Port-Vila, Vanuatu – 16 May 2022: The National University of Vanuatu (NUV), the Ministry of Climate Change Adaptation, Meteorology, Geo-Hazards, Environment, Energy and Disaster Management (MoCC) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of United Nations (FAO) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Monday 16 May 2022. The purposes of this MoU are to develop academic and educational cooperation, strengthen working and research links between NUV, MoCC and FAO to support the government policy, strengthen the NUV School of Science by adding a practical approach to the national programs developed in the field of Environmental Science and related fields and promote the integration of the Vanuatu Agriculture College into the NUV.
Thanks to this partnership, both the FAO and the MoCC will cooperate with the NUV to develop new training programs in the field of climate change, promote research and development on Vanuatu’s natural resources and climate change context. They will also ensure the employability of the students through the relevance of the course offered to students according to the needs of the Vanuatu labour market and the opportunities for internships and integrations.
The Vice-Chancellor of the National University of Vanuatu, Mr. Jean-Pierre Nirua, said “It is the second Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed this year by the National University of Vanuatu. The National University of Vanuatu is evolving its academic and research programs in the framework of its strategic plan 2021-2030 supported by the People’s Plan 2030 and the National HRP Plan. The University is excited to see a new step taken. This MOU is essential as the challenges of the climate change are impacting Vanuatu and opens up new opportunities for our young university with a renowned international organisation in FAO. Vanuatu is naturally an agricultural country that is always impacted by the effects of climate change. As such NUV welcomes the opportunity to associate itself with a key Ministry and an international organisation to help advance capacity building mechanisms through education, training and research in order to promote development and help the nation fulfil her obligations in international arena. This partnership will ensure that the programs developed are relevant to the needs of Vanuatu labour market and encourage research and development. The students will be linked with professionals during the course to guarantee employability, relevance of the courses and integration in the labour force”.
Ms. Esline Garaebiti, the Director General of the MoCC, stated that “The Ministry of Climate Change Adaptation, Meteorology, Geo-Hazards, Environment, Energy and Disaster Management is delighted to partner with the National University of Vanuatu and the Food and Agriculture Organization of United Nations. By linking the University and the professional working environments, the students will be guaranteed employability and the climate change sector in Vanuatu will have a pool of skilled and talented Ni-Vanuatu. The research and development components will also allow Vanuatu to step-up in the Pacific region on the climate change discussions”.
FAO recognised the important role that NUV will play in building the capacity of this young nation Vanuatu towards mitigation on climate change and disaster risk resilience, noting the vulnerability of Vanuatu’s food system on the impact of climate change. FAO is excited to be a partner to the MOU and looking forward to provide technical support through MoCC to ensure that the capacity building for the future generations is guaranteed and is well equipped to face the impact of climate change.
The development of the NUV is aligned with Vanuatu People’s Plan and the Vanuatu Education and Training Sector Strategic Plan.
