Landmark geohazards meetings in Honiara aimed at strengthening and resourcing Pacific unified early warning systems

Honiara, 10 August 2026 - Representatives from across the Pacific are convening in Honiara for a milestone set of meetings aimed at strengthening the region's defences against earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions and landslides, bringing together national scientific agencies, disaster management offices and international partners under one roof for the first time in this combined format.

The meetings, running from 10 to 14 August gathers 40 participants and combines the Annual Meeting of the Oceania Regional Seismic Network (ORSNET), the 11th Meeting of the Pacific Tsunami Warning and Mitigation System's Working Group for Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PTWS WG-PICT), and the Third Regional Geohazards Meeting. ORSNET is a shared network of more than 50 seismic stations owned and operated by Pacific Island countries and territories, supporting earthquake monitoring, tsunami early warning and technical cooperation across the Southwest Pacific.

The meetings are hosted by the Government of Solomon Islands, a member of ORSNET, and supported by the Pacific Community (SPC) in collaboration with UNESCO's Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (UNESCO/IOC), United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) and United States Geological Survey (USGS). Over five days, participants from ORSNET member countries - Fiji, French Polynesia, New Caledonia, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Tonga and Vanuatu - will review national monitoring capacities, identify shared technical and institutional gaps, and work toward endorsing a regional roadmap for 2026-2030.

Pacific Community (SPC)

Key points of discussions include mobilising resources to enable ORSNET to be self-funded, particularly for the maintenance of the seismic network to which member countries contribute data, the interoperability of systems and peer learning. The meetings will also produce formal recommendations to be fed into the Pacific Tsunami Warning and Mitigation System and will consider how regional efforts align with global initiatives such as the United Nations' Early Warnings for All (EW4All) initiative.

In his keynote address, Solomon Islands Minister of Mines, Energy and Rural Electrification Hon. Derrick Rawcliff Manu'ari said Pacific Island nations occupy one of the most geologically dynamic regions in the world, with earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis and landslides posing threats to communities, livelihoods, critical infrastructure, public services, national economies and development aspirations. "ORSNET has developed into a principal regional mechanism for seismic data sharing and cooperation in the Southwest Pacific. Through this network, member countries have strengthened earthquake monitoring, tsunami early warning, technical collaboration and knowledge exchange. Its progress demonstrates the practical value of regional solidarity: countries sharing expertise, data and resources in pursuit of the common objective of protecting our people."

SPC's support was made possible through the European Union-funded Building Safety and Resilience in the Pacific Phase II (BSRP II) project.

Addressing participants by video link from Suva, Jose Legarra, Programme Manager, Global Gateway - Enabling Environment at the Delegation of the European Union to the Pacific, reiterated the EU's support for work in this area which had real impacts on the lives of Pacific people. "Effective disaster risk management depends on reliable monitoring networks, robust data-sharing arrangements, strong scientific partnerships, and coordinated warning systems," Mr Legarra said.

"These foundations enable countries and communities to better understand risks, issue timely warnings, and strengthen preparedness and response capacities and capabilities. The European Union is proud to support this effort through our partnership with SPC through the Building Safety and Resilience in the Pacific project. "To date, we have been supporting Oceania Regional Seismic Network (ORSNET) countries in strengthening monitoring stations, analysis capabilities through the procuring of equipment and specialised software and supporting technical capacity buildings," Mr Legarra said.

"We view the investments in ORSNET not only as investments in technology and infrastructure, but fundamentally as investments in protecting lives, livelihoods, and sustainable development in the Pacific."

Pacific Community (SPC)

The Chair of ORSNET, Mr Rennie Vaiomounga of Tonga's Ministry of Lands, Survey, Planning and Natural Resources in his opening remarks said ORSNET was a commitment by Pacific countries to share data, knowledge, expertise and responsibility, recognising that information captured by a station in one country may help protect communities in another.

"We saw the importance of regional cooperation in Tonga, when the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai eruption and tsunami damaged critical infrastructure and disrupted communications. We saw it again following the 2024 Vanuatu earthquake, when communication outages affected the flow of information during the initial response. Expertise within one national agency can strengthen capacity across our entire region. By working together, we were able to detect events, share this info and improve the quality of our analysis to give communities time to prepare and respond."

Despite progress in the development of monitoring and alert systems in the region, significant challenges remained, most notably the financial resources to enable systems to operate efficiently and accurately to protect communities.

"Our science must lead to community action. Warnings must reach everyone. Achieving this requires sustained financing. Geological hazards do not operate according to project cycles," Mr Vaiomounga said.

The meetings conclude on 14 August with the expected endorsement of priority actions and governance arrangements for ORSNET, alongside the region's seismic, volcano, landslide and tsunami monitoring networks, and a set of recommendations positioning the region's geohazards work within the broader Regional Geohazards Strategy and global early-warning frameworks.

More information on the Oceania Regional Seismic Network, including live seismic monitoring data, is available at orsnet.org

About the Building Safety and Resilience in the Pacific Project The Building Safety and Resilience in the Pacific (BSRP) Phase II project (2022-2027) is a EUR 14 m ACP-EU Disaster Risk Reduction Programme initiative funded by the European Union and implemented by SPC in 14 countries across the Pacific and Timor-Leste.