The British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly is scheduled to arrive in Samoa on Wednesday and will meet with Prime Minister Fiamē Naomi Mataʻafa.

On his first visit to the Pacific Islands, which will see him visit Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, and Samoa the British Government's top diplomat "will announce a renewal of partnerships with Pacific nations, including millions in new funding to boost the region’s prosperity," according to a press release issued on Wednesday by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.

Mr. Cleverly will join New Zealand's Foreign Minister, Nanaia Mahuta for a joint program in Samoa, before they travel to Wellington on Friday.

In Samoa, Mr. Cleverly will join Prime Minister Fiamē and New Zealand's Minister Mahuta to hold trilateral talks, see the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme, and visit the Villa Vailima, the former home of Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson’s in Samoa.

"The UK supports a free and open Pacific. At the very centre of this effort is partnering for the long haul with our friends in the Pacific Islands, listening to their priorities, and working alongside them as they forge their own futures," Mr. Cleverly said.

"The UK is redoubling its engagement in the Pacific, offering our expertise in tackling climate change, protecting the region’s oceans, promoting public health, and supporting open societies and a free media." 

In PNG, the Foreign Secretary will meet PNG's Foreign Minister Justin Tkatchenko, and Prime Minister James Marape. He will also see a Fleming Fund-backed hospital in Port Moresby, visit the Grass Skirts project which promotes women's and girl’s rights, and lay a wreath at the Bomana Commonwealth War Cemetery.

In the Solomon Islands, he will hear from journalists who have taken part in a UK government-backed, BBC-led training program, and meet Prime Minister Mannaseh Sogavare and Foreign Minister Jeremiah Manele.

The Foreign Secretary and Foreign Minister Mahuta will then fly to Wellington together on Friday. Cleverly will be greeted at the New Zealand parliament by a traditional Māori Pōwhiri ceremony, before holding talks with Foreign Minister Mahuta and Prime Minister Chris Hipkins. Later in the day, he will participate in a rugby training session with players in the Black Ferns, New Zealand’s women’s rugby union team.

During his trip, the Foreign Secretary will announce new commitments to show the United Kingdom's support for a free and open Pacific. Funding of £4.5 million will be announced by Mr. Cleverly to connect communities in PNG and across the Pacific to clean energy sources, such as by providing an alternative to common but expensive and polluting generators. More UK experts will also work with Pacific communities to tackle marine pollution and maintain clean, healthy oceans, as part of the United Kingdom's £500 million Blue Planet Fund.

The breakdown of this week’s funding and other commitments is as follows:

• A £3.5 million investment for the Pacific Clean Energy Programme in Papua New Guinea, to be delivered through Australia’s ongoing Pawarim Komuniti initiative. This will help remote communities to move away from expensive, polluting fossil fuels to cleaner, more reliable energy sources.
• A £1 million Clean Energy Partnership between the UK and Pacific Community, to support a just and inclusive transition to clean energy.
• New programmes to boost local expertise in oceans management and conservation in the Solomon Islands, supported by the UK’s £500 million Blue Planet Fund.