Port Vila

“The Festival will major in Food and Food Preparation, so that we can ‘kill two birds with one stone (as part of country’s 41st Independence Anniversary Celebrations)’, and we want to build six Traditional Houses round the back here on the Cultural Centre premises.”

Shing added that while custom dancing is important, food and different cultural recipes of food preparation will most likely be among the highlights of the Melanesian Arts Festival.

CCC founder, Nadia Kanegai said this is the first time for the school to help a student who went through such a terrible incident.

“CCC is a community school and the important thing is that we are a family,” she said.

“The goods and materials were donated by the teachers, students and the management.

“We sympathize with the families affected and see it as our obligation to support any other student in similar circumstances.”

Kanegai said she is grateful for people respond to such incidents.

The Vanuatu Daily Post reports hygiene measures have been stepped up after the body of a Filipino ship crew member was discovered washed up on a beach near Port Vila more than a week ago.

The body later tested positive for Covid-19 but health authorities have said there is minor risk of infection.

The prime minister Bob Loughman has urged people to keep up simple hygiene practices and observe physical distancing.

Bus drivers and passengers around the capital island of Efate have been asked to wear masks and use sanitiser after handling money.

According to the Vanuatu Meteorology and Geohazards Department, the earthquake was recorded at 6.42am (local time) at a depth of 27km.

There was ‘no tsunami threat for this event.”

However, VMDG has warned that more aftershocks are expected.

Some Port Vila residents shared their experience on social media saying it felt like earthquake with a magnitude of 7 or 8.

Photo Earthquake Monitor     

Ministry of the Infrastructure and Public Utilities Media Officer, Antoine Malsungai said the tender was closed last month, and a new contractor for the project will be announced soon.

“While previous upgrade road works at the area were split between four labour contractors, the government now wants to engage only a single contractor for the works.”

“Tarsealing will commence soon once a contractor is selected,” he said.

The road connects residents to the town and essential services such as markets, schools and clinics.

The market is located opposite the Au Bon Marche at Freshwota 1.

The market committee has temporarily closed the market for two weeks commencing this week.

The venue is reported to not have had a clean-up campaign since its establishment in 2017.

Temporary shelters are still being negotiated for market vendors to sell their produce.

Photo Niptik Jean Pierre/Facebook 

The epicenter of the earthquake was at a depth of 10.0 km.

It was initially determined to be at 19.1557 degrees south latitude and 167.6016 degrees east longitude.     

Town Clerk, Peter Sakita said the price is reasonable for the vendors and the issue rests solely with transport operators.

“COVID is actually not affecting the mamas, of course in some ways, VT400 is a very reasonable price comparing to what they are collecting every day, it’s the transport they should be arguing and not the market table price.”

“I feel that there should be more consultation with the transport operators, before they use to sleep at the market and save their money from moving back and forward but now, we encourage them to go back.”

The agency's Chief Executive, Howard Aru, said one the responsibilities of his office was to protect the reserved business lists for indigenous ni-Vanuatu, which included such shops.

Aru said now that Parliament had made dual citizenship legal, refusing foreign investors could be a challenge.

But he said 20 years ago foreign businesses were restricted to limited areas but now there were foreign wholesale and retail operators spread throughout the capital of Port Vila.

The company started last year and had been selling fish to locals, exporting fresh and frozen tuna.

The Director General for Fisheries, Moses Amos, said the government had decided to inject over $US873,000 into the joint venture to push the production of canned tuna.

The financing is part of a multi-million dollar package allocated to the productive sector.

Amos said the production of canned tuna is a step forward for Vanuatu in preparations towards disasters.

He said the factory should be able to produce over 2200 cans of tuna a day, using one ton of fish.