South Pacific Conference: the Next 50 Years

Hon Deborah Morris today addressed the 37th South Pacific Conference in Canberra.

The Conference marks the 50th anniversary of the South Pacific Commission, with the theme of 'Challenges for the next fifty years'.

"It is important for us as a region to plan for our future, and who knows, it may be possible for me to be with you today, and to reassemble again in 2047 with a future generation of leaders who will gather then to celebrate the one hundredth anniversary of this organisation," said Deborah Morris.

Before leaving for Canberra, the Minister said, "Time and again we tell young people that they are the future of the world... but if that is the case, how often do we really give them a say in what that future should be? Parliamentarians don't have a good track record of involving young people in decision making. But, without that involvement and communication, we are in grave danger of taking decisions that are based on just part of the information. How much better would the decisions be if decision makers took all of the information into account?"

"So, as we plan for the next fifty years of our region, I will be doing my part to ensure that youth are involved in planning for their future," concluded the Minister.

New Zealand is a founding member of the South Pacific Commission. The Commission was established to provide a forum for the peoples of the Pacific region to discuss shared problems and provide advisory and consultative services.