08th March, 2017 A two-days training is currently underway aiming to enhance understanding of town officers on the Climate Change Trust Fund (CCTF) Application Form at the Department of Climate Change Conference Room.
CCTF Coordinator Feleti Fa’otusia said the training is specifically for town officers to understand the content of the CCTF Application Form and how to fill it.
“This training focus on the application only and it is set particularly town officers given the fact that they are the ones responsible for the whole community and they understand their respective communities’ needs in regard to the impact of climate change in their societies and how to distribute the funds amongst them,” he said.
Fa’otusia stated that the CCTF project would benefit communities who are vulnerable to climate change and would improve their condition.
“This will benefit the target people, which are those who are in danger to climate change, and it will not only benefit individuals but the whole community. The project is also for those who are in needs especially women and children.”
Fa’otusia added that similar training has been conducted for Members of Parliament aimed for them to understand the CCTF and to convey the message to their constituencies’ specifically the outer islands.
“Two officers have been trained to conduct the same training in Vava’u and Ha’apai, and we are looking forward to do the same training to Eua and the Niuas.”
Participant from Nukunukumotu Island (Siesia) Ms. ‘Uha Latu who attended the training said the project is important for her island given the reason that they are experiencing the effects of climate change.
“CCTF is very important to us who are living in Nukunukumotu. The island is badly affected by climate change and is slowly eroded. This is a good project and it will enable us to ask for help in order to improve our living standard,” she said.
CCTF was launched at the end of February this year to enable all communities to strengthen their coping capacities and to ensure that all communities are given the flexibility to design, implement, and to steer the priorities, and future development of their communities.
ENDS
Issued by the: Ministry of Meteorology, Energy, Information, Disaster Management, Environment, Climate Change and Communication