Vanuatu was undergoing its first Pacific Islands Forum peer review of gender and human rights policies and programs this week.
The EU was assisting the forum with the initiative, which began with a review of Nauru earlier this month.
The forum said it was part of its commitment to strengthening governance systems across the region as well as the promotion of gender equality and human rights.
The team said financing for gender equality was seen as essential for sustainable development and they would work with government departments to identify opportunities for such budgeting.
The third peer review would be held in Palau next month.
The review team consists of Tongan Government economist, Ma’u ‘Alipate Leha, Nauru Social sector planner Branessa Tsiode and William Nainima, who is a lawyer with the Fiji Women’s Crisis Centre.
Tool to show best sites
A new tool to highlight the best sites for solar power generation has been unveiled at this week’s conference of the Pacific Power Association in Samoa.
The Global Solar Atlas, which was funded by the World Bank, allowed governments, businesses and individuals to identify, at the click of a button, the best potential sites for solar powered renewable energy.
The maps enabled a comparison of resource potential between sites in one region or across multiple countries.
The bank’s energy specialist, Isabel Neto, said it was a combination of satellite imagery and meteorological information. “And so these maps actually help to determine, with a resolution of around one kilometre, what will be the solar output you can expect from facilities to be installed in that particular location.”
Final
meeting
The French overseas minister has confirmed that the final meeting of the signatories to the Noumea Accord before New Caledonia’s independence referendum would be held in Paris.
Annick Girardin said they would meet this year in late October or early November and the French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe would visit New Caledonia in December.
The vote on independence would be in November next year, unless a three-fifth majority in the New Caledonian Congress chose an earlier date.
The signatories’ meeting, which involved both anti and pro-independence politicians as well as the French state, was to approve the referendum question and the electoral roll which was restricted to long-term residents.
Disagreement persists on who should be allowed to vote while some loyalists worry that a plebiscite could re-ignite tension.
The Noumea Accord, which has provided for a phased and irreversible transfer of powers, is to expire with a decision on whether Paris or Noumea should hold the remaining powers, such as over defence, justice and money.