Speaking on behalf of the Pacific Islands Forum, Fiame Naomi Mata'afa said that despite sustained growth, many people were struggling to make ends meet in the face of poverty and inequality.
She added that vulnerable island countries were losing momentum towards achieving the 2015 Sustainable Development Goals, and that the impacts of climate change were undoing decades of progress.
Food security and livelihoods were being threatened by frequent disasters and the threats to biodiversity, she said, and countries were increasingly unable to cope.
