NEWSPAGE 26 October
2011

(Photo: Fiji Village)

(Photo: Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme)

SAMOA: Samoa and Palau: Sustainable land management
Source: Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme Press Release
 
Samoa and Palau are two of the 48 countries worldwide that are part of the Sustainable Land Management (SLM) project which aims to bring about effective land management in Least Developed Countries and Small Islands Developing States.

Funded by the Global Environment Facility and coordinated by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), this project has also helped these party countries implement the UN Convention to Combat Desertification through building local capacity.

According to a UNDP presentation, the project allows for approximately USD 500,000.00 per country to help bring about sustainable land management practices, and will come to an end next year in the Pacific region.

For the island nation of Palau, their project is focused on effective land use planning. This involves taking into consideration the various social, economic and environmental factors that may contribute to land degradation when planning to use land for a range of purposes; it also involves linking comprehensive planning with best management practices.

“This project has emphasised the value of land use planning and establishing more efficiency along institutional lines; SLM for Palau has not been focused on farming techniques, but rather more on how to facilitate stronger coordination among agencies involved in land management,” said Madelsar Ngraingas the SLM Project Coordinator through the Office of the PALARIS under the Ministry of Public Infrastructure, Industries and Commerce.

“I think the project has been successful particularly with coordinating agency activities and building strong partnerships and collaborative efforts, particularly in terms of land use planning and other related activities outlined in the project.”

The Palau SLM project has three key areas which include; compilation of best management practices; development of a national land use policy that contains a financial strategy to sustain institutional operations and; supporting the mobilization of resources to help states develop master plans that ensure comprehensive planning and sustainable development.

Palau plans to complete their national activities for this project in December of this year with a project final evaluation to take place sometime early next year.

In Samoa the National Action Programme for sustainable land management was developed in 2006 outlines how the island nation is implementing the UN Convention to Combat Desertification. The Sustainable Land Management Project is one of the activities under the national action programme.

“It is through this project that we have been able to attract significant attention to the threat of land degradation upon the survival of land based natural resources upon which sustainable livelihoods depend,” said Fa’ainoino Laulala, the Principal Land Policy and Development Officer of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of Samoa.

“Degraded land areas are visible in Samoa, due to infrastructural development and the frequent occurrence of natural disasters such as the 2009 tsunami. There is a greater need to protect our land at all costs through the promotion of sustainable land manage practices such as sustainable agriculture and watershed management, to name a few, as well as through rehabilitation and conservation measures.”

A successful land degradation project in Samoa was that which restored 10 acres of largely degraded land that was an old government quarry site. As part of the National Action Programme the site is now restored through the rehabilitation efforts to revive the health and integrity of terrestrial ecosystems of the site, it is now a national park reserved mainly for recreational purposes.

“Apart from the SLM project which we hope to successfully complete by December, the Vaitele Rehabilitation project through funding from a UNCCD - Venezuela grant, is one of our success stories. Our main challenge now is to ensure we are able to sustain the ability to address desertification, land degradation and drought. The 5th round of funding from the Global Environment Facility may have potential for us to address this challenge”

While at the UNCCD COP 10, Samoa has been in discussions with the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP), UNDP and the Global Mechanism about a project to help strengthen sustainable financing activities in Samoa.

The 14 Pacific island countries that are a party to this project are: Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.

Photo Caption: Ms. Fa'ainoino Laulala.
 

AUSTRALIA: Australian plastic surgery team to visit Tonga

Interplast Australia and New Zealand team will visit Tonga from 28 October - 3 November 2011 to assist Tongan National Health Services to conduct specialist consultation clinics and perform plastic and reconstructive surgery services.

The team consists of: Mr James Leong (Surgeon) Mr William Blake (Surgeon) Dr Andu Borsaru (Anaesthetist) Ms Anne Sutherland (Nurse) and Ms Lynette Maclean (Nurse)

The AusAID funded Interplast team will conduct the consultation clinic on Friday 28 October at 9:00am at the Special Outpatients Clinic, Vaiola Central Hospital, Nuku’alofa. Plastic and reconstructive surgery consultation and operating will take place at the hospital 28 October - 3 November 2010.

The Australian Government funds approximately fifty surgical teams every year in the Pacific, with 4 being held in Tonga in 2011. The assistance, under AusAID’s Pacific Islands Program, fills specific gaps in local medical services and provides on-the-job training to local medical staff.

This will be the 32nd Interplast plastic and reconstructive surgery visit to Tonga since 1983.

Patients with conditions including; scarring from burns, hand surgery and tumours as well as other conditions that would benefit from treatment by the Interplast team, are urged to contact Dr. Saia Piukala (Surgical Unit) at the Vaiola Central Hospital. The clinic is by appointment only and must be screened by the surgical team or private general practitioners. PLEASE be advised that Patients with common skin diseases or cosmetic conditions will be excluded from consultation.
 

(Photo: U.S. National Park Service)

HAWAII: Hawaii projects touted for outdoor recreation
Source: CBS News

The U.S. Department of Interior is using Big Island and Kauai projects to promote outdoor recreation.

The Ala Kahakai National Historic Trail on the Big Island — which the department also calls the North Kona-South Kohala Coastline String of Parks — follows an ancient shoreline footpath called the Ala Loa.

The footpath was the major road connecting more than 600 Hawaii communities from the 15th through the 18th centuries.

Hawaii wants to link national, state, and county parks the path travels through.

On Kauai, the department said it could provide technical, financial, and planning assistance to Hawaii to increase public access and restore the Wailua River.

The department said Monday the two are among 100 projects around the country it plans to highlight in a report coming out next week.

Photo Caption: Trail to Luahinewai, Kïholo, North Kona.

(Photo: Tonga Ministry of Information & Communications)

TONGA: Tonga prepares for 2011 Population Census countdown
Source: Tonga Ministry of Information & Communications
 

While the Department of Statistics is preparing for the 2011 National Population Census enumeration in the Kingdom on November 30, we remember the first ever celebration of Statistics Day in 2010, the day was dedicated to strengthening awareness about the importance of the work done by statisticians, and the significant contributions of official statistics in facilitating the work of government.

To reiterate its importance, the next Tonga Population Census which is undertaken by the Statistics Department, is less than a month away.

The Census will count everyone in the country and collects information about characteristics of populations and housing in different villages, districts and island groups.

Statistics are vital tool for economic and social development in order to assess statistical analysis of poverty levels, access to education and the incidence of disease. The information collected from the Census will be of significant importance in the country's collective endeavour to meet the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Data from the Census also used is to ensure equity in the distribution of government services and the allocation of government funds among various sectors and districts for educational and health services.

The last Census was held in 2006 When it was determined that the total population in Tonga was 101,991, compared with 97,784 people in 1996. This represented an increase of 4.3% or 4,207 people between 1996 - 2006

As the Department continues their preparatory work for the upcoming census, it acknowledges the support of the public, and urges every citizen in Tonga to work together with the Statistics Department and Civil society stakeholders in order to ensure a successful Census in 2011.

The Department of Statistics appeals to all sectors of society to join Government in mobilizing every person to participate in Census 2011.

Photo Caption: Government Statistician Mr. 'Ata'ata Finau.
 

(Photo: Pacific Islands Applied GeoScience Commission)

WORLDWIDE: New video profiles SOPAC
Source: Pacific Islands Applied GeoScience Commission Press Release

“Our intention is to provide a clear picture of the work that SOPAC continues to do in the region to build the resilience of Pacific people through better understanding of the risks faced, especially to natural hazards ” said Dr. Russell Howorth, Director of the SOPAC Division of SPC.

Dr. Howorth was speaking at the SPC/SOPAC Division Meeting held recently in Nadi where an 18-minute video profile of the SOPAC Division of the SPC was shown for the first time to the more than 60 participants, including 22 member country representatives. Copies were distributed to those attending.

“We clearly understand how important it is to ensure that our stakeholders, the island member countries better understand SOPAC programmes and how they are designed to address their concerns.

“Much of our communication strategy is to reach island governments, communities and individuals through the their country media. The video is a part of these efforts,” said Dr. Howorth.

The video highlights Oceans and Islands, Water and Sanitation, and Disaster Risk Reduction, the three programmes that are the core programmes of SOPAC.

Dr. Howorth said that if the island countries are to achieve sustainable development risks must be reduced and resilience built.

But to manage risks, he said, we must gather data in order to be better informed and to better understand them. Without understanding the sickness it is extremely difficult to develop a cure.
 
“And that is where we hope that the SOPAC video will help in providing a better understanding,” Dr. Howorth concluded.

Photo Caption: Mrs. Latia Wairadi, of SOPAC displays organization’s new video.