Two Big Meetings For 1976

There will be two large SPC conferences in 1976—a review con erence and the 16th South Pacific Conference.

The review will be undertaken by a committee of senior government and territorial representatives who will meet in Nauru about May. Their report will go to the 16th Conference, which will meet in Noumea in October.

The October conference will not be at SPC headquarters in Noumea, but at another site yet to be announced. This is because the invitation for the conference to meet in Noumea has been made officially by New Caledonia, which thus becomes the host country, and will supply the conference chairman. Vice-chairman will be David Kausimae, of the Solomons, Members of the Review Committee for the May meeting have yet to be decided. All governments and territories are eligible to send representatives, but they have until this November 30 to decide if they want to participate.

Meanwhile a two-man commission is to be appointed by the Sec retariat to carry out an independent investigation into functions appro priate for the SPC and to report to the Review Committee. Also working papers will be solicited from Fiji, Australia, New Zealand and any other government or interested organisation.

One of the tasks of the Review Committee will be to consider a change of name for the SPC.