NEWSPAGE 30 March
2011

(Photo: The Kiribati Independent)

NEW ZEALAND: Kiribati community in NZ launches migrant website

(Photo: Samoa Government)

SAMOA: EU funding for Samoa Civil Society Support Programme
Source: Samoa Ministry of Finance Press Release

The Ministry of Finance is pleased to announce the official signing of the European Union Financing Agreement with the Government of Samoa for the Samoa Civil Society Support Programme (CSSP). The Financing Agreement is for SAT9.85 million and will serve to increase CSSP development partner funding commitments to a total of SAT 21.85 million over the next four years. The Government of Australia has already committed SAT 2,750,000 to date since its launch in December 2010 and expects to provide further funding as the program progresses. The purpose of development partner funds is to deliver sustainable social and economic benefits to the people of Samoa through strengthened community service organisations (CSOs).

The European Head of Delegation and EU Ambassador to the Pacific , Mr. Wiepke van der Goot, jointly signed the EU Financial Agreement with the Minister of Finance, Honourable Faumuina Tiatia Liuga, who is also the National Authorizing Officer for Samoa on Friday, 25 March, at the Ministry of Finance. They were joined by members of Civil Society, Government Agencies and Development Partners engaged in supporting CSOs.

Civil Society organisations play a critical role in the social and economic development of Samoa but are often limited in their capacity and funding base to fully utilise their potential. The Civil Society Support Programme (CSSP) represents a combined initiative of the Governments of Samoa and Australia, and European Union as well as Civil Society Organization (CSO) representatives including the Samoa Umbrella of Non Governmental Organizations (SUNGO) to improve aid effectiveness.

CSSP’s overall purpose is to deliver sustainable social and economic benefits to the people of Samoa through small grant funding and strengthened CSOs organizations. It seeks to achieve measurable social and economic benefits from well managed projects and CSOs playing a more active role in national and community affairs. To facilitate support to CSOs, CSSP provides a single point of contact and a common application and reporting requirement. It also provides support for CSO capacity building in project and organizational management and in proposal writing. Additionally, CSSP will support communities to do research and advocacy and share their best practices and project outcomes.


EU Funding to Samoa for the Global Financial Crisis

The EU Ambassador to the Pacific region, Wiepke van der Goot, and the Minister of Finance, Faumuina Tiatia Liuga, also signed an agreement today for the allocation of an additional €5.5 million euro, equivalent 18 million tala, to be channelled through the budget support programme to Samoa. This funding has been specifically allocated to assist Samoa in recovery from the impact of the global financial crisis on the economy and Government revenue. The funds will be channelled through the water and sanitation sector budget support programme and are expected to be transferred in support of the 2011/12 budget. With this new funding the total EU aid programme to Samoa through its agreement with the Government now amounts to 39.5 million euro, equivalent to 130 million tala over the period 2008-2013.
 

(Photo: U.S. Government)

AMERICAN SAMOA: EPA announces Summer 2011 Internship Program
Source: Office of Congressman Faleomavaega Press Release

Congressman Faleomavaega has announced that the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 9 is now accepting applications for their Summer 2011 Internship Program. This exciting opportunity is for students in the science and engineering fields to deepen their understanding of the role of the federal government in climate change, water quality protection, air quality improvement, remote sensing and data analysis, remediation of the natural environment, and protection of public health.

The program is jointly sponsored by EPA Region 9 and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Ames Facility located in Mountain View, California. Selected candidates will work approximately eight weeks, between mid June and mid August, and paid between $15.88 and $17.76 an hour. They will work in partnership with interns at the NASA Ames facility on projects that leverage EPA and NASA technologies, science, and mission priorities. A limited number of rooms in a federal dormitory-style complex may be available to summer interns at a low cost to the intern.

At minimum, interested applicants should have completed 2 years of study that included at least 12 semester hours in courses such as physical science, engineering or any branch of mathematics except financial and commercial mathematics. Interested applicants can immediately set up their profile on the USA Jobs website (www.usajobs.gov). The application will be available on Monday, March 28, at 12:01am Eastern Standard Time and closes on April 1, 2011. EPA Region 9 will consider the first 75 applicants for admission, and therefore interested applicants are urged to submit their applications soon after the application is made available. To access the application, students may log on to the USA Jobs website and search announcement number LV-R9-OT-2011-0001.

This competitive application process is being widely advertised to students from the EPA Region 9, which includes American Samoa, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, and 147 Native American Tribes. Students from American Samoa who are currently studying in the States are encouraged to apply.

“The educational and work experience students will gain from working with and observing some of the professionals at EPA and NASA will be invaluable. I strongly encourage any of our college students with interest in the science and engineering fields to take advantage of this excellent opportunity and apply,” Faleomavaega concluded.
 

(Photo: Fiji Times)

FIJI: Gender equality policies firm in Fiji newsrooms
Source: Fiji Times

Fiji newsrooms show remarkable uniformity and a strong degree of commitment to gender equality in their policies.

A global report on women in the media said three news companies surveyed have adopted policies on gender equity, sexual harassment, maternity leave, and providing educational training to women.

However, the report highlighted that there were no corresponding policies on paternity leave, on returning women to their same jobs after maternity leave or on providing some form of child-care assistance.

These policies, the report said were in the realm of family-support policies that were associated with encouraging women's full participation in the profession.

The Global Report of the Status of Women in the News Media said within the companies reporting, nearly all women and men in journalism were full-time, regular employees.

Therefore, women enjoyed the same high level of job security as men at these companies.

But only two companies participating in the study responded to questions of salary.

"Except for the governance level, where the average highest salaries for men are substantially more than those of women, average salaries appear to be comparable or identical in all occupational categories," the report said.

"If these data have been reported accurately, they signal considerable equity in earnings for women who can enter and move up in the profession.

"Further research would be needed to determine the extent to which these figures represent other Fiji newsrooms."

Photo Caption: The Fiji Times chief sub-editor, Sulueti Dogolau.
 

NIUE: Hopes Niue cricket revival will keep history and discipline alive
Source: Radio New Zealand International

There are hopes that reviving the game of Niue cricket will help young people keep the history and disciplines of the game alive.

The game was introduced to Niue with local rules provided by missionaries and once involved big feasts which included everyone in participating villages.

The President of the Niue Cricket Association Charlie Tohovaka says competition came to a halt in 1995 as more sports were introduced, but a new season was launched last weekend.

He says the game’s one of Niue’s treasures and says there are special disciplines that are learnt through it that he hopes young people can adopt.

“There are a lot of things in the cricket itself where certain traditional rules based on Christianity, from the church leaders and in the village and all those things. So we realise that we need to revive the cricket in order for the young people to learn the history about the cricket in Niue.”

Charlie Tohovaka says there are ten village teams involved in the new season, with 25 players aged from about 12 to 65 in each squad.
 

(Photo: Pacific Islands Applied GeoScience Commission)

WORLDWIDE: Map updates a challenge for Pacific Island countries
Source: Pacific Islands Applied GeoScience Commission Press Release

Pacific Island countries and territories are challenged by the necessity to update their maps to reflect the current day realities.

“Countries are utilising several mapping systems, or projections, in parallel,” explained Dr Wolf Forstreuter, SOPAC’s Remote Sensing and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Specialist.

SOPAC is the Applied Geoscience and Technology Division of the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC).

“For example, road networks river systems, coastlines, contour lines and village locations are available on different maps. Often each has different accuracy and a different projection. They do not overlay or fit one on top of the other,” continued Dr Forstreuter.

Dr Forstreuter said that discrepancies are the result of several factors: the mapping carried out by the first surveyors at the end of the 19th century; tectonic shift, which contributes to islands shifting position; legal challenges associated with using old maps, and the need for Lands Departments to move to the use of remote sensing data and new software.

By the end of the 19th century, surveyors had already developed grid systems covering large parts of Europe. When the first mapping of island countries took place, a grid system was created for each island that had no reference point to any existing maps, as there were no orientation points to link to another point of an existing mapping system.

“Often legal ownership is based on these old maps and old systems,” said Dr Forstreuter.

Dr Forstreuter further explained that islands are not stable, but are moving, due to two different reasons. The first reason is when there is tectonic shift, an effect that is visible in Tonga, or the very recent case of Japan when the whole country shifted two metres within a few hours. Secondly, the coastal ocean currents can drift sand away from one side of a small island and settle it on another side.

“Today, previously existing land parcels on one side of an island may be in the ocean, while on the other side new land exists without ownership. Often Lands Departments deal with maps where land parcels do not fit the actual river system, or with maps where the island has drifted away,” said Dr Forstreuter.

“To address these land shifts and find a permanent solution presents an enormous challenge, not to mention workload, for countries’ Lands Departments.

“Land ownership and land parcel boundaries have high legal and cultural value in Pacific Island Countries and Territories. Once maps have been stamped and declared legal, they remain in force, even if details, such as river systems, are incorrectly marked,” said Dr Forstreuter.

A related issue in many Pacific Island Countries and Territories is that Global Positioning Systems (GPS) equipment is not recognised as legal surveying equipment, “…despite the accuracy that satellite technology makes available. Consequently, surveys have to be carried out in traditional ways, supported by the analysis of aerial photography,” explained Dr Forstreuter.

Traditionally, Lands Departments have been the only source of mapping in a country, used by other government departments such as Forestry, or utility organisations such as an electricity companies.

Dr Forstreuter said that since the year 2000, space borne image data, or satellite imagery, has been available for mapping at a scale of 1:10,000, and that GIS and image data software have become so user friendly that it is not necessary to have a background in surveying to use these.
 
Satellite sensors work in way similar to a photocopier, so that the image is not distorted. The user can map on the computer screen immediately using satellite information and images.

In the past there has been the tendency for donor assistance to countries’ Lands Departments to reinforce old technology rather than establish facilities for the analysis of space borne image data.

Therefore other departments and organisations have created their own faster and more efficient mapping facilities, using the new technologies.

To ensure that all surveys carried out using GIS software, image analysis software and GPS related software work properly the projection of a country using the international grid needs to be installed.

Dr Forstreuter said that international grids might be difficult to apply to low-lying Pacific Island Countries and Territories as sea levels follow locational gravity, not an idealised worldwide ellipsoid. In these cases the height indicated on the map is not related to mean sea level. However, this can be overcome with correct geodetic knowledge, as has taken place in Tonga and Samoa, which now have new grid systems.

Photo Caption: The satellite WorldView 2 has been in space for one year, and provides images with 0.5 metre resolution and allows creating thematic maps of 1:5,000 scale.