the jet newspaper

JANUARY 2013 - Volume 5, Number 1 - Issue: 42 www.thejetnewspaper.com PRICE: 50 CENTS VIP JANUARY 2013 - Volume 5, Number 1 - Issue: 42 www.thejetnewspaper.com PRICE: 50 CENTS VIP

Sweet sixteenFiji’s prestigious tourism awards gets bigger and better

By JOSEPHINE NAVULA

Tourism Fiji’s new CEO Rick Hamilton says Fiji is one of the hottest destinations in the world as it has everything which people love to experi-ence.

“It’s a fantastic place be-cause everything is here, the country has diving activities, eco-tourism and so many dif-ferent things,” Mr Hamilton said.

Hamilton, a former New Zealand Flight Centre Man-aging Director took reigns of the national tourism offi ce recently and was speaking at the AON Fiji Excellence in Tourism Awards launch at the Tourism Fiji boardroom on Tuesday, January 22.

He said it was an honour to be given an opportunity to lead the good work that Tour-ism Fiji has been doing for the past years.

“I love coming here, and when I was given the opportu-nity to take this role, I was re-ally excited,” Hamilton said.

The organizing commit-tee of the AON Excellence in Tourism Awards has now fi -nalized their shortlisted appli-cations from a record number of over 140 nominations for last year.

AON Fiji Excellence in Tourism Awards Trustee Chairperson Matthew Gil-lespie said the standard of entry for the 2012 Awards is exceptional and the list has

been fi nalized after a month of challenging deliberation by a team of experienced, profes-sional judges from a range of industry stake holders.

“All the 2012 short listed applicants will receive a site visit from the judges before fi nal decisions are made. Win-ners will be represented at the Gala Awards dinner,” he said.

The organizing committee for the AON Fiji Excellence in Tourism Awards also re-ceived donations from their sponsors during the launch.

ANZ Head of Tourism Bharat Kumar handed over a cheque of $12,500.

“We have been one of the proud supporters for the in-dustry and the tourism awards

and we are also happy to con-tinue helping in order for our tourism industry to grow,” Kumar said.

Major sponsor AON Fiji Limited General Manager Kevin Parr and Airports Fiji Limited General Man-ager Airports Lawrence Liew handed over a cheque each on behalf on their companies.

Chairman Gillespie also added that unfortunately there can only be one trophy recipi-ent on the night.

“Even though there will be only one awarded as winner, but all contributors have dem-onstrated their outstanding commitment to continuously elevating the standard of tour-ism in Fiji in a manner truly

refl ective of our famous Fijian hospitality, respectful to our natural and cultural environ-ment, and their dedication to the sustainability and longev-ity of our industry,” he said.

The 16th AON Fiji Excel-lence in Tourism Awards Gala night and dinner will be held on Friday, February 22 at the Sofi tel Fiji Resort and Spa.

Tourism Fiji CEO Rick Hamilton, left, gets all excited about the 16th Tourism Fiji CEO Rick Hamilton, left, gets all excited about the 16th AON Fiji Excellence in Tourism Awards with Tourism Fiji chairman AON Fiji Excellence in Tourism Awards with Tourism Fiji chairman

David Pfl ieger Junior. Mr Pfl ieger is also the managing director of Air David Pfl ieger Junior. Mr Pfl ieger is also the managing director of Air Pacifi c which will be soon re-branded as Fiji Airways.Pacifi c which will be soon re-branded as Fiji Airways.

Photo: MARGARET NAQIRI.Photo: MARGARET NAQIRI.

www.thejetnewspaper.com www.epapergallery.com

THE JET - FIJI’S FIRST COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER2

FROM THE DESK

ON THE BRIGHT SIDE

“Fiji - the way the world should be”“ Being the hub of the Pacifi c, Fiji has everything that a spectacular tropical paradise has to offer - from private island resort accommodations, top class restaurants to white sandy beaches, inbound tours, jet boat rides, hot air balloon rides, mountain trekking, inland tours, eco tourism, sky diving, helicopter rides, cruise trips, scuba diving, massage and beauty parlours, vibrant night life and a lot more than any other

destination in the world offers ”

THE JET is Fiji’s fi rst community newspaper published monthly by SHAMBU ADVERTISING from Nadi - the tourism capital of Fiji.

PUBLISHER : SHALENDRA PRASAD Cell: 9232073EDITOR : JOSEPHINE NAVULA Cell: 7307574ADMIN MANAGER : VIJNESH CHAND Cell: 9768631PHONE OFFICE : (679) 7767574/ 6708188 FAX : (679) 6708188EMAIL : [email protected] : [email protected]

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COMMUNITY NOTICE BOARDEMPOWER PACIFIC (Formerly PCSS) provides private, confi dential counsel-ling on depression, family/marital, stress, grief, abuse, suicidal thoughts, STI’s, drugs, alcohol & be-havior lifestyle changes. Opens 8am – 3pm, Monday – Friday. Call us on 6708169 Located at Nadi old hospital road.

ROTARY CLUB OF NADI is on a membership drive to increase members who repre-sent all sections of the com-munity. Nadi Rotarians meet every Wednesday at Sitar Restaurant in Martintar at 6.30pm. Interested people can call club president Krupesh Patel on 6700478

SOROPTIMIST INTER-NATIONAL is a vibrant, dynamic organisation for to-day’s professional and busi-nesswomen, working through projects to promote equality, development and peace. We are seeking members to join our club. Interested ladies can call SI Nadi president Zeaba Rahiman on 9977058

FIJIAN WRITERS ASSO-CIATION which has been established to form the fi rst ever formal body represent-ing writers, poets, journal-ists and everyone who has a passion for writing is seek-ing new members. Interested people can contact Professor Subramani via email:- [email protected]

SHALENDRA PRASAD

Joe Gray and Rusiate Waqa were all smiles when they were awarded Fijian Hosts of the Month for November and December, respectively, in recognition for their excel-lent customer service at Nadi Airport and their contribution to the Fijian tourism industry by the Permanent Secretary for Tourism, Ms Elizabeth Powell.

Rusiate Waqa and Joe Gray, both employees of Air-port Fiji Limited, were cho-sen as winners by the Fijian Host Council for the excep-tional customer care they are providing for arriving and de-parting passengers.

Both the winners were excited and grateful for the recognition and appreciation shown by the Ministry of Tourism and the Permanent Secretary.

Ms Powell stressed the im-portance of valuing the con-tributions of front-line staff while presenting the awards to the two Fijian Hosts.

“We are very pleased to receive such excellent reports from our visitors to Fiji about the performance of airport workers in providing them with assistance and access to information,” she said.

“The Fijian Hosts Program was designed not only to im-prove the level of customer service. It's also an opportuni-ty for the Ministry to express its appreciation to the hard-working team of front-liners at Nadi Airport,” the Perma-nent Secretary added.

Mr Waqa, the December winner, started his career with AFL as a gardener in 2001. But his ambition and eager-

AFL employees shine

ness to learn has propelled him through the ranks into a role of a Public Relations Of-fi cer at AFL.

From the Yasawas and married with two children, Mr Waqa says he's a fi rm believer in the old saying that “Educa-tion is the passport to a better lifestyle.” He was delighted to receive the Fijian Hosts Award.

“This is unbelievable- I am very happy but this has been only possible because of all the different training programs that I have under-taken,” he said. Mr Waqa gave credit to his superiors at AFL. One of them is his immediate boss, Mr Joe Gray, who also received a Fijian Hosts Award today for his performance as a Customer Services Manager.

Forty-fi ve year old Mr Gray,who is currently study-ing for a Masters of Business Administration (MBA) degree

at the University of the South Pacifi c, started his career with AFL nine years ago as a Cus-tomer Service Coordinator.

Mr Gray has held various positions in the tourism in-dustry and the FNPF over the years and is also prominent for his community work. He's been Chair of the Hibiscus Executive Committee for the Senikau pageant and a pioneer member of the AIDS Task Force.

The Fijian Hosts Program is a Ministry of Tourism ini-tiative that was launched in August last year to award top performing employees based at the Nadi Airport. It is de-signed to raise public aware-ness of the importance of the airports role as Fiji's gateway and its general contribution to the tourism industry.

Both winners were select-ed on the basis of comment cards placed in the Nadi Air-

port concourse and fi lled out by international visitors.

The winners received a FI-JIAN HOSTS of the Month certifi cate that is signed by the Minister for Tourism ac-knowledging their exception-al service and a $250 grocery shopping voucher, dinner for two at the Westin Denarau Resort, with ground transfers provided by Tourism Fiji.

The two winners also qualify to be considered along other Fijian Host of the Month winners to be one of the nomi-nees for the Fijian Host of the Year 2012 award to be an-nounced at the AON Fiji Ex-cellence in Tourism Awards next month.

The fi nal prize is an Air Pacifi c return ticket for two to Sydney and two nights’ ac-commodation at the Sheraton, Sydney.

MINFO

Standing from left are AFL’s airport manager Joe Gray, AFL acting CEO Naushad Ali, permanent secretary for tourism Elizabeth Powell and AFL public relations offi cer Rusiate

Waqa. Photo: JOSEPHINE NAVULA.

Tourism awards turn

sweet 16

AON General Manager Kevin Parr, left, hands over the major sponsorship cheque to Gerald Barrack.

Photo: MARGARET NAQIRI.

It is once again the time of the year when the movers and shakers in the tourism industry, our biggest ex-port earner, will get together to recognize those who excel in their respective fi elds.

While collectively everyone plays their roles to make the industry a continued success story, the Aon Ex-cellence in Tourism Awards is a perfect way to ap-preciate and commend individuals and operators who achieve their goals with exceptional perfor-mances during the past year.

Already into its 16th year, the awards seem to be get-ting bigger and better each year.

The Jet Newspaper is proud to be part of Fiji’s thriving tourism industry and wishes every nominee all the best in the upcoming awards which will be held at the prestigious Sofi tel Fiji Resort and Spa on Friday, February 22.

A timely salute to Mr Gerald Barrack, outgoing trustee and chairman of the awards committee for his nu-merous years of dedicated service to the tourism in-dustry and the people of Fiji at large.


THE JET - FIJI’S FIRST COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER 3

ADVERTISEMENT



LOCAL NEWS

Man needs help for eye treatment

By JOSEPHINE NAVULA

By SHALENDRA PRASADIn severe pain, Mansoof Rahman and wife Shireen Bano.

Photo: JOSEPHINE NAVULA.

A 37-year-old is currently in pain and calling out to the pub-lic for assistance after severely damaging his left eye.

Mansoof Rahman was hammering a machine part when a chip of metal fl ew and hit his left eye.

Originally from Seaqaqa in Vanua Levu and now residing in Korovuto, Nadi, Rahman can no longer see with his left eye.

“I have been facing fi nancial constraints and I’m going through severe pain in my left eye which is completely blind, as I cannot see sunlight and open my left eye at all,” he said.

Rahman said that the piece of metal is still inside his eye, and the doctors are fi nding it hard to remove it.

According to his medical report, the Iris appears to be pushed forward by cortical matter on lateral aspect while looking nor-mal elsewhere.

Rahman and wife Shireen Bano are currently looking for support as the eye cannot be treated in the country.

The couple are looking at getting the treatment done at Ba-tra Hospital in New Delhi, India but all depends on the fi nan-cial support they can receive from generous organizations and individuals.

Nadi ratepayers who clear their bills on time will receive a special discount of seven percent according to Nadi Town Council CEO Nemia Tagi.

Mr Tagi said to make it

To make matters worse, the couple are currently unemployed and fi nd it very diffi cult to make ends meet.

“Both of them are very hardworking people. Mrs Rahman is currently pounding grog and selling it for their livelihood as they have no others means of income right now,” one neighbour told The Jet.

Nadi Town Council spe-cial administrator, Aisea Tuidraki has applauded government’s commitment towards the Nadi drainage project initiative in the jet set town, an exercise poised to mitigate against future fl oods. Whilst acknowledg-ing the partnership between the government, Fiji Roads Authority and the people of Nadi in minimising the ef-fects of fl ooding, Tuidraki said such efforts would go along way for future genera-tion.

“This generation who are alive today, can tell our children that we have done something in terms of mini-mizing the effect of fl ooding

Government helps with fl ood mitigation and drainage worksin this township of Nadi,” Tuidraki said.

Mr Tuidraki commended the initiative while respond-ing to the $200,000 cheque given to him by the Minister of Local Government Colo-nel Samuela Saumatua.

“We have managed to withstand some very serious disasters since 2009. And up to last year it just got bigger. We should stand together in partnership and in building up our town and our commu-nity and become a resilient community,” Mr Tuidraki said.

Minister Saumatua said apart from the work carried out in Nadi, his ministry will undertake more drainage

works in other parts of Fiji to improve resilience against disasters like fl oods.

“We will soon be dredg-ing the river that runs through Rakiraki Town and similar work will also be conducted in Lautoka and Ba. Later this year we will have to address the fl ooding in Labasa and in the other towns,” Col Saumatua said.

“Here in Nadi, the central Government has a big plan to divert the Nadi River to reduce the impact of fl ood-ing to Nadi Town and the surrounding area.”

MINFO

PRESS RELEASE

The Water Authority of Fiji would like to advice its valued customers who may have not received their wa-ter bills on the usual sched-ule months to contact our National Call Centre on 3346777 or to visit its web-site www.waterauthority.

Late receipt of water bill

Council offers discount

com.fj to check their bill balance.

Customers are also en-couraged to sign up for e-billing by emailing their billing details to [email protected] for a more effi -cient bill delivery services.

Nadi Town Council special administrator Aisea Tuidraki, left, and minister for local govern-ment Colonel Samuela Saumatua go through the drainage plan.

Photo: JOSEPHINE NAVULA.

easier for people to pay their rates, the council has also ex-tended the cashier hours.

“Our cashiers are also working on Saturdays so that people can fi nd it easy to pay up,” Mr Tagi said.

He said the extended hours will be available until the end of January.



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ENTERTAINMENT

Fiji’s thriving movie in-dustry is all set to further excel this year according to Film Fiji CEO Florence Swamy.

While the theatrical re-lease of Bollywood thriller Table No. 21 to a 1000 screens in India and an additional 150 screens worldwide in Decem-ber last year has created a major impact for our tourism industry, there are more ben-efi ts to follow.

According to Mrs Swamy, the country has seen a surge in movie production not only from Bollywood but from other industries such as Hol-lywood, Kollywood, UK and China.

“Fiji has had a Film Tax Rebate scheme in place since 2004, when it was 15%. This was revised upwards to 35% in 2007. On 31 December 2010, the Fijian Government gazetted new changes to the Film Tax Rebate laws effec-tively increasing the amount of rebate payable per fi lm from 35% to 47% of Quali-fying Fiji Production Expen-diture (QFPE),” Mrs Swamy said.

“This law came into force on January 1, 2011. The new increase has already begun to yield its expected results with increased interest not only from Hollywood but from Bollywood as well. To date, ten productions have shot in Fiji utilising this incentive. Of these, fi ve were from Bol-lywood, three from Kolly-wood, one from Hollywood (US), one from China (still shooting) and one from UK,” she added.

According to Mrs Swamy, of the eleven fi lms shot here so far, “Table No. 21” (pro-duced by Next Gen Films and distributed by Eros Interna-tional) is the fi rst fi lm to be theatrically released world-wide. The next one to be re-leased is “3G” on March 15, “Warning” on March 25” and “Naadi Thudikkuthadi” on 1 April.

She said “Table No. 21” was special because it was the fi rst Bollywood fi lm shot on

Movie boom

By SHALENDRA PRASAD

locations in Fiji to be released. The fi lm was released on 1000 screens across India and 150 screens in other countries. This ensured very high view-ership to diverse audiences to whom Fiji was showcased at its best.

“With the release of Table No. 21 worldwide, we’ve also just shown the world that it makes business sense to in-vest in Fiji. Filmmakers will see that we can make it hap-pen here in Fiji: from our in-centives and investor friendly and transparent business pro-cesses to the local services, technical facilities and other logistics which are all needed to make a fi lm,” Mrs Swamy added.

“We have it all here and it all works effi ciently. Impor-tantly, we can deliver on time which is critical for produc-tions as they work on very tight schedules and budgets. Also very importantly, this fi lm (Table No. 21) will show-case the exotic beauty of Fiji – and this, we’re confi dent, will attract more tourists to our shores. Given the areas that this fi lm will be show in, we will defi nitely be generating a lot of interest in our country - either for people to visit or to make fi lms. And so, this fi lm will be a very important part of our marketing collateral - to promote Fiji both as a fi lm-ing location thereby attracting more productions here and in promoting Fiji as a holiday destination.

Mrs Swamy says the coun-try is ready to provide full back-up and all associated services attached to movie production.

“So, the spin-offs to other sectors are signifi cant as there will be an increase in the de-mand for local products and services. As a result of these fi lms, a substantial number of jobs are expected to be created for locals in sectors that will be providing services to the production.

“We have already noticed substantial investments by locals in the areas of fi lming equipment. Red cameras, si-lent generators, lighting, and other fi lming equipment can now be hired in Fiji.”

Eros Pacifi c Limited di-rector Jack Raniga, left, highlights the benefi ts of movie production

in Fiji to Dixon Seeto, right, president of the Fiji Islands Hotel and Tourism Association

while Nadi Town Council special administrator

Aisea Tuidraki looks on. Photo: SHALENDRA

PRASAD.

Sonal Chauhan and Neil Nitin Mukesh get cosy in this Sonal Chauhan and Neil Nitin Mukesh get cosy in this still from the movie still from the movie 3G3G shot in Fiji. Photo: SUPPLIED. shot in Fiji. Photo: SUPPLIED.



LOCAL NEWS

From left are Pitila Thompson, Robin Maivusaroko, Beverly McElrath and From left are Pitila Thompson, Robin Maivusaroko, Beverly McElrath and Milika Marshall. Photo: SHALENDRA PRASAD.Milika Marshall. Photo: SHALENDRA PRASAD.

Financial boost for cancer societyBy JOSEPHINE NAVULA

China’s Sheraton Qingdao Jiaozhou Hotel general manager Robin Maivusaroko donated a cheque of $13,279.55 to the Western Cancer Society at the Sheraton Fiji Resort in De-narau to commemorate the loss of his late wife Amete Na-gatalevu, who died of breast cancer last year.

Nagatalevu was an active member of the Western Cancer So-ciety and hoped to live life to the fullest even though she struggled with cancer for six-years after she was fi rst diag-nosed in 2005.

“You couldn’t tell she was a victim of cancer because of her personality and despite of the circumstances she was facing, she had the enthusiasm to live and learn more about cancer,” Maivusaroko said.

Western Cancer Society President Milika Marshall said they are fortunate to have such people to donate to the society.

“The Western Cancer Society is very lucky this year to have the support of so many individuals and organizations and the money received will enable us to carry out more screening and awareness work,” she said.

Marshall also shared a few memories about Nagatalevu.“I’ve met Amete a couple of times as she was one of our active

members, and yes she had the strength and always offered a helping hand to people who were also suffering from the same sickness,” she said.

Robin and Amete were married for 15-years with four children. Amete Nagatalevu hailed from Kadavu and was 41-years-old during the time of her death.

From Alabama to Andrews

Ron and Ellen Thompson of Huntsville, Alabama, USA with children of Andrews Primary School. Photo: SHALENDRA

PRASAD.

By SHALENDRA PRASAD

First time visitors Ron and Ellen Thompson of Huntsville, Alabama, USA were concerned when they fi rst learnt about the plight of children who lost everything during the two fl oods which haunted the people of Nadi early last year.

So when the couple de-cided to fi nally travel to Fiji, they collected heaps of books and stationery for children who were deeply affected by the fl oods.

“We decided to come in with the books and school

stuff for the kids and the support we have received from Sofi tel Fiji has been wonderful in facilitating all this,” offered Ellen Thomp-son, a former school teacher now working for the Univer-sity of Alabama.

“We had no idea about the recent cyclone but we saw a lot of news about the fl oods last year so we decided to collect all the stuff and get it over,” she added.

The couple had a chance to meet up with children of Andrews Primary School and hand over the books and stationery to them.



MOTORING

Mazda 3. Photo: Google.Mazda 3. Photo: Google. It’s zoom zoom all the way for Mazda

in AustraliaAustralian car buyers are

following the lead of the world - making sure that their ride exudes not only sleek and sexiness but also saves more fuel.

This now explains the increasing popularity of compact cars that Japanese carmakers have popularized fi rst in the United States and now in the Asia Pacifi c re-gion, experts said.

In Australia, the bestsell-ing vehicle for 2011, accord-ing to the latest VFACTS data released, was Mazda 3, which experts and consum-ers alike praised for reliabil-ity without sacrifi cing the look-factor.

By selling more number of units, roughly a thou-sand more according to The Advertiser, Mazda 3 is now Australia's number one ve-hicle, dislodging the coun-try's long-time favourite, the Holden Commodore.

For 15 years, media re-ports said, Commodore held sway among Australian fam-ilies, whose taste and priori-ties now vary signifi cantly

as they give more weight on fuel effi ciency and sticker price.

On that respect, small cars and medium sizes ruled the past years, The Advertiser reported, with Toyota and Mazda tussling closely but with the former achieving better overall results on the account of combined sales for the Corolla and Camry.

Right now, Mazda is bask-ing on its new found glory, at least in Australia, which Mazda Australia manag-ing director Doug Dickson attributed to a new global trend - the re-emergence of small cars and the decline of the big-sized sedans.

Dickson said that Mazda has become the major ben-efi ciary of the shift, with the Mazda 3 attracting not only second looks but also actual buys.

"You have to look at the industry dynamic in terms of other factors. Right now, if someone needs more inte-rior space they don't need to go to a large car," the Mazda executive added.

On its part, Holden earlier admitted in December that the Commodore is long-slat-ed to relinquish its post but the company is optimistic that the new Holden Cruze will continue to carry the torch for the Australian fi rm.

Holden, company offi cials said, is now more focused on pushing the Cruze to record more profi tability instead of preserving its statistical top position.

"We've said all along that it's going to be a tough fi ght ... but our focus is on prof-itability," Holden spokes-woman Shayna Welsh told the Herald Sun.

In Fiji, Niranjans Autoport is the agents for Mazda ve-hicles.

REUTERS



TRAVEL AND TOURISM

V Restaurant, located at the luxurious Sofi tel Fiji Re-sort & Spa on Denarau Island, is unrivalled when it comes to dining in the Pacifi c.

Put simply it’s the perfect place to celebrate something special, host a memorable business event, or delight in a world class gourmet expe-rience without ever leaving Fiji’s shores.

Proudly Fijian with local artwork and motifs adoring white walls and infl uencing its decor and design, V restaurant is also unapologetically chic.

Thanks to Sofi tel’s subtle French infl uence, V is De-narau Island’s most genteel restaurant, complete with crisp white table cloths and an equally refi ned service that frequently impresses diners from as far afi eld as Sydney, San Francisco – or even Siga-toka.

The restaurant is com-pletely air conditioned for the comfort of its guests, ensuring a contemporary and comfort-ably cool dining encounter. And although an enclosed in-door restaurant, the fresh out-door feeling of Fiji breathes easily into this modern space courtesy of large generous windows opening out to ver-

Discerning Palates

Delight at V Restaurant

dant gardens and the resort’s lagoon outside.

V’s stunning presentation is complemented by its wide range of wine choices mak-ing it the perfect venue for those with an appreciation for fi ne food, wine and service. V serves up creative menus that showcase the best local pro-duce and selected imported delicacies, making V the place to be on Fiji’s fi ne food trail.

Menu highlights might in-clude such dishes as Grilled Tuna Lolo cooked Fiji-style with fresh coconut miti and ota salad with wasabi oil or a dessert of Pineapple Pudding with yoghurt pannacotta, Fiji vanilla bean ice cream and pineapple compote. These are just a few of the mouth water-ing morsels on offer at V res-taurant, elevating Fiji food to an international standard.

The restaurant offers seat-ing for up to 70 guests who truly enjoy the art of fi ne food and wine and is located on the ground fl oor of Sofi tel’s cen-tral building. V is open daily from 6:30pm.

To book dinner or an event, contact V restaurant on 675 7748

PRESS RELEASE

PRESS RELEASE

V Restaurant, located at the luxurious V Restaurant, located at the luxurious Sofi tel Fiji Resort & Spa on Denarau Sofi tel Fiji Resort & Spa on Denarau

Island. Photo: SUPPLIED. Island. Photo: SUPPLIED.

The Westin Denarau Island Resort & Spa will reopen for business on Wednesday, February 6, 2013.

Works on damage sustained during Tropical Cyclone Evan are near completion as Westin associates and contractors worked tirelessly throughout the Christmas and New Year pe-riod. Progress has been swift with work to roof shingles and thatching almost completed.

Facilities such as pools, restaurant, bars, Westin WORKOUT gym and Heavenly Spa by Westin are on target to meet this opening date.

‘The resort sustained substantial damage during the cyclone and we have been working around the clock to resume normal operations’ said Shane Cunning, Managing Director, Starwood Hotels and Resorts, Fiji.

Concurrent with the reopening of the hotel, The Westin De-narau Resort & Spa will also be launching a brand new restau-rant, Steakhouse by Peter Kuruvita. Having opened the award winning Flying Fish in Sydney in 2003, internationally re-nowned chef and SBS TV presenter, Peter joined the Starwood family in 2008 with the opening of Flying Fish Fiji at Sheraton Fiji Resort.

Shane Cunning said that Westin is delighted to be able to partner with Peter now on this new exciting restaurant venture.

For more information please contact the resort directly on +679 675 0000 or email

westin.fi [email protected].

Westin to re-open soon

An offi cer mans the security booth at the Westin Fiji Re-An offi cer mans the security booth at the Westin Fiji Re-sort & Spa. Photo: SHALENDRA PRASAD.sort & Spa. Photo: SHALENDRA PRASAD.



TRAVEL AND TOURISM

Tourism Fiji is pleased to announce the appoint-ment of Rick Hamilton as its new Chief Executive Offi cer (CEO).

Mr Hamilton’s appoint-ment is the result of an ex-tensive global search that attracted a number of high-calibre candidates. He com-menced work on Monday, January 14 and is based at the Tourism Fiji head-offi ce in Namaka, Nadi.

Mr Hamilton has more than 17 years of experience in the travel industry and he is joining Tourism Fiji after fi ve years as Managing Di-rector of Flight Centre New Zealand.

Bringing a wealth of in-dustry knowledge and ex-perience, Rick has also held roles as Retail Leader for Flight Centre South Africa and as Retail Leader for Stu-dent Flights Australia.

“I am truly thrilled to be joining the team at Tourism Fiji and I am excited to work with our many business part-ners, Fiji’s tourism opera-tors and Tourism Fiji's new global partners. Fiji is one of the most unique and beau-

Hamilton leads Tourism

Fijitiful countries on earth and I look forward to enhancing world-wide awareness about Fiji, its people and its many amazing attributes,” Mr Hamilton said.

“Tourism is a vital part of the Fijian economy and I am delighted to have the oppor-tunity to bring more people to visit and experience the amazing beauty of Fiji and the warmth and hospitality of the Fijian people.”

Tourism Fiji's Chair-man, Dave Pfl ieger, said Mr Hamilton’s appointment co-incided with the roll-out of an exciting rebranding and repositioning of Tourism Fiji to implement a fresh and comprehensive new strategy to enhance Fiji's reputation as an ideal vacation desti-nation for all demographics and global markets.

“Rick’s extensive ex-pertise and experience as a results-focused leader is expected to signifi cantly as-sist us in our goal to increase tourism to Fiji and further grow the economic impact in 2013 by increasing visitor arrivals, spend and average length of stay,” Mr Pfl ieger

said.In late 2012, Tourism Fiji

revealed the design of its new brand identity to Fiji tourism operators, appointed new marketing and public relations partners, selected a new global social media

partner and created a new destination website. In welcoming Mr Hamilton to his new position, Fiji’s At-torney-General and Minister for Tourism, Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum, said: “Tourism Fiji is ready to escalate the

Tourism Fiji’s new CEO Rick Tourism Fiji’s new CEO Rick Hamilton. Photo & article: Hamilton. Photo & article:

TOURISM FIJI.TOURISM FIJI.

benefi ts of the marketing partnerships and creative initiatives it has diligently and effectively developed.

“We look forward to Mr Hamilton’s contribution to the new direction of the or-ganisation and his strength-

ening of the competencies of Tourism Fiji by ensuring the right team is in place. Tour-ism Fiji must deliver on the investment that the Baini-marama Government has made,” Mr Sayed-Khaiyum said.



BANK OF BARODA

Bank stamps a strong mark, thanks customers for loyalty

By VIJNESH CHANDBank of Baroda has en-

joyed 48-years of strong presence in Fiji starting July 1961 with the opening of the fi rst branch in Suva.

Today the bank has a Fiji Wide presence with a net-work of eight fully comput-erized branches. The Bank has also recorded uninter-rupted profi ts since incep-tion.

The bank has kept on progressing steadily since inception and is now rated amongst one of the best commercial banks in the country.

Speaking to customers during a cocktail function at the Nadi branch in Decem-ber last year, BoB CEO Fiji operations, Pabitra Kumar Das thanked all the custom-ers present for their contin-ued support.

“I thank all of our valued clients who are associated with us,” Mr Das said.

“Our growth rate is better than other banks, so we have decided to introduce a new loan scheme. It’s a way to give back our clients some-thing special as they are the main reason for the growth.”

The Bank offers good rates on its loan schemes to its customers to benefi t from. Bank of Baroda has also introduced its Baroda Life Shield - a life insurance cover to provide extra ser-

vices to its customers.A fully equipped training

center in Suva caters for the development of their staff to meet new challenges and cope up with technological development.

With the professionalism of their staffs Baroda has had excellence in its operations since the beginning and they are striving for even better ever since.

Their Capital Adequa-cy Ratio is well above the regulatory norms. Bank of Baroda enjoys excellent reputation, and the business community holds the bank in good esteem for conduct of operations.

Bank of Baroda is India’s leading public sector bank with presence spanning across 26 countries.

Bank of Baroda CEO Fiji Operations Pabitra Kumar Das addresses invited cus-tomers during the cocktail

last year.

TOP: Motibhai Group CEO Kirit Patel, left, shares a light mo-ment with Mr PK Das. BELOW: Chandar Prakash of Nadi

Downtown Hotel with another guest.

Bank of Baroda Nadi branch head Mrs Raj Mati Lal, left, shares a light moment with Mrs Patel, Mrs Raju and BoB staff member Pritika Singh. Below: More pictures from the function last year. Photos: PRASHANT NAICKER.



BANK OF BARODA



TRAVEL AND TOURISM

The Fijian Embassy in the United Arab Emirates capital city of Abu Dhabi has been receiving an increasing num-ber of interests from both lo-cals and foreign nationals liv-ing and working in the UAE, most of whom have plans for a well-deserved holiday in Fiji including business entrepre-neurs and foreign investors

More visitors expected from the gulf

By KELEPI ABARIGAin United Arab Emirates

alike.Since its opening in Sep-

tember 2012, by Prime Min-ister Josaia Voreqe Bainima-rama, the Embassy has also embarked on several market-ing and promotional cam-paigns, the most recent being the participation of the Em-bassy and the Fijian commu-nity in Al Ain at the India Fest held in Abu Dhabi which had attracted hundreds of people and was also beamed live on popular India TV station Zee TV.

The participation of the Embassy together with the Fi-jian community in such events further helps generate inter-ests amongst the public and television viewers in the UAE including the neighboring Gulf regions. It also helps pro-mote Fiji both as an ideal and

Fiji’s ambassador to United Arab Emirates Dr Robin Nair Fiji’s ambassador to United Arab Emirates Dr Robin Nair with Prime Minister Commodore Frank Bainimarama. with Prime Minister Commodore Frank Bainimarama.

Photo: SUPPLIED. Photo: SUPPLIED.

With the success of our 24-hour German language hotline, September 2012 saw All Pacifi c Travel Concept – APTC (FIJI) LTD upgrading and broadening the range of this exclusive service, making it available to some of our key hotel partners.

A boutique Inbound and Tour Operator, APTC Fiji is the only operator in the country to provide daily day tours in both the English and German languages and once again successfully anticipat-ed, recognised and continues to meet another consumer

prestigious tourist destination together with the prospects

the country has to offer as the business hub and commercial

crossroads of the Pacifi c.For Surgeon and UAE resi-

dent, Dr Ansari Harris Mu-zammil and his young family, the opportunity to travel and work in Fiji couldn’t have come at the right time adding that the establishment of the Fijian Embassy in the UAE was certainly a positive deci-sion by the Fijian government.

“The staff was indeed very friendly, helpful and consider-ate and due to the lack of in-formation about Fiji, I came to know very late that I needed a visa to travel to Fiji to take up my new employment and after explaining the situation, they not only facilitated me but also expedited the processing of my visa application, and it took less than eight days” Dr Harris said.

With the signing of the

Double Taxation agreement last year, together with regular fl ight routes available, and the continuous promotion of Fiji through the Embassy in the UAE, the prospects of more locals and foreign nation-als travelling to Fiji certainly looks more promising.

Fiji being the hub of the Pacifi c, has everything that a spectacular tropical paradise has to offer, from private is-land resort accommodations, top class restaurants to white sandy beaches, inbound tours, jet boat rides, hot air balloon rides, mountain trekking, in-land tours, eco- tourism, sky diving, helicopter rides, cruise trips, scuba diving, massage and beauty parlors, vibrant night life and a lot more than any other destination in the world offers.

24-hour German language hotlineneed with this very exclusive and unique service.

“We noticed a growing trend with calls from hotels seeking our assistance with translations for their German-speaking guests and we drew up this concept of having a dedicated hotline available 24/7 to all German-speaking guests of any nationality who are in the country,” says Man-aging Director, Monika Old-enburg.

This free phone services are currently available at the First Landing Beach Resort & Villas, Mana Island Resort

& Spa, Matamanoa Island Re-sort, Mercure Hotel Nadi and at the Warwick Fiji Resort & Spa and have been successful-ly integrated with the unique guests services that each of these hotels are renowned for. This exclusive service continues to provide our mu-tual guests with an economi-cal and simple way for any and all of their questions, and other issues they face during their stay addressed by one of our experienced and full-time German staff 24/7! Available to all German-speaking guests and not only those of APTC

Fiji, it is like having your very own go-to concierge on call 24 hours a day, every day of the week, and in your mother-tongue!

It is very simple to use, with all that guests have to do is pick up the phone from its little bure from the hotel re-ception desk, press a number (yes, we’re on speed-dial!),

and hear a friendly “Guten Tag!” on the other end! Even if they simply want to know more about the local tours and cruise and other services available to them, they can call us. Or if they need as-sistance with understanding some of the hotel literature provided to them, our staff will happily translate!

So successful has been this integration that more hotels have requested for this ser-vice and we hope to expand further.

Just one of the services APTC Fiji sees as an advan-tage for our partners and most importantly for the benefi t of our mutual guests!!

PRESS RELEASE

Katharina Steiger, left and Michaela Huebrer all ready to serve German tourists in the country.

Photo: SUPPLIED.



APTC FEATURE

The APTC Centre for Professional Development was established last year to build the capacity of the TVET workforce. This in-cludes both APTC’s own local workforce and the workforce of our partner organizations, as well as oth-er national TVET institutes. The Centre for Professional Development is the central hub for the capability de-velopment of the APTC staff and ensures they re-ceive the training they need to stay up to date with the most recent teaching and learning practices so that

Centre for professional development (CPD)By APTC

By APTC

we continue to meet the ex-pectations of our graduates and the requirements of our quality framework.

The Centre was also established to support our TVET partners and build the capacity of existing and potential TVET trainers and assessors. One of the ways it does this is by coordi-nating the delivery of the Certifi cate IV in Training and Assessment for APTC.

Last year, the Centre for Professional Development has commenced by deliv-ery of the Certifi cate IV in Training and Assessment to in Fiji and Samoa. These programs have primarily

been for APTC national tu-tors who have demonstrated a high level of profession-alism and skill and in ad-dition we have a number of participants from other TVET providers undertaking the program.

The course will be of-fered in 2013 and we hope to make it available across the Pacifi c region by using an online and blended ap-proach to delivery. The Cen-tre is a great space with modern teaching technol-ogy and we look forward to welcoming more students both at the Centre and con-nected on-line over the coming years.

Sitting from left during the offi cial opening of the Centre for Professional Development and Corporate & Student Services Offi ce are Box Hill TAFE Institute CEO John Maddock, APTC Program Manager, AusAID Tina Seniloli, APTC CEO Denise O’Brien and her predecessor Barry Peddle. The function also coincided with a farewell for Mr Peddle.

Photos: PRASHANT NAICKER.

APTC’S new CEO takes charge The new Chief Executive

Offi cer of the Australia-Pacif-ic Technical College, Ms De-nise O’Brien, has taken up the reins of her new job.

Ms O’Brien had her fi rst day in her new post at the APTC headquarters in Na-maka, Fiji, on Monday 22 October. She succeeds Barry Peddle, CEO since July 2011, who is stayed on for a month to ensure a smooth leadership transition.

Ms O’Brien has oversight of APTC training activities in 14 Pacifi c countries, a respon-sibility for which her career as an experienced executive leader in the public sector in Australia has equipped her. Ms O’Brien has held a num-ber of senior positions in the fi elds of vocational education and training and adult com-munity education in metro-politan and regional multi-campus institutions. Her most recent post was as Senior Ex-ecutive Director-Adult Learn-ing Strategic Research at Box Hill Institute in Victoria.

Ms O’Brien’s professional experience has given her the background to relate to the challenges and opportunities facing the APTC staff at all levels and by students. She began in her career vocational education as a casual teacher at Wodonga TAFE in Victoria and rose to be a departmental

head and manager of Wodon-ga’s international program. She was subsequently Associ-ate Director at East Gippsland TAFE and then General Man-ager Education at Adult Mul-ticultural Education Services before returning to Wodonga TAFE in 2005 as Chief Execu-tive Offi cer. Under her leader-ship Wodonga won the Large Training Provider of the Year category of both the Victorian Training Awards and National Training Awards in 2008.

From late 2008 Ms O’Brien was CEO of Victoria’s Centre for Adult Education, in which role she led the CAE into a merger with Box Hill Insti-tute, while keeping the CAE name, place and purpose in-tact. This was an imaginative partnership that paved the way in 2011 for a unique means of offering post-secondary edu-cation and lifelong learning in Australia.

As someone who considers herself fortunate to be able to work with and for people of different ages, abilities, lan-guage, heritage and culture and who has worked with Koorie groups and individu-als, youth at risk, vulnerable adults, prisoners and adult learners in multicultural and general settings, Ms O’Brien is enthusiastic about facing the challenges of her new post in a culturally diverse setting. She is also a “passionate” be-liever in the “transformative nature of vocational educa-

tion and training” as it ben-efi ts individuals, communities and employers – a passion that perfectly matches the APTC’s dedication to offering the highest-quality vocational education and Australian-level qualifi cations to Pacifi c Islands people.

Barry Peddle was appoint-ed CEO of the Australia-Pa-cifi c Technical College when the college entered Phase II of its existence on 1 July 2011, having previously played a major role in the planning this new stage in the life of the APTC. In the words of John Maddock, Chairman of the APTC Board, Mr Peddle’ contribution to the APTC has been “tireless” and his leader-ship “outstanding”.

Mr Peddle has overseen the expansion of courses in both the APTC’s schools, Trades and Technology and Hospitality and Community Services. This has taken place partly in response to research studies commissioned by the APTC under his leadership, which revealed a demand by governments and employers for more vocational educa-tion programs to meet the Pacifi c region’s specifi c skills requirements. The refurbish-ment of the APTC health and community services training centre in Suva, Fiji, to offer a range of courses, is a concrete example of the APTC’s devel-opment in Phase II during Mr Peddle’s term as CEO.

Denise O’Brien, new CEO of the Australia-Pacifi c Technical College: a “passionate” believer in the “transformative nature of vocational education and training”

Tina Seniloli offi cially opens the Tina Seniloli offi cially opens the new centre last year.new centre last year.



APTC FEATURE

By SHALENDRA PRASAD

APTC’s former CEO Barry Peddle shows his farewell gift during a special function at Namaka, Nadi on Thursday, Novem-ber 22. Photos: PRASHANT NAICKER.

Peddle leaves

with fond memories

Box Hill TAFE Institute CEO John Maddock unveils the offi cial plaque to commemorate the opening of the new facilities in Namaka,

Nadi.Barry Peddle delivers his farewell address.

TOP: Guests take a tour of the new facilities in Namaka, Nadi. RIGHT: A student from Solomon Islands serves invited guests.

APTC’s outgoing CEO Barry Peddle has left the in-stitution as a satisfi ed man, knowing well he has left the leadership of the regional leader of TVET institute in very capable hands.

While addressing man-agement, staff and guests during the offi cial launching of the Centre for Profession-al Development and Corpo-rate & Student Services Of-fi ce in Namaka, Peddle did not mince his words while speaking about the bright future for APTC not only in Fiji but the entire Pacifi c region.

The function also coin-cided with a farewell for Mr Peddle who took charge of APTC in 2011.

“I know that we are leav-ing APTC in very, very ca-pable hands,” Mr Peddle said.

“APTC is about devel-oping people across all the countries within the Pacifi c and that’s not going to hap-pen overnight and that’s not going to happen tomorrow. The team leaders should not see yourselves as individual process but look at the much bigger picture and you are applied to work together.

“When we, the team of the APTC think about what we are about, we also about making sure that every young child has the greater possible expertise to do what education can do for them in the future and beyond.”



KHUDDAMUL AHMADIYYA MUSLIM JAMAAT MONTHLY FEATURE

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On 4 December 2012, the World Head of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat and Fifth Khalifa, Hadhrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad delivered an historic keynote address at the European Par-liament in Brussels to a packed audience of more than 350 guests representing 30 countries.The event was hosted by the newly launched ‘European Parliament Friends of Ahmadi-yya Muslims Group’, whose Chair and Vice-Chairs all took to the stage to welcome Hadh-

rat Mirza Masroor Ahmad. Martin Schulz MEP and President of the European Parlia-ment also came to meet with His Holiness.

Mirza Masroor Ahmad called on the European Union to preserve its unity; addressed the issue of increased immigration to Western countries; advocated for equality in international relations and spoke at length about Islam’s key teach-ings in relation to developing world peace.Hadhrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad said that in the modern world many people viewed Is-lam as a religion that promoted violence and extremism and blamed it for many of the

world. He said that such allegations were par-ticularly unjust given that “the very meanings of the word Islam are ‘peace’ and ‘security’.”

The Khalifa spoke about wide-spread concerns over increasing lev-els of immigration to Western countries.In a detailed analysis, His Holiness said the issue

was leading to the spread of ‘restlessness and anxiety’. His Holiness blamed both the immigrants and the indigenous people

-migrants provoked locals by refusing to integrate, whilst certain segments of the local society were intolerant to outsiders. He said the consequences of such division were far reaching and so he called on all par-ties to work together to resolve the issues.

Hadhrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad said:“Governments need to make policies that establish and protect mutual respect, through which hurting the sentiments of others or causing them any type of harm should be outlawed. With regard the im-migrants, they must enter with a willing-ness to integrate with the local people, whilst the locals should be ready to open their hearts and display tolerance.”

About the European Union, Hadh-rat Mirza Masroor Ahmad said:“The formation of the European Union has been a great achievement on the part of the European countries, for it has been a means of uniting this Continent. And so you should make all possible efforts to preserve this unity… Remember that the strength of Europe lies in it remaining united and together as one. Such unity will not only

level will be the means for this Continent

The Khalifa spoke of the need not just for co-operation within Europe, but called for global unity. His Holiness said:“Speaking from an Islamic perspective, we should strive for the entire world to unite together. In terms of currency the world should be united. In terms of busi-ness and trade the world should be unit-ed. And in terms of freedom of move-ment and immigration, cohesive and practical policies should be developed, so that the world can become united.”

The Khalifa said that in the modern world countries could no longer afford to remain isolated and even global powers like the United States were dependent on international trade and foreign relations.He said developed countries ought not to exploit weaker nations but should seek to help them develop and succeed.Hadhrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad also

World and Middle East. He said that whilst the Western world had open-ly expressed ‘outrage and concern’ at the situations in Syria and Libya, they did not seem as concerned about the plight of the Palestinian people.

Hadhrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad said:“This perceived double standard is caus-

ing grievances and malice to increase in the hearts of people from Muslim countries against the major powers of the world. This anger and animos-ity is extremely dangerous and could boil over and explode at any time… Let it be clear that I am not speaking in support or favour of any particular indi-vidual country. What I wish to say is that all forms of cruelty, wherever they exist, must be eradicated and stopped, regard-less of whether they are perpetrated by the people of Palestine, the people of Is-rael or the people of any other country.”The Khalifa also criticised the prin-ciple of veto power within interna-tional institutions. He said that the vot-ing history of the permanent members of the United Nations Security Coun-cil showed that on certain occasions veto powers had been misused to as-sist cruelty, rather than to prevent it.

Hadhrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad conclud-

ed by calling for justice and equality. He said:“Always remember that peace can only be es-tablished by helping both the oppressed and the oppressor in a manner that is completely impartial, free from vested interests and de-void of all enmity. Peace is made by giving all

Before the keynote address a number of MEPs took to the stage and spoke of their admiration of peaceful Islam as advo-cated by the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat.Dr Charles Tannock MEP, Chair of the Eu-ropean Parliament Friends of Ahmadiyya Muslims Group, said ‘Ahmadi Muslims are a welcome example of tolerance in the world.’ He condemned the persecution of Ahmadi Muslims in Pakistan and said ‘the Ahmadi motto of Love for All, Hatred for None is a welcome antidote to the extremist Jihadists’.Tunne Kelam MEP, Vice-Chair of the Eu-ropean Parliament Friends of Ahmadiyya Muslims Group, said he was attending the event because it was an opportunity to ‘join in an aspiration for peace’. He praised the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat for ‘re-jecting all violence and terrorism’ and pledged to support the Jamaat globally.Baroness Sarah Ludford MEP, Vice-Chair of the European Parliament Friends of Ahmadi-yya Muslims Group, spoke of her long term relationship with the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat in the United Kingdom. She said that

the Jamaat’s motto was ‘an inspiration which we desperately need in the modern world.’Claude Moraes MEP, Vice-Chair of the European Parliament Friends of Ahmadi-yya Muslims Group, said the event had ‘attracted a bigger turnout than we get to any meetings at the European Parliament’.Jean Lambert MEP, Chair of European Parliament’s South Asia Delegation, said that she would pursue with the Pakistani Government the issue of Ahmadi Mus-lim voting rights. She said it was nec-essary that all parties had the right to vote freely and without discrimination.The President of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Ja-

also took to the stage to express his pleasure that the ‘European Parliament Friends of Ah-madiyya Muslims Group’ had been launched.

The historic event concluded at 4.35pm with a silent prayer led by Hadhrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad.



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ENVIRONMENT

Mamanuca Environment Society

By EMOSI LASAQA More efforts on coral restoration

No country is im-mune to natural disaster.

In recent de-cades, the frequency and in-tensity of natural disasters has escalated and many experts predict this rise in climate-in-duced extreme weather events will continue in the future.

Although many are still reeling from the devastating efforts of Tropical Cyclone Evan, the stride towards nor-malcy have been impressive.

In the Mamanuca island group, Evan uprooted vast numbers of trees and dam-aged infrastructures. But the storm's reach was felt not only on land but also under water.

It has certainly stressed coral reefs across the 23 is-lands-home to some of Fiji’s fi nest beach resorts.

Reefs in the Mamanu-cas has adapted well after the fl oods but the recent cy-clone with the grip of climate change tightens, the frequency and intensity of the distur-bances will increase, leaving the reef too little time to recu-perate between disasters.

And because most of the reefs rise almost to the sur-face of the ocean, they are extremely vulnerable to wave action.

A cyclone generates mas-sive waves that literally pul-verise corals, leaving a trail of rubble and smashed life. The damage can extend to tens of metres below the surface.

The Mamanuca Environ-ment Society (MES) is map-ping out a strategy to cushions the effects of Cyclone Evan on

MES Field Offi cer Soropepeli Seru at Malolo Island Resort.

the reefs.Because coral reef struc-

ture buffers shorelines against waves, storms and fl oods, helping to prevent loss of life, property damage and erosion, the work is very important.

When reefs are damaged or destroyed, the absence of this natural barrier can increase the damage to coastal com-munities from normal wave action and violent storms.

Without coral reefs, many beaches and buildings would become vulnerable to wave action and storm damage. In one instance, when the coral and sand was mined away in the Maldives, it cost $10 million USD per kilometre to build a wall to protect the coastline.

Not only do these kinds of

storms directly affect coral reefs and the entire marine en-vironment, there are indirect disastrous consequences.

MES Project Offi cer So-ropepeli Seru said because of the cyclone, more efforts will be directed on coral restora-tion this year.

Mr Seru said storms rarely kill all corals. And because storms are a natural part of coral reef ecosystems, coral species should be adapted to this type of disturbance and be able to recover.

“Human impact is worse because it is continuous. Hu-mans continue to overfi sh, step on corals even though they have been warned. For natural impacts, it only occurs once or twice but not continu-ous. Cyclones are not as dam-

Reef check program Reef check is coral reef conservation and volunteer program that has been enthusiasti-

cally supported by hundreds of scientists and thousands of divers around the world. Reef Check is active in over 40 countries and territories throughout the tropical world. Reef checks are carried out once to twice a year.

ObjectivesReef check’s objectives are to: educate the public about the coral reef crisis; to create a

global network of volunteer teams trained in Reef Check scientifi c methods who regular-ly monitor and report on reef health; to facilitate collaboration that produces ecologically sound and economically sustainable solutions; and to stimulate local community action to protect remaining pristine reefs and rehabilitate damaged reefs worldwide. Back in 2004 the Mamanuca Dive Operators Reef Check Network was formed with its purpose to monitor subtle environmental changes in Mamanuca waters.

The concept behind the formation of a Mamanuca Dive Operators Network is:• To initiate discussion between Dive Operators using the Mamanuca area with

the idea of protecting the environment at the forefront of their minds.• To start up a team to monitor the health of the Mamanuca area on an an-

nual basis through using the Reef Check methodology with the set up of permanent sites throughout the region.

• To ensure that all Dive operators using the area understand the use of Best Prac-tice activities and ensure that environmental briefi ngs to guests are given on every pos-sible occasion.

• To provide operators and communities with an annual report following surveys on the health status of the reefs in their area.

• To provide the International organizations that monitor reef health world wide i.e. Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network (GCRMN) and Reef Check Headquarters with accurate information on the status of the coral reefs in the Mamanuca area.

Overall the Network is a voluntary activity but encompasses all dive operators that have an active interest in the aims of protecting the environment in the region on a long-term basis. This Network is the fi rst of its kind in Fiji and is an example for other dive operators throughout the nation to follow. Communities and tourism operators will be able to have a clear idea of the status of their coral reefs in the area.

MES usually hosts separate one day workshops with the island and mainland dive op-erators as a refresher to Reef Check and the survey methodology, how to conduct a Reef Check survey, and to review the targeted marine organisms on the survey.

Reef Check SitesMES currently concentrates on member resorts house reefs.

aging to reefs as the effects of climate change. The coral will already be regenerating,” he said.

He is also hopeful that the type of coral that would have been lost is the type that can regenerate most quickly such as staghorns and that the slow-er growing more solid coral

such as Brain Coral will have withstood the cyclone.

However, Seru highlighted that this could be hindered by “run offs from the hills causing sedimentation on corals. Due to run offs, litter will accumulate on the reef fl at,impact of which is much worse. Coral can't really com-

pete with the sort of pollution being generated".

“Diving is one of the major attractions in the Mamanucas and restoring corals is very important.”

Mr Seru said it will take approximately two to three years before the damages are signifi cantly recovered.



TALK BUSINESS

By PRANESH AMARSEE

The importance of planning

Bula everybody!Happy New Year. By the

time you read this article January would have already gone. Anyway I have been asked by many of my readers to repeat what I said in my last article of 2012. So here I go “Na Biwi Na Bachha Na Baap Bada Na Maiyan, The Whole Thing Is That Ke Bhaiya Sab-se Bada Rupaiya”. This is my message for 2013. I suppose many have agreed to these very meaningful lyrics, well I have at least. During the fi rst week of January while taking a long walk in the St George area of Sydney, I came across a Church which had displayed its message for 2013. It was quite simple. It said that in 2013:-

1. I will excersise a lot2. I will eat healthy

food3. I will believe in God

more4. I will drink plenty

water5. I will work harderI stood there for a while

and started thinking hard especially with the 5th mes-sage. Aren’t we working hard enough? But then the thought came to my mind that in this cruel world and especially with the song lyrics I have just mentioned, we probably will need to put in that extra efforts in whatever we do this year. So as the festive season hang-over begins to fade, now's the time to start planning ahead for the next 12 months. Here are the essential areas to focus

on to ensure your fi nancial future will be one of health, wealth and happiness.

Firstly for business owners it’s a great time to refl ect on what you have achieved as a business last year. Importantly it’s good to think about what you wanted to achieve but didn’t manage and what you can do differently this year. So here are some tips to help im-prove your business and give you a better chance to achieve your objectives this year.

Refl ect on your business purpose and long term vision. How long has it been since you refl ected on why you started your business? When you started did you write down your business long-term vision and its purpose? If you put together a business plan, it might be a good idea to review it again. Are you still true to your initial business vision and purpose? Or has it changed. If you fi nd that you don’t have a vision or purpose statement, or you can’t relate to it anymore, then it might be time to create a fresh and relevant vision and purpose statement.

Make sure you have a clear business identity and values. Is it clear to you and your team what your business stands for? What is the image and brand that describes your business? Is it fun, creative and technical, or more pro-fessional and conservative? The image that you want your business to portray will help you to establish your business and customer approach and strategy.

Envision your business at the end of 2013. Set aside at least one hour soon to sit down with your team and

have a brainstorming session. Using post-its brainstorm what you will want your busi-ness to look like in 1 years’ time. This might be being in a new location, servicing dif-ferent customers and so on. Summarise three key things that you want to achieve most. Make sure they are aligned with your big picture vision and purpose. This will help you and your team to strive towards achieving a clearer goal and give you a sense of purpose and motivation.

Create a plan. There is no point just dreaming about your vision, you need to make it happen! It will only happen if you have a clear strategy and action plan in place.

Put in place processes. Most businesses I see don’t have suffi cient if any standard business processes in place. Without clear processes it’s hard to not only achieve your business goals, but it makes it diffi cult to be effi cient, con-sistent, to develop the team and to grow. Start by thinking about your key 2-3 business processes that you need in order to deliver your product or service. Document the key steps that need to be followed to complete each process. Involve the team so that you can develop one best standard process that everyone will fol-low. Upgrade your equipment. Whether its technology tools like tablets and smartphones or a new pizza oven for your restaurant, small changes can make a big difference to your bottom line. Decide what in-vestment would have the big-gest impact on your produc-tivity and profi ts, and fi gure out a way to make it happen.

Celebrate success. No mat-

ter how busy you are, be sure to celebrate when you, your employees and your business achieve important goals. Tak-ing time out to recognize re-sults will re-energize you and your team for the next chal-lenge.

And now for individuals it’s time to refl ect on the fol-lowing aspects.

Track your expenses. Al-most every fi nancial plan starts with this most dreaded task. Unfortunately, without understanding where your money goes, it's nearly impos-sible to make different choic-es about how to spend. Over here we talk of budgeting. Sit down with your partner and family members and sort out the fi nancials of the house.

Establish adequate emer-gency reserve funds. Perhaps the single best way to protect yourself from unforeseen cir-cumstances is to hold 6 to 12 months of living expenses in cash or cash equivalent ac-counts. For those in retire-ment, consider carrying 12 to 24 months of expenses.

Maximize retirement con-

tributions. See how you can contribute more to FNPF fund. This will help you in retirement, or help in fi nanc-ing your new house and it can be very helpful during crisis time such as cyclones, fi re and job losses.It could also help in sending children for further education.

Get advice. “Successful people surround themselves with good advisers, and the value of good fi nancial advice is so high that it’s worth put-ting in the effort to fi nd one who will be fully aligned with your interests”.

Review life, disability and long-term care insurance cov-erage. This is the part of your fi nancial life where an error can cause huge damage to your family. Create/review/update estate documents: Hire a lawyer to prepare a will, power of attorney and health care proxy/living will docu-ments.

We have just ushered in a new year and we have got to start it right. Whether or not you are into working for your career, love life, or business,

you have got to be armed with the necessary knowledge and be prepared for the best and the worst this year. Your business is an important in-vestment and you should do everything to make it prosper. If you have had a bad 2012, then this is your chance to start anew, learn from your mistakes, and do better and earn more this time. If you have had a nice and fulfi lling 2012, do not be too compla-cent as business and economic weather keep on changing.

According to the Chinese calendar 2013 is the year of the Water Snake. So what will it mean?

2013 Prediction for Snake - Snake can expect good for-tune in relationships and look forward to a time when they personally or professionally shine. It will be a year when Snake can easily overcome recent setbacks or obstacles experienced in 2012. Even though Snake may not have the income desired in the fi rst half year, fi nancial fortune comes in the second half year.

God Bless Nadi, Fiji.

2013 is the Chinese year of the Snake which is expect-ed to remove all obstacles from your business. Photo: Google.



HUMAN RESOURCES

By SUNILA KARANBy SUNILA KARAN

Recognize that the profi t is in your people - Part 1

It is essential that you set excellence as the high standard for your company.

When every-body in your com-

pany lives and breathes excel-lence, does a little bit extra for your customers – not because you ask them to but because they want to, because they are engaged and connected with their work, and they are proud to work for your com-pany – your customers pick up on it. You become known in your industry for your high standards and value. Your brand stands for something and you become recognized as a leader.

We all know excellence should be the only standard, but delivering on that aspira-tion at all times is a never-ending challenge.

For this to happen, it re-quires your people to go a lit-tle bit extra for your customer, it requires them to be a little

more creative when coming up with ideas for new prod-ucts and services.

It requires you and your people to look for new ways to engage with customers, to reach new markets and to get more value for your custom-ers and your business.

Excellence is a state of mind and it’s your job as the business leader at whichever level you are, to set an ex-ample of excellence so that those around you can see what it looks like, feels like, tastes like, and change their behav-ior to mirror your own excel-lent standard.

There are consistent ‘wants’ which just about ev-ery business leader strives to achieve.

However, without a doubt, I am sure you will have end-less other challenges in your company. Challenges such as restructuring, dealing with the downturn, legislation, global-ization, regulation, control-ling or reducing costs and succession planning to name but a few.

But when you get the ba-sic fundamentals right, which

every other business leader in the world also wants to get right, it frees up your time to

focus on the other issues in your organization which are more specifi c to your business

or industry.If you have a great product

or service, which customers

want and need, and you apply the right ideas and approach-es, there is no reason that you cannot become one of the very top companies in your niche industry, market, or region.

But for that to happen, you must recognize the in-disputable truth that the profi t in your company is in your people.

Let me give you a very simple example.

If right now you took every employee out of your organi-zation, so they were left stand-ing outside your company’s premises – and there was no one left inside answering the phones, meeting with custom-ers, developing your products and services, fulfi lling your orders – how long would it be before your company ground to a halt?

I’m sure within a matter of days, if not hours, you would literally cease to exist as an organization.

This is because your peo-ple are your business.

It’s your people who deter-mine whether your company is profi table, successful, a market leader, or not.

“Sonaisali Island Resort’s Employee of the Month is just one of the ways we show that we appreciate our employees hard work,” said Human Re-source and Training Manager Sunila Karan.

Staff of Sonaisali Island Resort caught in a jovial mood. Photo: SUNILA KARAN.Staff of Sonaisali Island Resort caught in a jovial mood. Photo: SUNILA KARAN.

Sonaisali leads by example“It is a time of the month

that staff looks forward to, which includes performance by employees, birthday cel-ebrations, and gift packs by Punjas.

Sonaisali’s employees of

the month are chosen by their peers and managers for the ex-tra effort they had put in while on duty.

Tirulok Naidu is the fi rst person many guests meet when they arrive at the resort.

His role is to greet our guests on arrival at the mainland be-fore escorting them to the re-ception desk to check in.

Charles Bevu is one of our security guards who patrols the resort as well as monitor-

ing people arriving and de-parting from the resort via our transfer boats.

Karishma Raju has only been with us a few months and is taking the lead in build-ing our food and beverage

team and raising our service standards.

General Manager, John Ambler said, “We are delight-ed to have these staff on the team at Sonaisali.”

PRESS RELEASE



BUSINESS MENTORING

By CLAIRE D. GIRALDEAU

Executive Mentoring

Group (EMG) Fiji

“A new series of articles for your business with challenging perspectives” “A new series of articles for your business with challenging perspectives”

It is 2013 the year of Su-pernatural Fruitfulness and we want to start

with ensuring that we put all the odds on our side for reap-ing the fruits of our labor as women in business. This ar-ticle is about “Networking” and more specifi cally for women in business. Before the Holidays a few Nadi busi-ness women participated in a workshop organized by the Fiji Federation of Employers, we decided to create our own Nadi Business Women’s Net-work and held our fi rst meet-ing already, so this is really exciting as we want to show the value of networking.

Networking is actually a very common practice in busi-ness as much as in our daily life, just think of the various times you have asked a friend or family members if they knew someone who did such & such services that you need-ed. Be it a good mechanic, a doctor or restaurant people talk about the good places they go to and the people that have given them good service. So “network” is in fact quite a natural way of giving each other references for our busi-ness or personal needs.

Businessmen have devel-oped their own old boy’s club kind of thing, in the past there were private clubs for men only and that’s were many of the business network was

happening. At times, sports like playing golf have been another way for men to devel-op business relationships with each other. There is also of course the various Chambers of commerce, Rotary Club and professional associations that present activities where networking is a means of re-ferring business to each other as well.

However women are not very present in these various groups and if so not much at-tention would be given until there is a serious change in attitude and mindset about women in business. There is a tendency to associate women to traditional roles like teach-ing, nursing and housekeep-ing, yet there are many very successful women out there. Also many women in busi-ness are not really properly or-ganized; they make a product, sell it and do not really con-sider themselves as business women. I have done some work lately with the women market vendors for example and it is amazing to see how this day to day selling of gar-den or farm products is per-ceived as just earning money rather than a business. Many village or church women groups also accomplish a lot for the community and still it is just money earning instead of getting the stamp of being in business.

With our New Business Women Network, we want primary to build up our group to around twenty members; we have decided to meet ev-ery week, on Thursday morn-ing from 7.30am to 9.00am, for a coffee breakfast meeting. This is where we would fi rst get all participating women, to introduce themselves and their business, and express a need and give an offer. Then we do a round of the table for the new ladies invited guests to do the same, in these meet-ing the purpose is to actu-ally establish serious business contacts amongst each other. For example, if we have a lawyer in the Network, we should use her for our legal corporate needs and so forth.

We also decided to have a monthly activity, whether it will be a workshop, a lunch or dinner with a guest speaker, we want to create opportu-nities for growing, learning and developing everyone’s business. All of these vari-ous types of meeting will be decided amongst the group and the leadership team as members will express their requests, queries and training needs to make their business successful.

What is the purpose this Women Network / How it should function an open dis-cussion

Who should be a member,

level?Women only, should own a

business/may be a partnerCould also be women in

leadership position who has something to offer or need services

Level depends on stage of business; starting, sole propri-etor, very small or rolling high

Membership Fees and costs?

Initially each pay its own cost, no membership fee, join FFE individually.

At this point it is my plea-sure to invite any serious busi-ness women to join us as we intend to make history and show the ladies from Suva that the West is Best and we can get ourselves organized as a great network. Feel free to contact me at emgfi [email protected] to fi nd out more about the next meeting venue and agenda.

Here are some of the themes and topics already discussed, we are planning a 2 day workshop at the begin-ning of February (date TBA) details will come during the next weekly meeting.

1. Your business ON PAPER-- Vision

a. This is the legal lev-el (Registration, name, bank accounts etc)

b. It is also your busi-ness plan, strategies and mar-keting plans

c. Staff, employees or

helpers & suppliers contractsd. Business cards, bro-

chure websites etc (promo-tional items)

2. The infrastructure or PHYSICAL SIDE of your business – Mission

a. This has to do will all materials, equipments, ve-hicles

b. Your procedures, timeframe & processes

c. What is your actual cost of business (pricing)

d. Offi ce space & lo-cation

3. The OPERATION of your business-- Action

a. What do you do, your real activity

b. How do you sell your products or services

c. Who is you custom-er, your marketing plan

d. Can you do more in how much time?

4. The REVENUE generated by your business-- Fruitful

a. What is money to you, how do you value your work

b. Bookkeeping and recording where money come & go.

c. Understanding fi -nancial statement and how it works

d. Learning to plan to grow with proper fi nance management.

There are many other themes that will be consid-

ered in our meetings as we will get members to give short presentations about their busi-ness, we will also encourage them to learn to present their ideas and participate actively in all meetings. Our network will bring concrete results and even now there has been busi-ness exchange already. Now obviously these topics are all part of being in business and as women often it may sound quite challenging to think about all of these aspects to be in business. We intend to use each other’s experience fi rst so that we share and help each woman in our Network. There is no need to worry and get scared by this as it is much more a question of awareness, commitment and willingness to look at things differently.

In conclusion, women de-serve to be given a chance to run their own business, they have a lot to offer and do not always realize that running the household, getting the family organize, being involved in community & church activi-ties all of this has already pre-pared them very well to run their own business. Our group is called the Virtuous Business Women Network and we will be guided by Proverbs 31 to recognize the value of women even from the ancient bibli-cal times. Be greatly blessed highly favored and deeply loved.

Networking — a new group for Business Women in Nadi



OPINION

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Friday 28, December 2012. As a Fiji Business Excellence Award evaluator, I automatically view things from that perspec-tive – from the most insignifi cant to the most advanced process of any activity. My experiences and lessons learnt outlined be-low are intended for future Fiji residents anticipating medical treatment in India.

Due to the medical visa that will be issued by the Indian High Commission at the LICI Building Butt Street, Suva, you will be given special treatment on all the airlines right through from Nadi International Airport to India.

1. BEFORE DEPARTURE FROM NADIEnsure that all the details of your travel, daily subsistence

allowance and proposed duration of stay is very clear. If there is even a tiny doubt in your mind, clarify before departure as it will reduce your stress level in a foreign country with language barriers. Keep all email correspondences with the hospital and insurance brokers with you, to minimise diffi culties once you arrive in India.

2. ARRIVAL INTO INDIRA GANDHI INTERNA-TIONAL AIRPORT

After clearing customs, get Indian currency from the Foreign Exchange desk right outside the arrival lounge before stepping outside the airport terminal building (during my stay, the rate to USD$1 was equivalent to INR$50). To the right of the Forex desk is the Vodafone desk where you should purchase a sim that will be used whilst in India;you will defi nitely not want to face the challenges of purchasing outside the airport complex due to the strict mobile usage requirements.

3. OFFICIAL LANGUAGEHindi is the offi cial language and unless you state that you

prefer to communicate in English, all discussions will be con-ducted in the local language.

4. AIRPORT TRANSFERThere is a high probability that you will be met at the airport

by the staff of the hospital that you will be treated at. Please continuously ask for clarifi cations as there is the continual pos-sibility of miscommunication. You will be initially required to rest and recuperate from the jet lag at a hotel (they are known locally as guest houses) on arrival, before admittance processes are facilitated the next day.

5. VISA REQUIREMENTS ON ARRIVAL IN IN-DIA

Your visa will state that you are to register with the Foreign Registration Offi ce within 14 days of your arrival into India. This is done at the FRRO (National Crime Records Bureau) of-fi ces; in New Delhi, it is located at R K Puram. The offi ces open at 0930hours and it is advisable that you arrive early as there are long lines of foreigners requiring registration. You will need the following mandatory documents: -

• Passports• 3 passport photos• Registration form (downloaded from the India Immi-

gration website)• C-Form from the hotel that you are staying at• Hospital referral confi rming treatment and duration• Photocopy of fi rst page of passport and visa page.6. PURCHASES INSIDE INDIA(i) First foremost and essential is water – never drink

from the taps to avoid typhoid. Fruits are plentiful and fresh. (ii) Never purchase food from the roadside vendors cook-

ing outside as you will observe unhygienic practices of food preparation. Purchase food from food outlets that are fran-chised e.g. KFC, Coffee house, etc. as the standards from their parent companies are maintained.

(iii) Flea Markets/Markets – the various markets are a shopper’s delight as you can get pretty much anything with bar-gaining at very good prices.

7. ROAD TRAVELBe prepared for lack of road courtesy and pedestrians hav-

ing the right of way. The roads are marked for three lane traffi c travelling in one direction on the highways, but most times the traffi c is four or fi ve lanes across with motorbikes and bicycles squeezing into whatever spaces are available between vehicles. Overtaking at any time is acceptable and honking is the very normal means of signalling intent.

8. COURTESY AND CUSTOMER SERVICELining up for service on a fi rst come fi rst served basis is not

a concept here. If you do not push to the front of the line, you will be left standing there whilst others are served as and when they arrive. It is accepted practice except at the Immigration FRRO offi ce where you will be issued numbers before entry is permitted.

Be mindful that Air Pacifi c does not have an offi ce in New Delhi;any changes to your fl ight schedule will need to be made online so have your credit card ready. If you do not have a credit card, make sure that there is someone reliable back home to do the necessary for you.

(Seini Raiko is a resident of Rakiraki and the above article is based on her personal experience in India)

India’s medical tourism

By Seini Vunivutu-RaikoRajendra Place West DelhiINDIA

Health is wealth...India is now a world leader in medi-

cal tourism with the pres-ence of thousands of highly qualifi ed medical profession-als and many state-of-the-art facilities. The article on this page highlights some

practical issues while travel-ling to the sub-continent.

Photo: Google.



BUSINESS NOTICE BOARD



SPORTS

By JOSEPHINE NAVULA

By JOSEPHINE NAVULA

Fijian players will be hard to select: Tietjens

New Zealand’s 7s coach Gordon Tietjens praised all players who participated in the Uprising 7s and believes that it would be quite a hard decision for Fiji Rugby Union to select players for the fi nal squad.

“It’s really a big advantage to the coaches that there are a lot of young talented players, but it will also be a challenge to pick the right players,” he said.

Tietjens claims that the Fiji national team has a good con-sistency.

“They may lose their matches today but they can re-ally pick up tomorrow, which is the best thing about them,” he said.

He guided the NZ Emerg-ing 7s team as a technical adviser and mentioned that it was a good experience for the young players.

They lost their fi rst pool match against Uprising 7s team, 21-19, and managed to come back from behind to beat URF Army, 26-5.

The young boys from NZ landed themselves a place in the quarter fi nal against Aus-tralia Thunderbolts, which

they won with 17-12 - they battled out a hard match against FMF Fiji Warriors but lost, 33-7 in the semi fi nal.

“We were the fi rst team to qualify for the semifi nal and even though there were a few disappointments in losing, the players really learnt a lot,” Tietjens said.

He also mentioned that he has learned a lot from the Fi-jians and will be taking a lot of them back to New Zealand.

Tietjens will be announc-ing his 16-member squad this week, which will be repre-senting them at the Wellington Sevens which kicks off on the 1st of February.

Meanwhile National coach Alifereti Dere named the fi nal squad for the Wellington 7s straight after Fiji Barbarians won the Uprising Internation-al 7s against FMF Fiji War-riors, 31-12, at Churchill Park.

16 Member Fiji team:Forwards: Ulaiasi Lawa-

vou, Setefano Cakau, Nemani Nagusa, Manueli Laqai, Jone Vota, Jasa Veremalua, Peni Ravai, Mosese Saunivanua.

Backs: Manasa Nayagi, Josua Tuisova, Joji Ragamate, Ilai Tinai, Samisoni Viriviri, Sakiusa Gavidi, Eremasi Benadito, Emosi Mulevoro.

Fiji Barbarians went home winners after defeating FMF Fiji Warriors, 31-12, at Churchill Park in Lautoka on Saturday, January 19.

It was a good comeback for the team after they were de-feated in their last pool match against Tonga, 17-14.

The boys defeated NZ

Fiji Barbarians win Uprising 7sEmerging 7s team in the semi-fi nal, 33-7. Fiji Barbarians put on a strong match against New Zealand, leading 19-0 at halftime.

Tonga’s coach Etuate Waqa said it has been a great experience for his boys to play in this tournament.

“I was very happy with the boys performance against the Fiji Barbarians and we hope to

maintain the playing style and fi tness level,” he said.

NZ Emerging 7s team’s Technical Adviser, Gordon Tietjens said it was a good experience to see so many young and emerging play-ers in action. National Coach Alifereti Dere later announced the fi nal 16 member squad for the Wellington 7s after the fi -nal match.

Players of the Fiji Barbarians squad pose for a group photo with Attorney-General Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum after their win at Players of the Fiji Barbarians squad pose for a group photo with Attorney-General Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum after their win at the Uprising International Sevens at Lautoka’s Churchill Park on Saturday, January 19. Photos: EMOSI LASAQA. the Uprising International Sevens at Lautoka’s Churchill Park on Saturday, January 19. Photos: EMOSI LASAQA.

The Jet editor Josephine Navula with Gordon Tietjens.The Jet editor Josephine Navula with Gordon Tietjens.



SPORTS

The Fiji national cricket side preparing for the East Asia Pacifi c T20 World Cup qualifi er have moved into camp as they prepare for the tournament in February.

The side will be based at the Studio 6 Hotel for the re-mainder weeks before fl ying out to Auckland, New Zea-land on January 30.

The side will be captained again by Joe Rika and will be looking to do well as they prepare for the ever important World Cricket League Divi-sion 7 Competition scheduled to be played in Botswana from the 4 - 14 April.

The side were presented with their new Puma training attire thanks to sponsors Sport World and have been train-ing at the Albert Park grounds working on improving their game.

"We've had a few months to prepare and everything is going to plan. We've concen-trated on fi tness over the last couple of months with a few aerobics and specialized fi t-ness sessions organized by na-tional coach Joeli Mateyawa.

Fiji Cricket side moves into camp

Cricket legend, Mr Muttiah Muralitharan with Dr. Rami Ranger MBE, CEO Sun Mark Ltd. Photo: SUPPLIED.

Cricket legend endorses UK companyWe're now working on our game and skills set for the remainder of the preparations and the boys all seem fi t and performing well on the pitch which is important," Joe Rika said.

The national players have taken control of the weekly Suva Club Competition with all players performing con-sistently for their respective clubs each week. This should no doubt be a positive sign for the side preparing to take on the best of the region next month.

"Joeli (Mateyawa) has done a great job and the fi t-ness levels are outstanding, we understand our strengths and if we stick to them we are sure we will do well and that is what we will be working on for the remaining weeks," Rika added.

The side leaves Fiji on the 30th of January and will play 2 warm up matches in Auck-land before the tournament starts.

PRESS RELEASE

PRESS RELEASE

Sun Mark Ltd is delighted to announce the appointment of cricket legend Muttiah Muralitharan as its international brand ambassador.

Sun Mark Ltd markets quality food and drink products in over 100 countries and its brands have become household names across the world.

Mr Muralitharan, better known as Murali is a former Sri Lankan cricketer who was rated the greatest test match bowler ever by Wisden Cricketers' Almanack in 2002. He retired from test cricket in 2010, registering his 800th and fi nal wicket on 22 July 2010 from his fi nal ball in his last test match.

“I am delighted to be associated with a company which be-lieves in customer care and also markets quality products at a price that is right,” Murali said.

The new partnership is being hailed as an ideal one with Murali being the world record holder for the most wickets tak-en in international cricket, a record which is expected never to be broken, and Sun Mark which holds the prestigious accolade of being the only company in Britain to have won the Queens Award for Enterprise in International Trade for four consecu-tive years, a record which also cannot be broken in a hurry.

Here in Fiji, P. Meghji & Company are the local distributors of Sunmark’s world-renowned products.

Sports Club amnesty

Vienna Kumar trains at the Nadi Sports Club. Vienna Kumar trains at the Nadi Sports Club. Photo: SHALENDRA PRASAD.Photo: SHALENDRA PRASAD.

By SHALENDRA PRASAD

It’s good news for members of the Nadi Sports and Social Club.Club management has decided to provide a membership amnes-

ty for all current and new members until January 31, 2013.In a statement released to The Jet, the club management stated

the reason for providing such an amnesty was to provide some relief to members after the devastating effects of tropi-cal cyclone Evan which wreaked havoc around the country last month.

“The club wishes to advise all existing and new members that due to the recent hurricane membership fee for 2013 will remain as for 2012 until 31/1/13,” the club management said in the statement.

Located at Navakai, the club is a unique concept in itself and is the only fully integrated sports and social facility in the country.

The club has recently upgraded its facilities with the installation of a new bar loaded with modern furniture and fi ttings and launched a state-of-the-art gym as well.

For more information, please send an e-mail to Sanjeshni on the following address:- [email protected].



SPORTS OBITUARY

By JOSEPHINE NAVULA

Laulau was more than a rugby manThe demise of speed mer-

chant Senivalati Laulau was a big loss for the rugby nation as it mourned his death earlier this year.

The famous former Flying Fijian, former national sevens rep and former Digicel Sevens coach Senivalati Laulau was laid to rest in Nawaka, Nadi on Saturday, January 19.

Speaking to The Jet Newspaper a day after Lau-lau passed away, his cousin, George Vuki, mentioned that the former national speed merchant passed away at his home in Nawaka on the night of Sunday, January 13.

“I was really shocked when they called me up in the morn-ing (Monday, January 14th) to tell about the sad news,” he said.

61-years-old Laulau was more than just a rugby man to his family and people close to him.

Younger brother and for-mer Nadi and Naitasiri soccer rep, Atunaisa Cavaibau said Laulau always excelled in sports but did not play a single rugby match during his school days.

“He loved sports as he would take part in different fi elds of game when he was schooling, he only played rugby when he got out of high school,” he said.

During his school days in Nadi College, Laulau cap-tained the school’s hockey team that won the Bhasin cup in Ovalau. He also captained the school’s soccer team that won the Fiji Secondary Schools Inter-District cham-pionship.

Cavaibau said Laulau also went to an extent of playing table tennis and was always a fi t fanatic.

“Every afternoon, he would run 20 laps around the Nawaicoba Primary School grounds and then run another 200 kilometres,” he said.

Laulau spent his primary school years in Rukuruku Dis-trict School, Tau Government School and Vunayasi District School, and then attended Nadi Muslim High School (now Nadi Muslim College) before he joined Nadi Col-lege.

“Back then we used to face a lot of diffi culties, especially with education since we lived in our village, right in the in-terior of Nadi. Travelling to school was very hard, so Lau-lau had to go stay with some of our relatives who live near the school that he attended,” Cavaibau said.

Laulau who was originally from Uto village, Nadi and later joined BNZ bank, now known as the ANZ Bank, took an initiative to build a primary school, Buruwa Youth Prima-ry School, for the children in the village.

Former Fiji rugby rep Ratu Kini Vosailagi remembers Laulau as a very quiet but al-ways a happy man.

“He doesn’t talk much, but his actions would speak for itself in the fi eld as he was really a fast runner,” Vosailagi said.

Vosailagi spoke of all fond memories with Laulau, one of them was their match against Argentina in 1980.

“The winger picked up an intercept near our own 22 metre line. Then he scam-pered back behind his try line,

crossed behind our post and came scorching in a wearing, swerving run, and he darted by defender after defender and went to the length of the fi eld to dive for the try in a tackle in the corner,” he said.

The Nadi native will surely be missed by Fiji Rugby reps of different years.

Former national 15’s rep and now national assistant

coach Alifereti Mocelutu said it was always entertaining to watch Laulau play back in those days.

“I remember when I was little, probably in class three; I used to watch him play at the old national stadium. He was not that big but the lightening speed he had was something else, as every time he received or touched the ball, he would

fi nd his way to the opposition try line,” he said.

Mocelutu also mentioned that Laulau showed a lot of passion for the country.

“He’s one of the play-ers that I look up to for pas-sion and pride. Every time he clad that white jersey it meant something to him. Money was not a big attraction those days but it was the national pride

and passion and Laulau had a big heart.”

“His records will be with Fiji rugby and around the world forever,” he added.

Laulau is the eldest of ten siblings which consists of 5 boys and 5 girls. Three of his younger brothers who are Atunaisa Cavaibau, Mataiasi Nati and Seveti Navura all represented Nadi in Soccer.

Senivalati Laulau will be missed by many. Most recently he was the director of Nippon Auto Parts for the past two years. He is sadly missed by the management and staff of the company. Photo: Courtesy of Nippon Auto Parts & Tyre Centre.



www.thejetnewspaper.com ADVENTURE SPORTS

By ANAND SINGH

I have met many people who love bicycles but no one like Robert ‘Stinger’ Rabotot who after ten years of riding Fiji, knows the Nadi Highlands like the back on his own hand and has fallen in love with its mountains. The story is simple.

Originally from Geneva, Switzerland, the former Aircraft Engineer and Dive Professional fi rst came to Fiji to manage a luxury Scuba Diving Live-aboard vessel that was based on Denarau.

Back then Rob often spent his days off, explor-ing the Nadi interior on his mountain bike.

Not too long after, he made the decision to remain in Fiji and established Fiji’s

10 years of ‘Ride 10 years of ‘Ride & Roll’ for Stinger & Roll’ for Stinger

BicyclesBicycles

A bike enthusiast rides the highlands of A bike enthusiast rides the highlands of Nadi. INSET: Rob “Stinger” Rabotot.Nadi. INSET: Rob “Stinger” Rabotot.

Photos: SUPPLIED. Photos: SUPPLIED.

fi rst and fi nest bicycle spe-cialist shop, even creating his own brand of Fiji built ‘Stinger’ bicycles in October 2002.

The ‘Stingers’ are custom built to your requirements in Nadi from frames and components meticulously chosen and imported. Even the wheels are assembled here with spokes, hubs and rims. After a quality and safety test, the fi nishing touch stickers are added i.e. the ‘Stinger Bee’ logo and a ‘Hand Built in Fiji’ (also fea-turing the Fiji Flag). Other bikes sold include Avanti, Scott, Raleigh and ABD.

The Engineer in Rob feels pride when he sees bikes that he built a decade ago still going strong on our roads today. ‘We will often see one of the fi rst Stingers parked at a market stall or

carrying a load of stuff and a child home after a hard day’s work. It is a nice feel-ing to know that my bikes are useful for my customers and that they did get excel-lent value for their money,’ Rob smiles with all sincer-ity. From our conversation, I gather that the ride has not always been easy but has al-ways been rewarding.

Today, Stinger Bicycles also operates Mountain Bike tours on some of the most amazing trails of the Nadi Interior. These tours are cur-rently ranked ‘#3 of 17 ac-tivities to do in Nadi’ with consistent fi ve star ratings on Tripadvisor.com. These tours are 100% environmen-tally and culturally ecologi-cal. Cycling treads gently on the environment and does not intrude on the lifestyle of locals or the wildlife.

Rob loves what he does and delivers a high standard of service and product.

“I have been operating my bicycle business for the past 10 years and always fi nd it amazing how through the world of people who ride bicycles, I get the chance to meet those with interesting backgrounds, life stories or experiences who often be-come friends.”

I discovered that this bi-cycle shop owner was once a Triathlon Ironman and has had a bond with bicycles since he was a young kid. He has also competed in Moun-tain Biking races, Interna-tional Olympic and Long Distance Triathlons as well as Motocross competitions.

Stinger Bicycles proudly promotes eco-tourism in Fiji – “If you want to expe-rience nature and its beauty

from up close and in person then nothing beats a ride on a bicycle to see the tranquil beauty these mountains have stored for many years. With the silence of a bicycle, you sometimes get the chance to share the hills with the wild horses and pigs that are lo-cals in our interior.

Rob explains that most of his day trip customers are tourists who love to ride and experience the land without disturbing it: “If you take a ride on a bicycle then you will feel the hills, you will earn your way up and appre-ciate your way down. You will get closer to the ani-mals, meet and interact with the people who have been living in this hidden paradise for so many generations.”

Rob has taken many cy-clists into the mountains and is happy to report that,

“We have always returned to base with no one missing or injured!” He reassures me “Before we head off, I get to know my clients. I assess how physically fi t they are, what riding skill levels they are at, what they want to see and how long they want to ride. I tailor my tours to best suit their wishes and abili-ties so no one is disappoint-ed. Sometimes we could be miles away from any form of help – so I have to ensure their safety and comfort all the way.”

You can hear more from his happy riders by visit-ing: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g294335-d1210629-Re-views-Stinger_Bicycles-Na-di_Viti_Levu.html

With Stingerbikes.com, there is certainly much more to Fiji than seaside!!!

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GREEN MACHINEGREEN MACHINEBa and Nadi maintain good form in national league series

Super Premier P W D L GF GA GD PTS Ba 3 3 0 0 9 0 9 9 Nadi 3 2 1 0 5 3 2 7 Suva 2 2 0 0 7 1 6 6 Labasa 4 2 0 2 7 8 -1 6 Rewa 2 1 0 1 2 2 0 3 Lautoka 3 1 0 2 2 8 -6 3 Savusavu 4 0 2 2 3 8 -5 2 Nadroga 3 0 1 2 4 6 -2 1 Tavua 1 0 0 1 0 1 -1 0 Navua 1 0 0 1 0 2 -2 0

By VIJNESH CHAND

The mighty blacks con-tinued their unbeaten run when they hammered the giant killers Navua 2-0 at Prince Charles Park in the round two of Fiji Sun/GP Batteries national football league series on Saturday, January 19.

In the other encounter of the day, hosts Nadi stunned Rewa with a 2-1 win. The Jetsetters started the game

on a high after a win and a draw in the opening round.

Nadi had to struggle till the last minute to get the winner but the home ad-vantage and crowd support made the difference for the green machines.

In the other fi xtures Laba-sa and Lautoka also record-ed their fi rst wins in defeat-ing Nadroga and Savusavu respectively.

Ba leads the points table after 2 rounds of games and

is closely followed by the Jetsetters.

All teams are vying for a spot in the Fiji Fact and Bat-tle of the Giants by staying in the top eight of the league ladder.

In the next round of matches the top two teams Ba and Nadi face off each other. Suva will play Rewa, Lautoka meets Nadroga while Navua and Tavua will be also featuring in the third round of league series.

The Nadi team group for a photo before playing against The Nadi team group for a photo before playing against Rewa at home. LEFT: Ba’s Abbu Zahid in action against Rewa at home. LEFT: Ba’s Abbu Zahid in action against Navua. RIGHT: Nadi’s Vuniuci Tikomaimereke against Navua. RIGHT: Nadi’s Vuniuci Tikomaimereke against

Rewa. Photos: SHALENDRA PRASAD.Rewa. Photos: SHALENDRA PRASAD.

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