PM, LEADERS PLANT TREES

Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama led Pacific Island leaders in a tree planting initiative yesterday.

The event was at the Pacific Islands Development Forum 2019 Leaders’ Summit and Conference at the Pullman Nadi Bay Resort and Spa.

At least 400,000 trees have been planted so far across Fiji since January through the Ministry of Forestry’s ‘Four million trees in Four Years’ initiative.

Ministry of Forestry’s Permanent Secretary Pene Baleinabuli said the indication was that there was an aim to plant one million trees in one year.

“Since January since the President launched the tree planting initiative ‘Four million trees in Four years’, the ministry together with the support of the communities around the country, we have planted close to 400,000 trees so far and we are on schedule,” he said.

“There is good news coming out from this as our members are reaching out to those in the communities and as we speak, we are receiving pledges and commitment for landowners to give their land for us to plant some trees.”

He said the largest number of land to be given was 900 hectares.

“We would like to thank members of the community for coming out to support the tree planting initiative,” Mr Baleinabuli said.

“It is an investment in Fiji, our environment, our biodiversity and the people of Fiji and it is an investment in the future.”

The theme of the two-days meeting is ‘SouthSouth Co-operation for a Resilient Pacific’.

Art and music are not the only knowledge that we should impart to our children, but also basic things like environmental protection. The sentiments of Vere Waqalala, materialised into action as her kindergarten students joined her to plant mangroves yesterday along the Nasese foreshore.

Ms Waqalala is the assistant director at Bright Little Ones Children Services, a kindergarten at Muanikau in Nasese, Suva.

“We have been teaching children about the ocean for the past few weeks and we decided to do a project to actually set an example,” Ms Waqalala said.

“We covered the different types of sea shores like the sandy and rocky seashores and the children also learnt about the importance of mangroves. The children understand why they need to plant mangroves and how it helps the ecosystem.”

She thanked the Ministry of Forests for providing them with more than 1000 mangrove seedlings to plant and the parents who came join their children.

“It’s a learning experience and they will only learn if we get them involved in the process.

“We told the children that when they grow up, whenever they will pass this area, they will always feel proud. They can point out and say that they took part in the planting of those mangroves. “Teaching them about how they can look after the environment now in early childhood will prepare them to be responsible adults in the future.”

Bright Little Ones also has a mobile kindergarten in Kalabu and the children from there also joined the activity.

Photo: Nicolette Chambers Planting the trees from left: Ambassador from the Embassy of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, Abel Guterres, Prime Minister of Tuvalu, Enele Sosene Sopoaga, Prime Minister, Voreqe Bainimarama and the President of Nauru, Baron Waqa.

Photo: Nicolette Chambers Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama plants a tree during the tree planting ceremony at the Pacific Islands Development Forum 2019 Leaders’ Summit and Conference at the Pullman Nadi Bay Resort and Spa on July 30.

Photo: Ronald Kumar Bright Little Ones Children Services students, teachers and parents planted one thousand mangrove seedlings along the Nasese foreshore and My Suva Picnic Park on July 30, 2019.

Photo: Ronald Kumar Sailasa Sevaivalu, 5, of Bright Little Ones Children Services plants a mangrove seedling along the Nasese foreshore on July 30, 2019.

Photo: Ronald Kumar Bright Little Ones Children Services assistant director Vere Waqalala (right), with students along the Nasese foreshore on July 30, 2019.