Groundbreaking ceremony in Funafuti for Tuvalu’s coastal adaptation

A groundbreaking ceremony to mark a milestone for the people of Tuvalu – construction of a 780m long and 100m wide reclamation project in Funafuti – took place yesterday.

This very important work will be undertaken under the Tuvalu Government’s Tuvalu Coastal Adaptation Project.

Tuvalu is the first country in the Pacific to access climate finance from Green Climate Fund through UNDP support. Therefore, TCAP is an ambitious and important project, one focused on long-term resilience for Tuvalu and its people in helping achieve the 2030 Development Agenda.

Designed using the best available science, informed social, environmental risks management, projections, modeling, and using around 270,000 cubic meters of sand – Funafuti’s reclamation is TCAP’s largest coastal protection work and includes the construction of a small harbour that will provide safe, all-tide access to local fishing vessels. 

The achievements of TCAP will be significant with an expected total of 2,780 meters of vulnerable coastline across Funafuti, Nanumea and Nanumaga being made more resilient and provide improved protection to people’s homes, schools and hospitals.