Pacific Islands Forum (PIF)

In Oct. 2000 the South Pacific Forum changed its name to the Pacific Islands Forum. As the South Pacific Forum it held its first meeting of Heads of Government in New Zealand in 1971. The Agreement Establishing the Forum Secretariat defines the membership of the Forum and the Secretariat. Decisions are reached by consensus. The administrative arm of the Forum, known officially as the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat, is based in Suva, Fiji. In Oct. 1994 the Forum was granted observer status to the UN.

Members. Australia, Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, New Zealand, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu. Associate Members. French Polynesia, New Caledonia, Tokelau. Observers. The ACP Group, American Samoa, Asian Development Bank, the Commonwealth, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas, the United Nations, Wallis and Futuna, Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission, and the World Bank. Special...