Building connections in Apia
Secretary General Vicki Soanes and Senior Advisor Zuleika Chang travelled to Apia in July to meet with contacts at the UNESCO Office for the Pacific States.
Visit details
The purpose was to re-engage with the current work programme, meet new staff and hear about their priority activities.
Examples of current regional office projects are:
- developing a vocational skills app in conjunction with the Samoan Qualification Authority
- a community radio project in Palau reporting on the impact of climate change
- further implementation of the Tuvaluan youth policy; and
- the Sandwatch initiative in Kiribati through which the community are monitoring and reporting on the impacts of climate change.
The Secretariat met with a wide range of stakeholders including the United Nations Resident Coordinator, New Zealand High Commissioner, Samoan Secretary for Education and Samoan National Commission Secretary General, Samoan Voyaging Society and the Pacific Regional Environmental Programme (SPREP).
Vicki (middle) and Zuleika (right) are pictured with the High Commissioner outside Samoa’s first ever mural depicting the manumea (an endangered bird), on the walls of the New Zealand High Commission. The mural was recently completed by New Zealand artists.