Fiji’s Speaker of Parliament Ratu Epeli Nailatikau attended the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association’s (CPA) Small Branches Sustainable Economic Development workshop in Malta.
The workshop was held with the aim to equip parliamentarians with the essential knowledge needed to effectively enact and support policies administered by their respective parliaments in the area of sustainable economic development.
At the workshop, Ratu Epeli shared the Fiji Parliament’s progress on mainstreaming the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in parliamentary processes, in particular, the publication in 2019 of a guidance note to assist Standing Committees to undertake effective oversight of SDGs implementation.
As part of the workshop, the participants were given a tour of Malta’s national water system that is managed by the Maltese Water Services Corporation.
Malta is a good example of a small island country with limited or virtually no viable natural resources but has adapted well to sustain a thriving population.
Malta does not have any rivers or above-ground water sources (apart from rainwater) and relies on a system that employs reverse osmosis, desalination and recycling and purification of wastewater.
CPA island country members were able to see firsthand how the system works and how it can be implemented in small island developing states where safe water sources are lacking.
The workshop ended last Friday.
