NEWSPAGE 07 October
2011

(Photos: eventpolynesia.com)

(Photo: Electric Power Corporation)

SAMOA: EPC advises public to conserve electricity
Source: Electric Power Corporation Press Release
 
The Electric Power Corporation urges the public to take all measures in conserving electricity for the time being.

This is a result of the limited amount of rainfall contributing to the decreasing level of water available for the generation of electricity.

The Corporation also pleads consumers with stand-by generators to use them for the times between 9:00AM and 5:00PM, and for users of air conditioning machines to turn off when room(s) is/are not in use, as well as lights as a counter measure to avoid an island wide rationing effect due to the dried up water resources.

This is to assist the Corporation’s efforts in monitoring the effect demand for electricity has on our diesel generators currently in operation so to avoid power rationing.

We apologize for the inconvenience that this may cause and we thank you for your continuous support.
 

(Photo: Australian Government / Alex Winkler)

AUSTRALIA: Australia to help Tuvalu with water shortage

Australia is helping the tiny South Pacific nation of Tuvalu deal with a crippling water shortage that has forced its government to declare a state of emergency.

The Tuvaluan government estimates it has just days of drinkable water left after enduring months without rainfall.

The shortage is so acute the government is closing its primary schools and limiting hospital treatment to only urgent cases.

Parliamentary Secretary for Pacific Island Affairs Richard Marles called Tuvalu Prime Minister Willy Telavi to offer Australia's assistance earlier this week.

An AusAID official subsequently travelled to the capital Funafuti to help assess the country's needs and deliver 1000 oral rehydration sachets.

The federal government has now decided to help the country repair its desalination plants and provide fuel so its patrol boats can better assess the country's needs.

AusAID has offered to help the Tuvaluan Red Cross with its response to the crisis.

AusAID is also talking to the governments of Tuvalu and New Zealand about longer-term assistance.

"The full needs assessment will allow all donors to better target and coordinate further emergency assistance," a spokeswoman for Mr Marles told AAP.

A New Zealand Defence Force C130 arrived in Funafuti on Monday carrying New Zealand Red Cross personnel and supplies, including two desalination units, 2000 water jerry cans and other water and sanitation supplies.

Tuvalu is one of the world's smallest independent nations with less than 11,000 residents.

It relies heavily on rainwater which has been scarce because of the La Nina weather pattern.

Photo Captions:

Photo 1 - Australian Parliamentary Secretary for Pacific Island Affairs Richard Marles.

Photo 2 - Tuvalu Prime Minister Willy Telavi.

KIRIBATI: Pacific climate change documentary: The Hungry Tide
Source: Special Broadcasting Service Press Release via Scoop Independent News

In a remote corner of the Pacific, the rising sea level is threatening the lives of 105,000 people. Scientists predict that Kiribati, the central Pacific nation spread across 33 atolls, will be one of the world's first nations to disappear as a result of climate change. The same ocean that has sustained the country for generations is now the source of its destruction.

The Hungry Tide, the latest documentary from internationally renowned filmmaker Tom Zubrycki, focuses on this vulnerable community on the front line of climate change. A poignant film, it tells the tale of one woman’s mission to save her sinking homeland.

Maria Tiimon is originally from Kiribati (pronounced Kiribas). Her native island of Beru is home to just 2,000 people. The only one of her thirteen siblings to leave the island, Maria now lives in Sydney, where she works for an NGO raising awareness of climate change issues in the Pacific.

The documentary follows Maria as she goes from talking to schools and community groups, to traveling with her NGO delegation to the 2009 Copenhagen Climate Change Conference (COP15). In a dramatic week, low-lying island states push for a new, legally binding treaty. The hope is for all nations to agree on carbon emission reductions, to prevent global temperature from rising above 1.5ºC. If the temperature increases by just two per cent, it will be catastrophic for Kiribati. Evidence emerges of pressure from Australia to silence the Pacific nations, and Maria’s delegation is left disappointed as Copenhagen ends in failure.

Back in Kiribati, where the population lives an average two metres above sea level, stormy weather has caused major damage. Part of a seawall protecting an entire community has been swept away. Every peak high tide, the village of Tebikenikoora (“The Golden Beach”) is flooded with seawater. Houses have been shifted, vegetable gardens and fruit trees ruined. Months go by and yet funds pledged at Copenhagen, to assist poorer and vulnerable countries, haven’t materialised.

Maria accompanies a delegation to Kiribati, led by Australian indigenous leader Pat Dodson. They meet with President Anote Tong, who admits he doesn’t know what to tell his people anymore. While acutely aware of the community’s problems, his government doesn’t have the resources to fix them. It seems that relocation is the only option. The question now is how they can best manage this difficult task, in a way that will allow his people to move with dignity.

Tom Zubrycki has earned an international reputation for his substantial and widely respected body of documentaries. As with most of his work, The Hungry Tide is an observational film, concentrating on the experience and struggles of one community. Zubrycki skillfully manages to put a face to the highly politicised, global issue of climate change, by zoning in on Kiribati to capture the desperate and personal story of a few determined individuals.
 

(Photo: Solomon Star)

USA: USAid opens regional office in the Papua New Guinea
Source: Solomon Star
 

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) opened its new Pacific Island Regional office in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea October 5. A special ribbon-cutting ceremony commemorated the occasion.

Special guests included National Planning and Monitoring Department Minister Sam Basil; Ambassador Michael Maue, Secretary of the PNG Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade; and United Nations Development Program Head David MacLachlan-Karr.

U.S. Ambassador Teddy B. Taylor, who led the event, said the United States remains dedicated to the Pacific. “This is a region where thousands of U.S. troops sacrificed their lives to preserve peace and democracy in World War II,” said Ambassador Taylor.

“We remain committed to their memory and to the region. We forged ties with Papua New Guinea long before its independence and now that close relationship is maturing.”

Despite the lack of an official office in the region, stressed Ambassador Taylor, the U.S. “never disengaged or left the region.”

The U.S., he said, has engaged in major initiatives to support women’s empowerment, help nations in the region adapt to climate change, and buttress the health care infrastructure and delivery system, said the U.S. Ambassador. “The U.S. spends millions per year to assist Pacific Island nations,” he said.

Daniel Miller, Acting Director of the USAID Pacific Regional Office, said: “The U.S. government, through USAID, is committed to sustainable development in the Pacific Islands.

The opening of the USAID office will allow for better coordination with Pacific government officials, donors and non-governmental organizations on a regular basis.”

The office will manage regional environment and climate change programs, disaster assistance programs for the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and an ongoing HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment program in Papua New Guinea.

Minister Basil formally thanked the United States for opening a USAID office in Papua New Guinea. “It could not have come at a more opportune time,” he said.

The U.S. Embassy confirmed that US$8.9 million has been transferred to USAID to add to the already existing US$3.5 million in 2010 Pacific Adaption funds.

Program goals are to develop capacity in regional organizations to allow for regional capacity building and benefit, said U.S. Embassy Public Diplomacy Officer Brian Asmus. Regionally, according to Asmus, the U.S. also is spending US$66 million in Coral Triangle Initiative funds, US$21 million to help nations adapt to climate change and US$5 million per year to increase raise awareness about HIV/AIDS in Papua New Guinea.

One of USAID’s key objectives, said Mr. Miller, is to assist countries and regional institutions in the Pacific to increase adaptive capacity and resilience to the negative impacts of climate change.

According to Mr. Miller, USAID will achieve this goal in the following ways: by enhancing scientific and technical capacity of partners to understand climate risks; identifying and engaging vulnerable sectors and populations; evaluating costs and benefits of adaptation options; formulating strategies and plans; and accessing funding.

It will also implement effective adaptation activities that support broader development goals and increase long-term climate resilience of vulnerable sectors, such as agriculture and water, and populations.

Across these objectives, the program will seek to strengthen knowledge in the region on the efficacy and impact of adaptation programs, including through the identification and dissemination of lessons learned and good practices, said Mr. Miller.

Mr. Asmus stressed that the USAID program will coordinate closely with other bilateral and multilateral donors to determine how best to complement and leverage investments and reduce duplication so that collective efforts on adaptation in the region yield the greatest results.

USAID maintained a mission in Suva, Fiji, and a satellite office in Papua New Guinea, from 1978 until 1994. Since that time, USAID has remained engaged in the region’s most pressing development issues through its Regional Development Mission in Asia.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced the re-opening of a USAID office in the Pacific to Pacific leaders at the 2009 U.N. General Assembly as part of U.S. government re-engagement in the region.

Photo Caption: Acting Director of the USAID Pacific Regional Office Daniel Miller; PNG National Planning and Monitoring Department Minister Sam Basil, Ambassador Michael Maue, Secretary of the PNG Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade; and U.S. Ambassador Teddy Taylor cut a ribbon to formally open the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)’s Pacific Regional Office.
 

(Photo: Oceania Football Confederation)

WORLDWIDE: Fenedy offers apology to fans
Source: Oceania Football Confederation Press Release

Striker Fenedy Masauvakolo has offered an apology to those fans who felt let down by his non-appearance at the Pacific Games and reiterated his desire to return to the national fold for Vanuatu's OFC Nations Cup campaign next year.

The Amicale star paid a visit to Vanuatu Football Federation (VFF) headquarters in Port Vila this week with club colleagues Dereck Malas and Young Paul, who also made themselves unavailable for the Games, in a show of solidarity and to prove their commitment to the national team cause.

The players met with VFF Vice-President Saby Natonga, who coached the team in New Caledonia, and Ministry of Youth and Sports advisor Marcel Manua, to whom they expressed their wish to line-up for their country once again.

Amicale technical director William Malas accompanied the players and spoke on their behalf.

"They are very sorry for letting the fans, the government and VFF down," he said.

"They know the fans were disappointed because they didn't go to the Pacific Games and they want to apologise to everyone and prove they are ready to come back and play for the national team."

The three players then officially offered their apologies by presenting the government and VFF officials with gifts, a gesture appreciated by the Ministry of Youth and Sports representative.

"Nobody should say no to a call to play for the national team as it is an honour," Manua said.

"But on behalf of the Vanuatu government, VFF and the people of Vanuatu, I want to ask the three of you to continue playing for your country. We need you and you must set a good example for the young ones of tomorrow."

Masauvakalo, who finished top scorer in the 2011 O-League as Amicale finished runners-up, is keen to put the episode behind him and is looking forward to pulling on the green jersey of Vanuatu once more.

"What happened was not good for football and I apologise to all the fans," he said.

"I regret what I have done and want to say sorry to everyone but that will not change anything. For me, it's over and I am ready to play for Vanuatu again."

Natonga is delighted to have the services of Masauvakalo and co available to him and is confident of a strong showing at the OFC Nations Cup, which takes place in Fiji in June.

"It is very important for them to come back and for us to work together as a team," he said. "If we can do that I am sure we will achieve great results."

The Nations Cup will be Vanuatu's first step on the qualification path for the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™ and the side will face Fiji, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Tahiti and the winner of the preliminary stage (which features American Samoa, Cook Islands, Samoa and Tonga).

The tournament will be based on a league system with semi-finals and a final and the winner will go on to represent OFC in the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup.

The four highest-placed teams from the Nations Cup will then contest stage three of the qualifiers - a round-robin, home-and-away play-off series. The matches are foreseen to take place between 7 September 2012 and 26 March 2013 in FIFA windows.

The winner of the third stage will advance to the inter-continental play-off for a place at the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™.

OFC’s top qualifier will square off against the fourth best side from CONCACAF - the North America, Central America and Caribbean federation - in a change from the previous pathway when they faced Asia’s fifth best.

Photo Caption: Fenedy Masauvakalo, left, shakes hands with Ministry of Youth and Sports advisor Marcel Manua.