New Zealand reviews Kiribati aid program

28/1/2025 6:06

The New Zealand

government said it is reviewing its development aid programme

with the Pacific nation of Kiribati after the country's

president cancelled a meeting with New Zealand’s foreign

minister earlier in January.



Kiribati, a Pacific Ocean neighbour of Hawaii with a vast

Exclusive Economic Zone of 3.6 million square kilometres (1.4

million square miles) has developed close ties to Beijing in

recent years, including hosting Chinese police.



While New Zealand has been a long-standing development

partner, New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters has not

managed a meeting with Kiribati President Taneti Maamau since

returning to office in 2023.



A spokesman for Peters said in an email late on Monday that

the foreign minister had planned to travel to Kiribati and meet

with its president and Foreign Minister Taneti Maamau earlier

this month, but about a week prior to departure had been told

Maamau was no longer available to receive him.



“This was especially disappointing because the visit was to

be the first in over five years by a New Zealand minister to

Kiribati - and was the result of a months-long effort to travel

there,” he said.



The lack of political-level contact makes it very difficult

for New Zealand and Kiribati to agree on joint priorities for

our development programme, and to ensure that it is well

targeted and delivers good value for money, the spokesman added.



“For this reason, we are reviewing our development programme

in Kiribati. The outcomes of that review will be announced in

due course. Other aspects of the bilateral relationship may also

be impacted,” the spokesperson said.



This may also impact visa allocations for i-Kiribati, who

want to travel to New Zealand to work in seasonal jobs such as

fruit picking, he said.



Maamau’s office did not immediately respond to a request for

comment.