Kausea Natano

Former Prime Minister and Climate Negotiator · 1957

Who is Kausea Natano?

Kausea Natano was born on 5 July 1957 in Funafuti, Tuvalu. Before entering politics he built a career in the public service, working as director of customs and later as assistant secretary in the Ministry of Finance, where he gained experience in national economic planning. He was first elected to Parliament in 2002 representing Funafuti and was re-elected in 2006, 2010, 2015, and 2019. He served as Minister for Public Utilities and Industries under Prime Minister Apisai Ielemia, and later as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Communications under Prime Minister Willy Telavi from 2010 to 2013. Parliament elected Natano Prime Minister on 19 September 2019, succeeding Enele Sopoaga. He led Tuvalu through the COVID-19 pandemic, overseeing one of the world's highest vaccination rates by 2022, and represented Tuvalu at COP26 and COP27, where he warned world leaders that "Tuvalu is sinking" and called for a global treaty to phase out fossil fuels. His government secured international climate financing, including support from the World Bank for coastal adaptation, and on 10 November 2023 he signed the landmark Falepili Union treaty with Australia, establishing a climate-mobility pathway for Tuvaluan citizens. He lost his parliamentary seat in the January 2024 general election.

Sources: Wikipedia, "Kausea Natano" · RNZ, "Tuvalu PM tells COP26 his country is sinking," 2 November 2021 · SPREP, "'Tuvalu is sinking,' Prime Minister Natano tells world leaders grim reality of atoll nation"

Quotes by Kausea Natano

“For atoll nations like Tuvalu, the gravities of sea level rise are now unalterable and emission restrictions will no longer help us. For Tuvalu we urgently require the means to build raised reclamation land to save ourselves.”

Delivered at the COP26 High-Level Segment, this statement argued that for a nation already this low-lying, cutting emissions alone can no longer prevent harm — physical adaptation such as land reclamation is now necessary for survival.

Kausea Natano

Source: Kausea Natano, Prime Minister of Tuvalu, High-Level Segment national statement, COP26, Glasgow, 2 November 2021

“The warming seas are starting to swallow our lands, inch by inch. But the world's addiction to oil, gas and coal can't sink our dreams under the waves.”

Spoken as Tuvalu became the first nation to call for a global Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty, pairing a warning about incremental land loss with a declaration that Tuvalu would keep pressing for change regardless.

Kausea Natano

Source: Kausea Natano, Prime Minister of Tuvalu, national statement, COP27, Sharm El-Sheikh, 8 November 2022