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New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters pilots a search and rescue vessel in Niue.
photo: Caleb Fotheringham
New Zealand will send civil servants on a short-term tour to Niue to help strengthen its public sector.
The announcement came after a bilateral meeting between New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Niue Prime Minister Dalton Tagalog.
Peters said public sector support to the Niue government will reach $13 million over the next five years.
Experts will help the civil service build its capacity.
“It’s well known that countries with small populations – and sometimes even New Zealand is in the same situation – can have a shortage of public servants.”
Niue High School welcomes Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters and his delegation.
photo: Caleb Fotheringham
Peters will depart for Niue today, his final Pacific stop after visiting the Solomon Islands and Nauru.
This is the second time New Zealand has sent a high-level delegation to the country. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon visited there a month ago. Announced a $20.5 million renewable energy project in Niue.
Niue has suffered from power outages for yearsThe night the political delegation arrived, parts of the island lost power.
Niue’s Ministers of Finance and Infrastructure Crossley Tatuai and Winston Peters break ground at a renewable energy groundbreaking ceremony.
photo: Caleb Fotheringham
Peters Luxon’s renewable energy projects It is hoped that the move will solve the power outages that have plagued the island for years.
The project, which is targeted for completion by December 2025, will cover an area equivalent to 56 Olympic-sized swimming pools, said Clinton Chapman, director of the Department of Public Utilities.
“We want to increase our renewable energy investment to 80%. The best result so far is 38%, which was in November last year.”
This number has since declined because Lightning strike damaged the battery system’s controlsHe said.
Chapman said no more power outages are expected once the project is completed.
Niue aims to have 80% of its electricity generated by solar energy by December 2025, said Clinton Chapman, director of the Department of Utilities.
photo: Caleb Fotheringham
this New Zealand’s former government and the United Nations Development Programme have allocated millions for solar energy Before Luxon made the announcement.
Tagraj said the funds have been used for initial attempts but that they “have not yet fully worked,” calling it a “design phase.”
He said New Zealand was aware of the situation on Niue and the island was now in “stage two”.
Niue, with a population of about 1,600, has struggled to retain its population, like other Pacific nations.
Education Minister Sonya Talagi said wages in Niue were too low to compete with New Zealand.
photo: Caleb Fotheringham
During a visit to Niue High School, which was also attended by Peters’ delegation, Education Minister Sonya Talagi said local pay levels were too low to compete with New Zealand.
She said starting salaries for nurses were about half what they were in New Zealand.
“We are happy for those people in New Zealand who are successful and able to build their lives.
“But at the same time, we need people to come back to Niue, to recognise and appreciate the value of Niue, and to help us build it.”
She said New Zealand could help develop a “sustainable remuneration strategy” by raising wages.
Peters said he wanted to increase Niue’s self-reliance and resilience, citing tourism as an obvious area for improvement.
The Niue government faces a deficit of more than NZ$15 million.
Tagraj said he was not worried.
“Every country in the world has a deficit – but that’s not a problem for me.”
He said that in Niue, the environment comes first and the economy comes second.
“You can’t just focus on the economy and ignore the environment.
“You can be greedy thinking only about finances, but sometimes when you do that and don’t protect the ocean, the future for future generations is left blank.
“You have to take care of the environment first and then the economy will follow, and a lot of people like to go to places where the environment is intact and where people care about the environment and the ocean. That’s exactly what we’re doing.”
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