PRIF is a practical application of the commitment of country governments and development agencies to improve infrastructure services and development coordination. This commitment is supported by a number of important agreements including:

• The Cairns Compact for Strengthening Development Coordination in the Pacific (August 2009)
• The Pacific Plan (October 2005)
• The Paris Declaration (2005) and Accra Agenda for Action (2008)

Improving infrastructure is also key to achieving the Millennium Development Goals in the Pacific.

PRIF is designed to commit development partners to improve development effectiveness in the infrastructure sector through closer coordination, increased use of partner country systems, and longer term support.

PRIF is about a new approach with a focus on:

• Strengthening infrastructure services – Infrastructure is necessary to support sustained development, nation-building, stability and economic growth. A key point of difference for PRIF, when compared with past support, is that it offers Pacific island countries a new approach to planning and implementing infrastructure development priorities, based on coherence and harmonisation amongst financing and development partners. This is intended to result in strengthened relationships, streamlined processes, reduced transaction costs and improved development outcomes.

• Country-led development – PRIF will respond to requests for support from Pacific countries based on their plans and priorities. PRIF encourages country-led development and provides assistance in a form that responds to each country’s individual requirements as well as the priorities of the region as a whole.
   
• Sector-based approaches – PRIF is about coordinated sector-based approaches to improvements in infrastructure services. Sector-based approaches aim to broaden ownership by partner governments over decision-making with respect to sectoral policies, strategies and spending; increase the coherence between sectoral policy, spending and results through greater transparency, wider dialogue and ensuring a comprehensive view of the sector; and to minimise as far as possible the transaction costs associated with the provision of external financing, either by direct adoption of government procedures or through progressive harmonisation of individual development partner procedures.
   
• Harmonised support – PRIF will bring together support from multiple development agencies to make assistance go further and make a bigger difference. PRIF is designed to commit development partners to improve development effectiveness in the infrastructure sector through closer coordination, increased use of partner country systems and longer term support. The current PRIF partners encourage the involvement of additional partners.
   
• Long-term support – PRIF seeks to establish a long-term collaborative infrastructure support mechanism that helps achieve sustainable improvements in infrastructure services.