MINISTRY OF INFORMATION FIJI NEWS SUMMARY 18/07/14 4:30PM 1. MINISTRY PRIORITISES PROTECTION OF CHILDREN FROM FUTURE DISASTERS - The resilience of school communities and preparation for future disasters is a top priority for the government of Fiji with the recent endorsement of a new policy this week. 2. RURAL COMMUNITIES TO BENEFIT FROM NEW FUEL KITS - Rural and maritime communities will soon access affordable electricity for domestic and commercial use with the introduction of a dual fuel kit technology to ease the use of diesel fuel on generators. 3. PSC AND FIJI POLICE FORCE SIGN MEMORANDUM OF COOPERATION - Public Service permanent secretary, Parmesh Chand and Commissioner of the Fiji Police Force, Major General Bernardus Groenewald, today signed a Memorandum of Cooperation between the two public service agencies. 4. WAF LAUNCHES ITS 20-YEAR MASTER PLAN - The Water Authority of Fiji (WAF) launched its 20-year Master Plan (Suva-Nausori Water and Wastewater; Nadi-Lautoka Water; Sigatoka Water; Labasa Water) today by highlighting some of the key plans for the organization for the coming years. 1. MINISTRY PRIORITISES PROTECTION OF CHILDREN FROM FUTURE DISASTERS The resilience of school communities and preparation for future disasters is a top priority for the government of Fiji with the recent endorsement of a new policy this week. The Education in Emergencies (EiE) and School Safety Policy was today endorsed by the Minister of Education, the Honourable Filipe Bole. The policy is designed at making our schools better prepared for any future disasters. The EiE and School Safety Policy was designed in collaboration with key partners, Save the Children Fiji and UNICEF, with particular focus on the rights of children to access education even during times of disaster. The Ministry of Education permanent secretary Dr Brij Lal said this policy gives the Ministry clear direction and framework to reduce both the risk and the impact of disaster in schools. “Parents entrust the teachers with their children and we therefore have a duty to protect the students and their teachers while in school. This policy will help children, teachers and parents understand what they need to do in an emergency and also ensure that children’s education is not disrupted,” said Dr. Lal. Save the Children Fiji and UNICEF Pacific commend the Ministry for its foresight in incorporating the Comprehensive School Safety and Disaster Risk Reduction framework into the policy. UNICEF Pacific’s education in emergencies focal point, Iosefo Volau, congratulated the Ministry for leading the way in developing this policy. Save the Children’s Jack French said the implementation of this policy is now the next challenge but one that will provide clarity in times of disaster. “This will make our entire school system stronger as the role of the Minister all the way down to parents and students are clearly explained to ensure the children of Fiji are protected and their access to quality education in a disaster is ensured,” he said. This policy will also help develop a culture of safety and resilience in the classroom to increase children’s understanding of disasters and their ability to respond safely in times of disaster. This policy is also testament to the common goals and effective relationships formed between the Ministry of Education, Save the Children, UNICEF and other members of the National Education Cluster. -ENDS- 2. RURAL COMMUNITIES TO BENEFIT FROM NEW FUEL KITS Rural and maritime communities will soon access affordable electricity for domestic and commercial use with the introduction of a dual fuel kit technology to ease the use of diesel fuel on generators. The Department of Energy will be installing a total of 40 dual fuel kits on existing village generators at a cost of $232,000. The Department’s Bio-fuel engineer Mr Jeke Pai said the kits will be installed in October to islands of Rotuma, Koro, Cicia, Rabi, Gau, Vanuabalavu, Lakeba, Moala and Matuku. The department of energy has mills operating in these islands and village representatives will be trained before the use of the duel fuel kit. “This technology has been successfully tested locally and can be incorporated into existing community generators to run on refined coconut oil which costs around $1.30 to $1.70 per liter as a main fuel compared to diesel costing around $2.80 to $3.50 per litre,” Pai said. He pointed out that this new tool will be an advantage for those communities that use renewable diesel which is a blend of 80 percent diesel and 20 percent coconut. “This kit will use very little diesel and instead use coconut oil. We will fit the kit onto the diesel generators and start off with diesel fuel to heat up the coconut oil which will take 5 to 10 minutes. Then the generators will run on coconut oil. This saves the cost of fuel prices by 50 percent for the island communities.” -ENDS- 3. PSC AND FIJI POLICE FORCE SIGN MEMORANDUM OF COOPERATION Public Service permanent secretary, Parmesh Chand and Commissioner of the Fiji Police Force, Major General Bernardus Groenewald, today signed a Memorandum of Cooperation between the two public service agencies. Following talks held during a courtesy visit by Major General Groenewald to the Public Service Commission Headquarters at Berkeley Crescent last month, the Memorandum of Co-operation involves PSC availing training rooms to Fiji Police Force at the Government Training Centre in Nasese on need basis for appropriate training, and the inclusion of senior Police personnel in PSC’s Leadership Development Training Programmes. The Memorandum of Cooperation also outlines the continued participation of the Fiji Police Force in the Service Excellence Awards that is administered by the Public Service Commission for all Public Service agencies, and the free sharing of information and ideas between the two agencies. Through this Memorandum of Cooperation, PSC and the Fiji Police Force hope to facilitate the up skilling and training of their personnel. This is in line with Pillar Three of the People’s Charter for Peace and Progress which is to “Ensure effective, enlightened and accountable leadership”. Major General Groenewald highlighted the importance of leadership training and his appreciation of the Public Service Commission for facilitating the training for middle and senior level management of the Fiji Police Force. The Fiji Police Force has participated in several PSC facilitated Leadership courses, including the China Executive Leadership Academy Pudong (CELAP) Leadership Training Programme and the Diplomatic Induction Course which took place last month. Public Service Commission permanent secretary, Parmesh Chand said that the Memorandum intensifies the relationship which allows for training for leaders in the Police Force and allows for a closer working relationship for all ambits of best practices in the joint efforts of both agencies to improve service delivery. -ENDS- 4. WAF LAUNCHES ITS 20-YEAR MASTER PLAN The Water Authority of Fiji (WAF) launched its 20-year Master Plan (Suva-Nausori Water and Wastewater; Nadi-Lautoka Water; Sigatoka Water; Labasa Water) today by highlighting some of the key plans for the organization for the coming years. Speaking to guests at the launch, WAF’s Chief Executive Officer, Opetaia Ravai emphasised the need for a clear pathway in terms of planning for WAF to be able to supply quality water to the people of Fiji and ensuring we have ample capacity to treat wastewater and sufficient wastewater coverage. The Master Plan highlights a variety of issues which includes enhancing the existing systems, reducing non-revenue water and most importantly, increasing the capacity of waste water treatment as increasing the water supply capacities would naturally lead to more waste water being treated. With the implementation of the Master Plan, which has been put together by WAF engineers in conjunction with partnering agencies, WAF tends to emphasize its unrelenting commitment to supplying quality water for people in Fiji. Mr Ravai said that with this plan, WAF aims to add to the existing work done which includes a liquid trade waste policy that is awaiting approval. An estimated $30 million dollars in pipe replacement over three years has been one of the major works carried out by WAF. Mr Ravai added that the success of WAF’s Master Plan depended on factors such as shared understanding of water problems and customer needs, monitoring the implementation of the Master Plan and if required to modify the plan due to changing demands and demography. Commitment to the proposed solutions and funding of these solutions is critical, as well as the coordination of long-term efforts between stakeholders to fund and implement projects. (Source: Water Authority of Fiji)
Posted on: Fri, 18 Jul 2014 06:32:06 +0000