Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has touched down in Fiji for a major climate gathering being co-hosted by Australia, as his government defends the taxpayer-funded event against criticism over its guest list and cost.

Mr Albanese arrived in Fiji on Monday for Pre-COP31, which will bring together representatives from more than 50 nations ahead of next month’s COP31 summit in Antalya, Turkey.

It is his fourth trip to the island nation as Prime Minister and he will later travel to Tuvalu for his first official visit.

The Prime Minister said Australia should be proud to co-host the event, which he said would give Pacific nations on the frontline of climate change a global platform.

“Australia is proud to stand with our Pacific family and co-host these events. Pre-COP in the Pacific will allow the world to hear directly from those on the front line of climate change,” Mr Albanese said.

“This builds on the work we’ve been undertaking to boost stability, security and prosperity in the region — which is crucial to Australia’s national interest.”

But the government has faced questions over whether Australia and the Pacific have struggled to attract world leaders to the gathering, with Energy Minister Chris Bowen describing Pre-COP as typically a “pretty pedestrian affair”.

Pre-COP is part of Australia’s $147 million package to improve relations in the Pacific with about $20 million of taxpayer funds understood to be allocated to this week’s events.

Mr Bowen described the price tags as “the cost of diplomacy” but the event has been criticised for its lacklustre guest list.

“I think it’s important to know that Pre-COP is normally a pretty pedestrian affair. To be frank with you,” Mr Bowen told RN Breakfast on Monday.

“Now, world leaders do not normally attend Pre-COP at all. Prime ministers and presidents normally do not come to Pre-COP.”

Mr Bowen said there were so far 14 heads of government or state attending alongside executives from banks, the United Nations, climate organisations, as well as current and former COP presidents.

He insisted there was a “good range” of climate change and environment ministers attending and more from Europe than there had been at the UN General Assembly last week.

“Climate ministers are the key negotiators for COP31. They’re the ones in the room negotiating the outcome and we have good attendance,” he said.

He said the Pre-COP would be busier than previous years, with around 4000 people attending 133 events across four days.

Mr Bowen said Australia has also sent 36 senior people to the proceedings.

“We’ve sought to elevate the importance of Pre-COP to really lift Pacific voices in the lead up to COP31, and to focus on the sorts of things that are at stake in our region,” he said.

“Obviously, we’re taking a number of journalists to try and focus world media on some of these issues.”

Opposition energy spokesman Dan Tehan criticised the government’s spending on the event, questioning how taxpayers would be “getting value for money” for the talk fest.

“It’s very hard to see how this in any way is getting value for money for the Australian taxpayer. And the reason we know that is because the government won’t come clean with the costs,” he told Radio National.

“They won’t tell us which world leaders are going, which aren’t. They won’t say whether they were all invited or not. The whole thing, the secrecy around it, I mean, what have they got to hide?”

According to The Australian, New Zealand’s former leader Jacinda Ardern and ex-Labor Prime Minister Julia Gillard are on the program of speakers.