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March 16, 2009
Vanuatu to host Pacific Disability Conference
We found the name of Mr.Setareki Macanawai, a former participant of Leaders' Course 1999 in the mailing list of "Disability and Development" which is published Mr. Soya Mori.
08 March, 2009 12:00Author: Florence Kuali-IautuVanuatu Daily Post
Vanuatu will be the host nation to this year's Pacific Disability Forum (PDF) Conference to be held in April where more than 100 participants around the Pacific and Asia will attend.
The conference, which is scheduled from April 20 to 23, will include three meetings - the Pacific Regional Forum on women with disabilities, Disability conference and workshop and lastly the PDF general and council meeting for PDF members.
The Chief Executive Officer to the PDF Setareki Macanawai confirmed the meeting this week to Daily Post when he was in the country inpreparing for the big meeting.
Mr Macanawai during his visit also met with the Prime Minister Edward Natapei to discuss the conference. The conference will be hosted by Vanuatu's Disability Promotion and Advocacy Association (DPA) headed by Andy Lynch as the countrycoordinator.
Mr Macanawai said the theme for the conference is 'Advancing in disability in the Pacific Island Countries'. According to the PDF CEO, Vanuatu was selected to be the host nationduring the organisation's last meeting in 2007. "This year's conference in Port Vila will be very rewarding for our participants because they will have the chance to learn and share ideas from our counter parts here as the only Pacific nation to ratify the Convention on the rights of people living with disabilities," he said. He said the main issues that will be discussed during the conference are the issues on women with disabilities and the promotion of the new United Nations' Convention, which Vanuatu ratified. "We will be promoting the new convention on disability and will encourage governments to ratify it," he said. During his short visit to the country this week, Mr Macanawai together with the members of DPA inspected possible venues for the conference and seeking government's support towards next month's conference.
Participants to the four-day regional conference are expected toarrive on April 19 and will return home on April 24 2009.
http://www.dailypost.vu/index.php?news=3924&VivvoSessionId=6be09d949b4fddfa097b
photo caption: Mr Macanawai and DPA's national coordinator Andy Lynch and a DPA member during their meeting this week in Port Vila
Posted by jicafriends at March 16, 2009 10:23 AM