Senior Officials from the Governments of Pacific Island Countries (Palau, the Solomon Islands, and Tonga) and Related Organizations Visit WOTA
On March 12, 2026, senior officials from the governments of Pacific Island countries—Palau, the Solomon Islands, and Tonga—as well as related organizations, visited WOTA’s office.
In addition to government representatives from each country, officials from the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) Secretariat and the Government of Japan also took part. The visit included an exchange of views on water infrastructure in the Pacific region, as well as the potential use of small-scale decentralized water circulation systems.
In particular, there were active discussions on the needs for both household and disaster-preparedness applications, as well as on the feasibility of implementation in light of the unique infrastructure constraints faced by island countries.
Participants
Government of Palau
- Jeffrey Antol, Director, Bureau of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Ministry of State
- Symone Ubedei, Chief, Asia-Pacific Desk, Ministry of State
Government of the Solomon Islands
- Hickson George, Deputy Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and External Trade
- Tania Wickham, Asia Desk Officer, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and External Trade
Government of the Kingdom of Tonga
- Paula Ma’u, Deputy Secretary, Prime Minister’s Office
- Jeanett Vea, Deputy Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) Secretariat
- Rose Wete, Engagement Adviser – International Partnerships
Government of Japan (Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Related Officials)
- Jiro Okuyama, Ambassador in charge of the Pacific Islands Leaders Meeting (PALM)
- Kenichi Kasahara, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to Palau
- Hisao Inagaki, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to Tonga
- Keiichi Higuchi, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to the Solomon Islands
- Miina Matsuyama, Official, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
- and other related officials