Fiji Barefoot College to champion climate change fight: Minister Rosy Akbar
This college will also champion the fight against climate change which Fiji is facing as a small island country and will bring communities much closer to energy independence and sustainability.
The Minister for Women, Children and Poverty Alleviation, Rosy Akbar highlighted this while visiting the construction site of the Fiji Barefoot Vocational Training College (FBVTC) at Wainikoro Village, in the District of Nadogo, in Macuata.
“Let us be resilient, lift our voices and be an example to the global community by advocating for the use of Clean and Sustainable Technology to mitigate the effects of climate change and improve the quality of life within our rural communities in Fiji,” she said. Ms Akbar said that the Fiji Barefoot College, which is a solar electrification training centre, has been jointly supported by the Government of India and the Fijian Government, and would be the first of its kind in the Pacific.
“This is a great investment made by the Fijian Government, to the Ministry of Women, to improve and support the economic empowerment of our women in our rural communities,” she said.
Ms Akbar mentioned that the availability of women’s economic empowerment programmes and technical support for the identified women’s groups are stepping in the right direction for the ministry. “We are a people-oriented ministry dedicated to improving the lives of women, girls and the vulnerable,” she said.
“I thank the construction contractor for the work that has been carried out so far. The construction is expected to be completed by early 2023.”