 | |
| Focus | Humanitarian aid, international development |
|---|---|
Region served | Oceania |
Official language | English |
President | Cardinal Soane Patita Paini Mafi (president) [1] |
| Affiliations | Caritas Internationalis |
Caritas Oceania is an Oceanian confederation of Catholic social, humanitarian, and relief organisations. It is one of the seven regional confederations of Caritas Internationalis members. Caritas Oceania consists of seven member organisations from across the Pacific Islands, Australia and New Zealand.
In 2005, Caritas Oceania proposed that climate change should become the chief environmental justice focus of Caritas Internationalis. [2]
In 2006, Caritas Oceania held a meeting in Wellington to discuss climate change, where they were addressed by New Zealand Minister of Energy and Climate Change Issues David Parker. [3]
Beginning in 2014, Caritas Oceania published annual 'Caritas State of the Environment for Oceania' reports focussing on environmental issues throughout the Pacific, [4] including climate change and its affects on Pacific communities. [5] [6] [7]
In February 2021, Caritas Oceania president Sr Senolita Vakata passed away, and was replaced in March by Cardinal Soane Patita Paini Mafi of Tonga. [1] The same year, Caritas Internationalis celebrated its 70th anniversary with a series of webinars focussing on different regions, including one for Caritas Oceania in which members spoke of the issues facing the region regarding environmental justice and gender equality. [8]
In 2022, Caritas Oceania published a report entitled 'Twin Clouds on the Horizon' focussing on climate finance issues in the Pacific, and the interrelated threats of climate damage and debt faced by Pacific Island nations. The report was co-authored with Jubilee Australia Research Centre. [9] [10] In July 2022, Caritas Oceania sent a delegate to the United Nations Ocean Conference in Lisbon, Portugal. [11]
In 2024 Caritas Oceania authored a research report entitled Weathering the Storm: Addressing Debt and Climate Vulnerability in the Pacific. [12] The report was released at the 2024 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29), with Tuvaluan Minister for Climate Change Maina Talia present. [13] The report exposed serious issues with climate finance for Pacific countries, highlighting that climate finance is often given as loans rather than grants, leading to unsustainable levels of sovereign debt. [14] The report also found a US$1bn shortfall in climate finance for Pacific island countries from what is required to adapt to climate change. [13] Caritas Oceania made three key recommendations in the report: that climate finance to the Pacific should be significantly increased; that it should occur through UN-administered grants rather than loans; and that global financial systems should be improved to restructure or cancel unsustainable and illegitimate sovereign debts tied to climate finance. [12] [13] [14]
| Country | Member organisation (English name) | Established |
|---|---|---|
 Australia | Caritas Australia | 1964 |
 Fiji | Caritas Fiji | 2019 |
 Papua New Guinea | Caritas Papua New Guinea | 1974 |
 New Zealand | Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand | 1966 |
 Samoa | Caritas Samoa | 2008 |
 Tonga | Caritas Tonga | 1972 |
 Pacific Islands | Caritas Pacific Islands | 1980 |
Tuvalu is an island country in the Polynesian subregion of Oceania in the Pacific Ocean, about midway between Hawaii and Australia. It lies east-northeast of the Santa Cruz Islands, northeast of Vanuatu, southeast of Nauru, south of Kiribati, west of Tokelau, northwest of Samoa and Wallis and Futuna, and north of Fiji.
The debt of developing countries usually refers to the external debt incurred by governments of developing countries.
The Catholic Agency for Overseas Development, commonly known as CAFOD, is an international development and relief charity. It is the official aid agency of the Catholic Church in England and Wales.
The Asia–Pacific (APAC) is the region of the world adjoining the western Pacific Ocean. The region's precise boundaries vary depending on context, but countries and territories in Australasia, East Asia, and Southeast Asia are often included. In a wider context, Central Asia, North Asia, the Pacific Islands, South Asia, West Asia, and even Pacific-adjoining countries in the Americas can be included. For example, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) includes five economies in the New World. The term has become popular since the late 1980s in commerce, finance, and politics. Despite the heterogeneity of the regions' economies, most individual nations within the zone are emerging markets experiencing significant growth. Sometimes, the notion of "Asia–Pacific excluding Japan" (APEJ) is considered useful.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is a United Nations (UN) body established in December 1991 by the General Assembly to strengthen the international response to complex emergencies and natural disasters. It is the successor to the Office of the United Nations Disaster Relief Coordinator (UNDRO).
Tearfund is an international Christian relief and development agency based in Teddington, UK. It currently works in around 50 countries, with a primary focus on supporting those in poverty and providing disaster relief for disadvantaged communities.
Intense Tropical Cyclone Leon–Eline was the second longest-lived cyclone in the Indian Ocean, behind Cyclone Freddy, traveling over 11,000 km (6,800 mi) during its 29-day track through the Indian Ocean, throughout the month of February. The cyclone formed on 1 February 2000, in the Australian basin as Tropical Cyclone Leon, and was renamed Eline after crossing 90° E into the South-West Indian Ocean; there, the Météo-France office in Réunion (MFR) tracked the storm's movement and intensity. Late on 17 February, Eline made landfall near Mahanoro, Madagascar, with 10‑minute winds of 165 km/h (103 mph). The storm rapidly weakened over land, but restrengthened in the Mozambique Channel to reach peak 10‑minute winds of 185 km/h (115 mph), making it an intense tropical cyclone. On 22 February, Eline made landfall about 80 km (50 mi) south of Beira, Mozambique, near peak intensity. Eline quickly weakened over land as it moved across Southern Africa, finally dissipating over eastern Namibia on 29 February.
Caritas Europa is a European confederation of Catholic social service providers and international development and humanitarian relief organisations operating in Europe. It is one of the seven regions of Caritas Internationalis.
Climate change is particularly threatening for the long-term habitability of the island country of Tuvalu, which has a land area of only 26 square kilometres (10 sq mi) and an average elevation of less than 2 metres (6.6 ft) above sea level, with the highest point of Niulakita being about 4.6 metres (15 ft) above sea level. Potential threats to the country due to climate change include rising sea levels, increasingly severe tropical cyclones, high temperatures, and drought. King tides can combine with storm surges and the rising sea level to inundate the low lying atolls.
Cordaid is an internationally operating value-based emergency relief and development organization, mostly working in conflict-affected countries. It is one of the biggest international development organizations in the Netherlands, with a network of hundreds of partner organizations in countries in Africa, the Middle East and Asia.
Tropical Cyclone Trina was a weak but destructive tropical cyclone in late 2001 which caused some of the worst flooding in the South Pacific island of Mangaia, Cook Islands, in nearly 50 years. Forming out of an upper-level low pressure system on November 29 near the island of Rarotonga, or roughly 1,470 mi (2,365 km) southeast of Fiji, Trina remained practically stationary as it meandered in the same general area for over a week. Due to unfavorable conditions for tropical cyclogenesis, the storm struggled to develop significant convection, preventing it from intensifying beyond 65 km/h (40 mph). After finally succumbing to wind shear on December 2, the system weakened to a tropical depression near Mangaia and dissipated several days later.
Severe Tropical Cyclone Waka was one of the most destructive tropical cyclones ever to affect the nation of Tonga. Waka originated within the near-equatorial trough in mid-December 2001, although the system remained disorganized for more than a week. The storm gradually matured and attained tropical cyclone status on December 29, 2001. Subsequently, Waka underwent rapid intensification in which it attained its peak intensity as a Category 4 severe tropical cyclone on December 31, with winds of 185 km/h (115 mph). Shortly thereafter, it passed directly over Vavaʻu, Tonga, resulting in widespread damage. By January 1, 2002, the cyclone began to weaken as it underwent an extratropical transition. The remnants of Waka persisted for several more days and were last observed near the Southern Ocean on January 6, 2002.
Caritas Internationalis is a confederation of 162 national Catholic relief, development and social service organisations operating in over 200 countries and territories worldwide. The name Caritas Internationalis refers to both the global network of Caritas organisations and to its general secretariat based in the Vatican City in Rome, Italy.
Severe Tropical Cyclone Winston was a powerful and destructive tropical cyclone that became the most intense in the Southern Hemisphere on record, as well as the strongest to make landfall on record, and the most intense and longest lasting tropical cyclone worldwide in 2016. Winston was, at the time, the costliest tropical cyclone on record in the South Pacific basin, until it was surpassed by Cyclone Gabrielle in 2023. The system was first noted as a tropical disturbance on 7 February 2016, when it was located to the northwest of Port Vila, Vanuatu. Over the next few days, the system gradually developed as it moved southeast, acquiring gale-force winds by 11 February. The following day, it underwent rapid intensification and attained ten-minute maximum sustained winds of 175 km/h (109 mph). Less favourable environmental conditions prompted weakening thereafter. After turning northeast on 14 February, Winston stalled to the north of Tonga on 17 February. Due to a change in higher level steering, the storm drifted back to the west. In the process, Winston again rapidly intensified, reaching Category 5 intensity on both the Australian tropical cyclone scale and the Saffir–Simpson hurricane wind scale on 19 February. The storm passed directly over Vanua Balavu, where a national record wind gust of 306 km/h (190 mph) was observed.
Cyclonic Storm Sagar was the strongest tropical cyclone to make landfall in Somalia and Somaliland in recorded history until Gati in 2020, and the first named cyclone of the 2018 North Indian Ocean cyclone season. Forming on May 16 east of the Guardafui Channel, Sagar intensified into a cyclonic storm on the next day, as it gradually organized. The storm turned to the west-southwest and traversed the entirety of the Gulf of Aden, making landfall over Somaliland on May 19, farther west than any other storm on record in the North Indian Ocean. Sagar weakened into a remnant low on May 20.
Caritas Australia is an Australian Catholic agency for development cooperation and humanitarian aid.
Armenian Caritas is a not-for-profit social welfare and humanitarian relief organisation based in Armenia. It is a service of the Armenian Catholic Church and a member of both Caritas Europa and Caritas Internationalis.
Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand is a not-for-profit social justice and humanitarian relief organisation in New Zealand.
Caritas Nepal is a Nepalese humanitarian relief and charitable organisation. It is the social arm of the Catholic Church in Nepal and a member of both Caritas Internationalis and Caritas Asia.
Caritas Indonesia, also known as the Karina Foundation, is a not-for-profit humanitarian relief and development organisation in Indonesia. It is a service of the country's Catholic Church. Since its establishment, the organisation has been actively engaged in emergency response, disaster risk management, and strengthening community resilience in disaster-prone areas.
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