Office of the President, Kiribati, 5 September 2011—UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the President of Kiribati, Anote Tong, today stressed that climate change posed the most serious threat to the livelihoods, security and survival of the island nation's residents and the inhabitants of the wider Pacific region, saying the phenomenon was undermining efforts to achieve sustainable development.

Both leaders reaffirmed the need for urgent international action to reduce emissions of the harmful greenhouse gases and underlined the need make climate change adaptation funding available to finance the implementation of critical programmes to tackle the impact of climate change on communities there. See complete text...

Cancun, Mexico, 8 December 2010—His Excellency Anote Tong, President of the Republic of Kiribati, made a statement today at the occasion of the Opening Ceremony of the High Level Segment of the COP 16/CMP6.

In it, he expresses frustration that pledges made in Copenhagen have been largely unfulfilled and that there has been little real progress since last year's meeting. President Tong draws attention to the plight of the most vulnerable nations, calling them an "early warning to the international community", and calls for an inclusive approach as a way forward.

President Tong stresses the need for urgent action, calling upon the international community to stop treating the matter as "business as usual." His appeal to delegates is that; "The whole world and in particular the most vulnerable states in the frontline of the climate crisis are looking to Cancun to provide the global leadership needed for urgent action to ensure the survival of humanity—this is a struggle for humanity " See complete text...

Office of the President, Ambo, Kiribati, 12 November 2010—Kiribati's Tarawa Climate Change Conference (TCCC) ended by giving birth to the Ambo Declaration, a resolution of grave concern on the climate crisis calling for an immediate action on climate change funds.

The one-day intensive talks dragged on to the late hours of the evening, before delegates from frontline states such as the Maldives and the Marshall Islands and major developing nations, including Brazil and China, agreed on 18 points. See complete text...

World Bank, East Asia & Pacific Blog, 25 January 2011—Freshwater can be extremely scarce in the Republic of Kiribati, home to over 100,000 people scattered across 22 islands in the Central Pacific.

Each year after a long dry season, significant rainfall is generally expected to arrive during November or December. Yet over the last few months only a tiny amount of rain has fallen. The islands are dry. This is consistent with forecasts that predict La Niña conditions will result in below normal rainfall during the 2010-11 wet season across the Gilbert Islands of Kiribati.

"We are likely to see drought conditions for most of the Gilbert Group. In the last La Niña in 2007-08 there were drought conditions that went on for 15-16 months during that time," Douglas Ramsay, Manager for the Pacific Rim at NIWA, the New Zealand National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research explains. See complete text...

World Bank, South Tarawa, March 29, 2011—Over 37,000 mangrove seedlings have recently been planted on the islands of Aranuka, Butaritari, Maiana, Makin and in North and South Tarawa.

The seedlings were planted through an activity funded by KAPII (Kiribati Adaptation Program Phase II) under the supervision of the Government of Kiribati's Environment and Conservation Division.

Turang Favae, Acting Biodiversity and Conservation Officer at the Environment and Conservation Division says, "First and foremost it contributes to the building of coastlines and protects our shores against coastal erosion."

Mangroves, although considered a 'soft' option when compared to seawalls, can be one of the most effective forms of coastal protection that in addition provide a range of other benefits. See complete text...