Introduction from Secretary for Climate Change and National Resilience

The Higher Ground Initiative was launched in 2019 with a mandate to rehabilitate and develop Topside for future habitation. Climate change, overcrowding, and an economy that is growing too slowly are all urgent challenges that confront Nauru, and addressing them requires putting new land on Topside to its best use. It is also understood that the long-term survival and viability of Nauru depends on migrating away from the most vulnerable coastal areas of the island. This is why HGI has been embraced by successive Governments.

The rehabilitated land, made possible by the hard work and ingenuity of Nauruans, will provide a blank canvas on which to paint a more secure and prosperous future. We have laid out an ambitious vision for HGI capable of meeting the needs of current and future generations. The ten pillars of that vision include:

• Economic diversification, advanced through the cultivation of high value-added productive industries,

• Affordable green housing to alleviate overcrowding and reduce energy and water use,

• Education and training to ensure all interested Nauruans have the skills to take part in the implementation of HGI,

• Food security, advanced through the implementation of community-based and large scale food production systems on rehabilitated land,

• Water security, advanced through the incorporation of efficiency and water harvesting technologies as part of a modern, reticulated water system,

• Energy security, advanced through rooftop solar on every new building and the widespread use of energy efficient technologies,

• Public health, advanced the encouragement of healthy lifestyles and more climate changeresilient facilities,

• Environmental restoration, advanced through the protection and expansion of areas on Topside with high biodiversity and conservation value,

• Cultural restoration, advanced through the incorporation of traditional materials and methods into design and construction, and the allocation of public space to cultural activities, and

• Good governance to ensure that implementation of HGI proceeds in a transparent, inclusive, and equitable manner.

After a year of intensive work by our many Heads of Department, and as part of a whole of Government approach, I am very proud to share the updated master land use plan contained in this report. It includes a detailed site plan for Land Portion 230, a plot totally 10 hectares, which will be the initial site of construction and serve as the seed from which future development will grow.

We are now on the cusp of the most important stage of HGI – implementation. Our objective is to source as much of the work to Nauruans as possible. Where there are skill gaps, we intend to make every effort to bring in the necessary training. Our priority is for HGI to be built by Nauruan hands. We will need to build strong partnerships to achieve our most ambitious goals, but Nauru needs to be leading the way.

Make no mistake, there are many challenges ahead in our multi-generational effort to reclaim Topside. We are only at the beginning of a very long journey to rebuild a nation. But I am confident in the resilience and determination of the people of Nauru to reach our destination of a more secure and prosperous future.

Reagan Moses Secretary for Climate Change and National Resilience