The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Immigration (MFAI) participated in the 58th Pacific Immigration Development Community (PIDC) board meeting and strategic planning workshop held in Samoa from March 3 to 6.

The two-day strategic planning workshop was an opportunity for the PIDC Board to pause and reflect on focal areas critical for immigration agencies in the region as well as consideration for the current border security settings in relation to capability development, technical enhancements, legislative strengthening and partnerships.

The current board comprises the Solomon Islands as chair, Vanuatu as the outgoing vice-chair, Tonga as the incoming vice-chair, Fiji representing Melanesia, American Samoa representing Polynesia, Kiribati representing Micronesia, and the Cook Islands representing the Smaller Island States. Australia and New Zealand serve as principal donors for PIDC programmes.

In a statement, MFAI principal immigration officer, Chere Arthur, said: “It is a pleasure for the Cook Islands to once again return as a member of the PIDC Board, to contribute our perspectives on priority immigration matters and gain insights from other Pacific jurisdictions as we work both independently and collectively to strengthen immigration capabilities across our region.”

“Cook Islands Immigration is undertaking several capability-strengthening initiatives, including the Cook Islands border management system ASYPX and the reactivation of the Combined Border Agencies Taskforce (CBAT).

“We see great value in sharing our experiences and learning from our regional counterparts on successes and lessons learned. For the Cook Islands, it is important that Board considerations are responsive to the priority immigration matters being experienced within national immigration jurisdictions, so PIDC can remain relevant in the vital services they provide to immigration authorities across our region.”

Planning and preparation are underway for the 59^th meeting of the Board, which will be hosted by the Kingdom of Tonga in the lead-up to the PIDC regional annual meeting.

• MFAI