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Forum Secretariat tells island states:

Take greater ownership

It hasn’t been an easy role for Meg Tayloe since taking her seat as Forum Gen-
ral Secretary. She tells Nic Maclellan of Islands Business about the meerting
outcomes and her expectations for the region. Excerpts from her interview.

IB: On her reappointment for a second
term as Secretary General:
Taylor: The Secretary General is asked
ahead of time whether he or she is willing
to continue. I gave it a lot of thought. I
also had discussions before the elections
with the Prime Minister of Papua New
Guinea, because it was he who had asked
me to come and serve in the first place.
There is work that I’ve started with
my colleagues that needs to be taken to
a more developed level. We are trying to
strengthen the work of the Forum Secre-
tariat. There are a lot of reforms we are
trying to get through the Secretariat itself
and also the regional agenda we started,
particularly the Framework for Pacific
Regionalism and its public consultation
process.
IB: On reforming the Forum Secretariat:

Taylor: We’ve completed a strategic
framework for the Secretariat and are
very conscious that our first priority
has to be people-centred development.
We need to ensure that there is not just
physical security, but also food security
and environmental security for people in
our region.
We’ve got to be prepared to give advice
to our leaders, working with some of
the member states that have a lot more
knowledge in these areas, as well as
bringing on staff that have good experi-
ence in these areas.
On financial control of the Secretariat
by Australia and New Zealand:
When I first arrived as Secretary Gen-
eral, there was a lot of talk about that I
was just coming in to work for Australia
and New Zealand, because they were the
ones that put most of the money in.

Continued overleaf
web link:
Renewed commitment ...Forum Secretary General Meg Taylor. Photo: Nic Maclellan www.islandsbusiness.com

Islands Business, October 2017 15