Vanuatu

The business plan has been developed to guide the implementation of the goals and objectives articulated in these two plans through the operations of the Department.

The Department is also guided by the Agriculture Sector Policy 2015-2030 and the various individual strategies such as the Coconut Strategy, Kava Strategy and the Fruits and Vegetables Strategy.

DARD said due to the national reporting requirements under the NSDP, the plan is orientated to meeting the department’s obligations under this business plan.

According to the Vanuatu Meteorology and Geo-Hazards Department (VMGD), imminent eruption could occur in such major unrest states.

The Danger Zone for life safety remains at 2 km radius from the active vent.

VMDG said the volcanic ashes that fell on Ambae during the 2017 and 2018 eruption could continue to change the behaviour of streams and creeks when it rains. The creeks and streams can produce floods and carry a lot more debris like sands, gravel and boulders.

Construction on the roads began in 2015 and the total length on each island is to be 45 kilometres.

They are scheduled to be completed by 2020.

CCECC spokesperson Lilyrose Welwel said the project is supervised by the Ministry of Public Works with a loan from the Chinese Exim Bank totalling over $US4.3 million.

The Chinese company is currently in a legal dispute with the Cook Islands government over complaints about the quality of its work in the rebuild of the Rarotonga water supply system.

The cyclone season in Vanuatu runs from November to April.

Farmers are being advised to pay attention to messages sent out by authorities in the event a cyclone develops.

The department said farmers can cut off tree branches close to farm houses, remove old farm houses that are not needed, reinforce the roofing with nails or a rope and bar the windows with iron roofing or timber.

The new price became effective one 1 December 2018.

The Government decided to increase the price in response to growing concerns and complaints from industry players about the deteriorating copra price.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Trade had promised to increase the copra price during his last visits to the northern town but has emphasied that Govt financial support should and must be fair to all commodities and not only copra.

“The Vanuatu Red Cross Society operation aims to assist affected communities with basic needs.” said Jacqueline De Gaillande, Chief Executive Officer.

Vanuatu Red Cross Society has begun mobilizing its emergency response-trained volunteers in Sanma, Malampa and the headquarters in Port Vila to distribute non-food Items and provide support to the evacuees.

The volunteers will also carry out assessments.

According to Principal Agriculture Officer South, Peter Iesul, the local produce is a substitution for imported fruits and vegetables.

“Through the reports from the Statistics Office, it indicates that onion, potato, carrot and some other crops are imported mainly from Australia and New Zealand.”

Mr Iesul told farmers during the launching of sale of Epi onions in Port Vila that many studies have been done in Vanuatu and trials were implemented on Tanna, Efate and some other islands of Vanuatu.

Sweet potato is a crop that has a short life cycle of three to four months before harvesting unlike taro, yam and manioc that need eight to ten months.

“Scientists are doing many research work on sweet potato to ensure in the future, with a high population, food security is maintained,” said Dr Vincent Lebot, the Scientist working with the Ministry of Agriculture.

“One priority is to cross pollinate the types of sweet potato that already exists to produce new hybrids and also to upgrade the potential of sweet potato.”

The classroom was built by funds sourced from the Peace Corps Partnership Program (PCPP).

Peace Corps volunteer Frances worked with the chairperson of the project, Sarah Nabil to see the classroom come to fruition.

The PCPP also paid for four solar panels, regulator, battery, laptops, lights, cables, tablets, printer, speaker and shipping costs.

The laptops, tablets, speaker and printer are in the school office and are already raising money because community members pay a fee to charge their devices.

The eruption of the volcano at the island's centre forced the evacuation of Ambae's more than 10-thousand residents in August.

They have been living in temporary accommodation on nearby islands since then, where they've complained of cramped conditions and little governnment support.

But in the past few months, with the volcano's threat downgraded, some villagers have opted to return to Ambae to try and restart their lives.