the damages that touch our people, our ecosystems, our cultures, and our identities,” Ms Faletutulu said.

“For Samoa, where our wellbeing, cultural heritage and relationship with the land and the ocean are deeply intertwined, the significance of this work cannot be overstated.”

The BOLD Response Project, a six-year project funded by the International Climate Initiative in Germany, aims to strengthen Pacific island countries’ resilience to climate-related loss and damage.

The one-day workshop facilitated by SPREP and Climate Analytics launches Samoa’s BOLD Response project and provide a platform to consider the projects objectives and approach. It was an opportunity for interaction amongst key stakeholders to discuss the project and ensure the approach to achieve the agreed objectives are aligned with national priorities, needs, and existing efforts.

“Through this work, we will be better positioned to access financing from the new Loss and Damage Fund and ensure that Samoa remains at the forefront of shaping global conversations on loss and damage,” Ms Faletutulu added.

“The BOLD Project is not just responding to climate loss and damage, it is about building resilience, preserving our identity and ensuring a sustainable future for Samoa.”

The workshop set the priorities to guide the development of a country-level draft project concept to assist the implementation of activities under the project in the coming years.

SPREP’s Climate Change Adaptation Adviser, Ms Muliagatele Filomena Nelson, said the workshop was an opportunity for SPREP and Climate Analytics to engage with key Samoa stakeholders to deepen understanding of the BOLD Response project.

“The long-term nature of the BOLD project enables us to invest in the critical relationships in each country as well as across the region,” she said. “This will help us to develop resources that respond directly to local priorities and needs.”

The subject of Loss and Damage was first introduced to the UN Climate Negotiations by Vanuatu in 1991, on behalf of the Alliance of Small Island States, proposing the creation of an insurance scheme for countries likely to be impacted by climate change such as rising sea-levels.

Since then, loss and damage has been a continuous priority for Pacific countries with a major breakthrough coming in 2022 with the establishment of the Loss and Damage Fund at COP27.

At Dubai in COP28, the historical agreement on the capitalisation of the Loss and Damage Fund was hailed as a major victory by Pacific countries.

But there is still much work to be done, and the BOLD project is a key step for Pacific countries. A core focus of the BOLD Response Project will be on supporting communities in addressing non-economic losses. By enabling Pacific countries integrate loss and damage considerations in their national planning, the project has the potential to safeguard important economic and non-economic values.

The BOLD project is being implemented in the Fiji, Republic of Marshall Islands, Samoa, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.

For more information on the BOLD Project, please contact SPREP Climate Change Adaptation Adviser, Ms Filomena Nelson filomenan@sprep.org or Climate Analytics – Patrick Pringle patrick.pringle@climateanalytics.org

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Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme – SPREP