This evening disaster management specialists from the region met at the Suva Holiday Inn for the official launch of a new tool that could revolutionise disaster management throughout the Pacific.

The Pacific Disaster Net (www.pacificdisaster.net) is a web-based portal that will help to link disaster management specialists and resources throughout the Pacific region. It will directly help National Disaster Management Offices and all disaster risk management stakeholders to improve knowledge management, planning and decision-making.

Bangkok, Thailand (UN/ESCAP Information Services). Knowledge and familiarity with information and communication technology (ICT) in the Pacific receieved a boost with the holding of a key United Nations training programme for some of the region’s policy-makers and government officials.

The United Nations Asian and Pacific Training Centre for Information and Communication Technology (UN-APCICT), in collaboration with Pacific Islands Applied Geoscience Commission (SOPAC), held a four-day workshop on ICT on the Cook Islands from 2 to 5 September, 2008.

Cook Islands’ Senior Fisheries Officer Ngereteina George has spent the last two weeks at the Secretariat of the Pacific Islands Applied Geoscience Commission (SOPAC) developing a Coral Reef Habitat Map for Aitutaki Lagoon.

The Coral Reef Habitat Map for Aitutaki captures the present characteristics of the marine ecosystem which is critical as a management tool to address the economic and environmental concerns including understanding the possible impacts and developing the best options to enlarge the present shipping channel on Aitutaki.

The Ministry of Provincial Development and Habitat for Humanity Fiji signed the agreement for the Suva Vocational School Retrofit project in Suva today.

Permanent Secretary for Provincial Development Manasa Vaniqi, Director of National Disaster Management Office, Joeli Cawaki and HFHF National Director Richard Counts signed the agreement on the project worth over $19 000.

The project, a pilot for the Pacific is part of the United Nations Centre for Regional Development (UNCRD) “Reducing Vulnerability of School Children to Earthquakes" project in Asia-Pacific? region under UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN-DESA).
The Pacific Islands Applied Geoscience Commission (SOPAC) is helping countries around region with the project.