Value Of The South Pacific Commission

Interesting Survey by Experienced Commissioner

IN more than one editorial note, we have suggested that the countries which provide the money for the South Pacific Com mission, and the Islands countries for which it is maintained, are not getting full value because there is something lacking in the machinery by which accepted Commission re commendations are given effect to * on the legislative level, by the six member Governments Australia, France, New Zealand, United King dom, United States, Netherlands.

Following is a letter written to the Editor by Mr. C. G. R. McKay, who is a New Zealand member of the Commission, and who probably is New Zealand's wisest and most experienced Islands administrator.

We agree entirely with Mr. McKay s summary, but we still should like to know what actually has been done by the Governments of the six nations, directly and officially, to Implement the recommendations of the Commission AN editorial note in your July issue asks “The SPC: What Really is being Accomplished ? —as indeed it should. As an old Islands resident myself, a search for practical results has been my main preoccupation since I was appointed a member of the Com mission. , A booklet of 20 pages was pub lished recently, entitled; The South Pacific Commission —What it has done.” It was widely distributed.

In an endeavour to find what more the Commission can do, I re peatedly ask for criticisms from those it serves —i.e., people and authorities of the Pacific Islands.

The following, from the New Zea land administered islands, are a fair average of their comments: “Most helpful” . . .‘‘Western Samoa benefits from the many other more general Commission projects" ... “Impressed by the calibre of the Commission's staff”

“The experts engaged must be good enough” ... “The Litera ture Bureau is a valuable service” ... “Publicity side is poor” ...

“Good value for the expenditure on the Commission” . . . . “Satis fying that the Commission is con fining its attention to the more urgent problems” ... “Spirit of endeavour apparent at its head quarter s” . . . . “Mountains of paper” ... “The activities of the Commission appear to us to be very satisfactory.”

Many Islands residents know of the assistance given by Pieris on copra; Urquhart on cocoa; of the joint full-scale attack being made on the rhinoceros beetle; of advice given on Co-operatives to 16 of the 18 Pacific administrations: of re search into filariasis, malaria, diet

and nutrition: of specialist visits arranged to advise on leprosy and eye diseases; of assistance to com munity development undertakings in several groups; of- the Literature Bureau in Sydney equipped to fill the vast and dangerous vacuum of good reading material; of the steady outflow of technical advice in printed papers. One of them makes constructive suggestions to remedy the unbalance of costly social services without corresponding economic development; another be gins, “Malaria is a thoroughly pre ventable disease.”

They may know that the Com mission, of its own initiative, has re duced its meetings in order to spend less time on discussion and provide more for output.

The 40-odd delegates who met in Noumea last year, representing not officialdom but Islands people, ex amined the work of the Commission and commended both its results and the sincerity of the Governments who established it.

All this costs money; but the cost is very small compared with what each of the Governments spends on its Territories in other ways. In no country does the annual cost reach threepence per head, and most of the Territories pay nothing.

The key answer to your question ing, and mine, is that the constitu

tion of the Commission makes advisory. Within this realistic lirr ation there is a qualified staff woi mg devotedly and producing ■ best technical advice that can found. None of it lies hidden Government files; it is all publish and widely distributed.

Here is a recent judgment fr< : responsible Islands author!

There is no doubt but that 1 Commission is carrying out work great value to the Pacific, the cn limiting factor being the varic communities’ ability to digest a apply their findings and advice / I am, etc.,

C. G. R. Mckay

Whangerei, NZ, August 5, 1954.