Early Detection and Rapid Response are key tools for limiting the establishment of invasive species, whether at national borders or at new islands or sites.

In 2026 we assisted SPREP and Nauru's Department of Environmental Management and Agriculture to develop an EDRR plan, and to initiate a Nauru Invasive Species Taskforce, together with running surveillance and response simulation exercises. This initiative was funded by the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade  assisted by the United Kingdom Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office. 

Building on our work developing the EDRR toolkit under the Protect our Islands programme, in 2025 we assisted SPREP to develop  government-endorsed EDRR plans for Niue, RMI and Tonga. Tuvalu has already developed and endorsed their EDRR plan using this toolkit.

Often, developing plans takes a great deal of time, and the EDRR template and other tools are designed to help simplify this process. 

Implementing effective EDRR is still a challenge, knowing that enhancing capability and capacity takes time.​

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