10 Retired Fijian Nurses Head For Tuvalu

You ladies are part of a historic development as over these past few years we have been sending retired teachers only: Minister

Ten retired Fijian nurses leave tomorrow for an inaugural two-year contract under the volunteer scheme between the governments of Tuvalu and Fiji.

“You ladies are part of a historic development as over these past few years we have been sending retired teachers only,” said Minister for Employment, Productivity and Industrial relations Jone Usamate. Mr Usamate handed the nurses their airline tickets yesterday to kick off the Fiji Volunteers Programme. He said the biggest challenge in Fiji currently was the youthful population and the challenge to make sure there were opportunities for them. “When I was the Minister for Health the Tuvaluan Minister would always tell me that we need nurses from Fiji and I would always say that we are already having shortage of nurses in this country,” he said.

“Like some professions in life, this mantra of service just becomes a part of your life and does not easily go away from you.” He said that even though the peoples of the Pacific Ocean look different and speak different languages; they were all one big family. Mr Usamate said that regionalism in working with other countries in the Pacific was very important to Government.

He acknowledged the willingness of retired nurses for giving their time to serve the people of Tuvalu. Listed here are the 10 Fijian women selected for the two-year contract to Tuvalu.