News in Brief

$220,000 allocated to community organisations
Civil Society organizations play an important role in the Cook Islands supported by both the Cook Islands and New Zealand governments. The Cook Islands Government and the New Zealand Aid Programme are pleased to announce that the following organisations have received funding, totaling $220,000, through the final round of Community Initiative Scheme (CIS)2012.
We would like to take this opportunity to congratulate successful applicants on having their projects accepted within a very competitive round of funding. We will be providing another update in July to report on progress of the above successful projects.
We would also like to thank all those NGO and community groups who put in great efforts to apply, but were not able to be funded in this round. A special thank you to the CIS board who volunteered their time to review all applications, deliberate, and then make the final decisions.
Both the New Zealand and Cook Island governments are committed to supporting Civil Society groups in the future. In an effort to provide a single funding mechanism for Civil Society, the New Zealand Aid Programme and the Ministry of Internal Affairs are working together with further support from the Ministry of Finance and Economic Management to roll out a new scheme from July 2012 which combines funding from both governments with two streams: core funding to NGO’s and funding for short-term community-based projects. The new scheme will be called the Social impact Fund (SIF) and more information will be provided on this in the coming months.

Minister meets first applicant for seabed training course
On Wednesday 9 May 2012, the Minister for Minerals and Natural Resources, Hon. Tom Marsters met Titikaveka resident, John Engu, who is the first Cook Islands person to express interest in applying for training under the recently announced International Seabed Authority (ISA) training program.
The Minister encouraged Mr. Engu with his interest in taking part in our nation’s future in Deep Sea Minerals in our EEZ. “I am very pleased to see our locals coming forward. Don’t miss out or be discouraged. Even if you don’t have the right qualification right now, just show the ISA where your interest lies in our Deep Sea Minerals future and let them decide how they can help. To seek to Learn, of any type, always has its benefits, no matter what your age”.
The Minister’s Deep Sea Minerals staff, Paul Lynch and Darryl Thorburn, then provided Mr Engu with all relevant information to help him determine the area of interest he could select from to pursue. On Wednesday next week, a meeting will be held at the DPM’s office to provide a final update and Application to all persons who have expressed interest.
The Minister said “I have a dream that, with the help of our development and investment partners, it will be knowledgeable Cook Islanders running our Deep Sea Minerals sector in the future. Both on the water and on land. Our government greatly appreciates the wonderful assistance of SOPAC and the ISA for providing this training opportunity to our people. I plan to continue to raise awareness of these career opportunities in Deep Sea Minerals in our up-coming national Careers Day, in our schools, colleges and to all Cook Islanders here and overseas”
The Minister’s Office is taking expressions of interest on Ph. 29030 or by email to dpmoffice@dpmoffice.gov.ck

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