6 October 1998 'Talofa lava' Samoa – study tour sows seeds of future contact

A connection between Canterbury and the Ministry of Agriculture, Forests, Fisheries and Meteorology in Samoa could blossom following a study tour to the island by a postgraduate class from Lincoln University.

As a result of the tour and reporting work done by the students, Samoa's Minister of Agriculture has expressed interest in developing an agreement with Lincoln University, and particularly its International Rural Development programme, making such visits an annual activity. It would be an opportunity for the Lincoln postgraduate class to carry out assessment exercises based on projects implemented within the Ministry and outside.

"It's an initiative we intend to pursue," says John Lay, the Director of Lincoln's Applied Management and Computing Division, which conducts the University's International Rural Development Programme.

In the visit to Samoa just completed, the Lincoln group spent a week on an evaluation exercise of the Western Samoa Farming Systems Project, a six-year project recently completed with financial support from the AusAID.

The students not only evaluated economic outcomes but also assessed the social and environmental impacts of the development project and at the end of the visit they presented their preliminary findings to Ministry staff.

An annual overseas tour is a major component of Lincoln University's postgraduate course in Project Planning and Management, a core subject within its International Rural Development Programme.

Hosted by the Samoan Agriculture Ministry, this year's tour was led by Dr Gilbert Nartea of the University's Applied Management and Computing Division, and eight different countries were represented among the students – Juan Candia (Chile), Matthias Schellhorn (Germany), Emmanuel Yamoah (Ghana), Nina Perez (Mexico), Bhubaneswor Dhakal (Nepal), Danilo Lorilla (Philippines), Rukmani Rathnayake (Sri Lanka) and Kiat-Arpakul (Thailand).

The idea to visit Samoa came from two Lincoln graduates – Faletoi Tuilaepa, Chief Information Officer of Samoa's Ministry of Agriculture, Forests, Fisheries and Meteorology and Seve Imo, Assistant Director of Crops, Extension and Regulation. Details of the visit were arranged by Stewart Pittaway, Senior Consultant at Lincoln International Ltd and one of the founders of the International Rural Development programme.

The visit opened with a courtesy call on Samoa's Minister of Agriculture, Forests, Fisheries and Meteorology followed by consultations with government officials, project management staff, target beneficiaries of the project.

The group also met officials from the Ministry of Women's Affairs, AusAID, the development Bank of Samoa, and a non-government organisation (NGO) Women in Business Foundation, visited a district hospital and women's community centre, talked to lecturers at the University of the South Pacific and consulted with environmental experts from the South Pacific Regional Environmental Programme.

"An important part of the tour was a two-night stay at the project site in the village of Siufaga," says Dr Nartea, "and here the group interviewed farmers affected by the project and met with village women's committees."

"The tour has sensitised us all to the complex demands of development project consultancy," says study group member Matthias Schellhorn.

Ian Collins, Journalist, Lincoln University, Canterbury, New Zealand