Micronesia's shipping problems
pp. 64-65 · Read in the full issue
Micronesian sea transport suffers from an obsolete fleet, generally in adequate port facilities and an over all lack of planning for a viable ship ping system, resulting from neglect, a lack of funds and misplaced priori ties, reported Truk Congressman Mr Sasauo Haruo after a 24-day survey of shipping services and port facilities.
Mr Haruo, chairman of the Con gress joint committee on resources and development, made his survey with a shipping expert from the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Far East, Mr Danko Koludrovic.
Mr Haruo said the major problem about shipping in Micronesia was giving adequate service in and be tween the districts. Bringing cargo into Micronesia was less of a prob lem than it was a year ago, before the TT Government removed the ex clusive shipping monopoly for Trans pacific Lines Inc, and allowed various companies to service Micronesian ports.
Attacking the United States over the shipping question, he said ship ping had not been a No 1 priority with the administering authority. “As an island nation, shipping is our life line, but all our ships are obsolete, the vessels are hazardous, and worst of all there is no plan to improve the situation, except plans to build new ships which constantly get de ferred by the administration”, he complained.
Mr Koludrovic, who has studied many US aid programmes in Asia and the South Pacific, said he was surprised at the shipping situation in Micronesia. The US had poured mil lions of dollars into many other nations where it had no formal com mitment as it had under the UN trusteeship agreement on Micronesia.
The most fundamental elements in attempting to set up an efficient ship ping service—collecting statistics about tonnage and other matters in the various ports—were non-existent.
Senator John Mangefel, who took part in the survey, said shipping problems had reduced travel and communications between the districts, and thus had affected Micronesian unity. The Congress of Micronesia had repeatedly given high priority to acquiring more field trip ships for the districts in annual budgets, but only one ship out of eight had been financed and built.
The Department of the Interior, through the influence of Ambassador Franklin H. Williams of the Office
of Micronesian Status Relations, in the past shifted funds from ships to other programmes. Recently he pro posed that three ships be cut out of the proposed 1975 budget so that the funds could be diverted to im prove power facilities in one district.
The administering authority had given first priority to airport and road construction and neglected ship ping, which was “vital to the welfare of the people of Micronesia as a Pacific Islands nation”.
Mr Haruo said the committee, to correct the problems, planned to re commend that an independent agency be set up to oversee the operations of the TT transport division, which was preoccupied with day-to-day operations of shipping.
“We need an independent agency to set policies and goals and monitor our government transport system”, he said. “The lack of such a policy setting agency is reflected in the pre sent poor state of affairs in shipping in Micronesia today”.
The joint committee expects to submit a detailed report of its find ings, plus specific recommendations to the Sixth Congress of Micronesia, in January.
Png Students'
Transport Survey
Thirty-one students of the two universities in Papua New Guinea are making a major study of the coun try’s water transport system for the Department of Transport. The study is the biggest yet in a joint pro gramme, now in its fifth year, which combines the research resources of the department, the universities, and the New Guinea research unit of the Australian National University.
The study, of coastal and inland waters, includes Wewak and western islands areas, Manus, the Madang Islands, the Siassi Islands, the south coast of East and West New Britain, the island groups to the north and west of New Ireland, the Bougain ville Islands, the Trobriands, D'Entrecasteaux Islands, the Louisi ade Archipelago, and the Gulf and Western District coast and islands.
The students will build up an in ventory of factual information to provide a planning basis policy. They will also report on transport prob lems in the areas.
Minister for Transport and Civil Aviation Mr lambakey Okuk said one problem was the frequent break
down of outboard motors, the ex pense of spare parts, and the delay in getting them. The department needed to know how widespread the problem was. The students’ study, which includes coverage of even the remoter islands, should enable the department to assess how motor breakdowns affect mobility.
The department is also examining the use of personal and public trans port in selling market and export products. Officers are visiting the main centres in the areas involved to explain the scope of the study to field officers, and ensure students re ceive every help in reaching remoter areas.
Mr Okuk said he had heard criti cism that his department concen trated on roads rather than other forms of transport. While the de partment was constantly reviewing national road needs, other modes of transport were also being reviewed.
He added that while the study would be wide, there would be gaps.
One of these would be filled by a study by his department of canoe arrivals and departures at Koki in January. The information gathered would supplement information from a road traffic census on the Hiritano Highway, Rigo Road and Sogeri Road.