SPC/CRGA 40 (10) Paper 9.1 ORIGINAL: ENGLISH
SECRETARIAT OF THE PACIFIC COMMUNITY
FORTIETH MEETING OF THE COMMITTEE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF GOVERNMENTS AND ADMINISTRATIONS (Noumea, New Caledonia, 25–29 October 2010)
AGENDA ITEM 9.1 – PROGRESS ON PLANS TO BUILD THE ‘MICRONESIAN VILLAGE’: UPDATE FROM THE FEDERATED STATES OF MICRONESIA
(Paper presented by the Secretariat)
Summary
1. At the 6th Conference of the Pacific Community (2009), the Governor of Pohnpei State, Governor John Ehsa, and the Vice-President of the Government of the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), the Honourable Alik Alik, announced plans to build a permanent office complex to host regional organisations, including the SPC Regional Office for the North Pacific.
2. The Governor said his government has designated the Botanical Gardens as the site for the new office complex, to be known as the ‘Micronesian Village’.
3. The Government of FSM established the Micronesian Village Working Committee (MVWC) chaired by Hon. Alik Alik to oversee the project.
4. SPC assisted the governments of FSM and Pohnpei State in obtaining a consultant to develop a design brief for the project under the auspices of the MVWC. The design brief has been completed and the FSM government has commissioned Conway Architects (Fiji) as the project architects.
5. The estimated cost of the project is approximately US $15 million. The FSM government is currently exploring financing options for the construction of the village with a view to having it completed by late 2012 or early 2013.
Recommendations
6. CRGA is invited to:
i. note the progress made in implementing the Micronesian Village project by the Government of the Federated States of Micronesia and Pohnpei State Legislature and commend their commitment to providing long-term office accommodation for SPC and other organisations that may wish to establish offices in the north Pacific;
ii. note that the Micronesian Village project supports SPC’s policy of decentralisation, which was directed by the 4th Conference of the Pacific Community in Palau (2005);
iii. express support for FSM’s efforts to secure funding for construction of the Micronesian Village.
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PROGRESS ON PLANS TO BUILD THE ‘MICRONESIAN VILLAGE’: UPDATE FROM THE FEDERATED STATES OF MICRONESIA
Purpose
1. This paper provides an update to CRGA on the progress of plans by the FSM national government and Pohnpei State Legislature to build the ‘Micronesian Village’, which will provide office accommodation for SPC and other regional organisations.
Background
2. At CRGA 39 in Tonga, FSM informed the meeting of its plans to build permanent office accommodation for the SPC Regional Office for the North Pacific located in Pohnpei. This message was reaffirmed at the 6th Conference of the Pacific Community by the announcement from the Governor of the Pohnpei State Legislature, John Ehsa, that his government had allocated a prime piece of land – the Botanical Gardens site – to accommodate the office complex to be known as the Micronesian Village. The Vice President of the national government of FSM, the Hon. Alik Alik, reaffirmed his government’s commitment to work with the Pohnpei State Legislature to build the Village, which will also house other organisations that may wish to establish a presence in the north Pacific. The delegation from FSM requested SPC’s support in developing the design brief that would be used to commission the project.
3. The FSM delegation expressed their appreciation to CRGA 39 and the 6th Conference at being recognised as the hosts for SPC’s third largest office and assured both meetings of their commitment to build the office complex in further support of the implementation of SPC’s decentralisation policy as directed by the 4th Conference of the Pacific Community (Palau 2005).
4. CRGA 39 and the 6th Conference welcomed the commitment of the Government of FSM and Pohnpei State Legislature to construct a permanent office complex to house SPC’s north Pacific regional office.
Potential benefits of the Micronesian Village
5. The principal purpose of the Micronesian Village is to provide a permanent office complex that will accommodate SPC’s long-term presence in the north Pacific. It will also provide office space for other regional or international organisations that wish to establish a presence in the north Pacific. Having a common roof for all organisations and agencies in one locality has the potential to provide enormous benefits to the host country and to other member states in the Micronesian region and also to the various agencies co-located in the same office complex. Some of these benefits are as follows:
i. Opportunities for greater collaboration and coordination among all the organisations located in the Micronesian Village, thereby enhancing synergies amongst these agencies, which may lead to improving the level and quality of assistance provided to north Pacific countries and territories; ii. Potential for organisations to share common facilities such as a conference centre; meeting rooms; library; registry; and other facilities. iii. Provision of a ‘one stop shop’ for northern Pacific countries and territories seeking assistance, research, training and support relating to the scientific, technical, economic and social issues that affect them. iv. Promotion of rationalisation and harmonisation of regional organisations’ programmes, particularly in the Micronesian region where the cost of programme/project operation and associated travel can be prohibitively high.
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v. Provision of an ‘international standard’ conference centre with modern equipment, interpretation and secretariat facilities that will enable the hosting of large regional and international meetings in Pohnpei, FSM. vi. An expression of Micronesian culture and tradition, uniting northern Pacific members in providing a home for all regional organisations based in Pohnpei.
Progress to date
6. The Micronesian Village Working Committee, chaired by the Vice President of FSM, Hon. Alik Alik, was established in the fourth quarter of 2009 to oversee the planning and development of the project.
7. Responding to the request by the government of FSM for assistance in developing the design brief, SPC in partnership with the MVWC called for expressions of interest from qualified architectural firms. Conway Architects (Fiji) was selected following an assessment of the submissions. The General Manager of Conway Architects (Fiji), Mr Conway Beg was also involved in the design brief for the Pacific Village project in Fiji. The FSM government requested the development of a concept design by April 2010.
8. Conway Architects developed a concept design for the Village (see Attachments 1 & 2 of this paper for the site plan) and was then commissioned as the project architects by the Government of FSM and requested to develop full architectural drawings.
9. The main features of the Village design include linked office complexes; a conference centre with an outdoor function/entertainment area; and shared facilities including reception, library, archives, meeting rooms, etc. The estimated cost of the project, based on January 2010 costs, is approximately US $15 million.
10. The FSM government hopes to secure the financial resources to commence construction of the Micronesian Village in the next year, with a view to opening the facility towards the end of 2013 at the latest.
Project site
11. The site for the proposed complex is the Botanical Gardens on the south part of the Kolonia Peninsula, approximately 4 km from Pohnpei International Airport and in the heart of the business area of Kolonia Town. The parcel of land is roughly rectangular and is 64,812 square metres in area. The site is bordered by two main roads on the east and north boundaries. Kolonia’s main street, Kaselehlie Road, leads to the main entry to the site. Attachment 1 shows the current plan of the site and Attachment 2 shows the proposed site plan incorporating the Micronesian Village.
Design features
12. A major feature of the design is its blending with the natural environment of the site, making use of existing landscapes and trees in the area and minimising potential damage during the construction phase. Maximum effort has been made to preserve existing trees of significance and to use a water feature to complement the Conference Centre. Environmentally sensitive systems, e.g. the use of sustainable energy, have been included in the design concept.
13. The design reflects the regional nature of the organisations it will house. Buildings have Micronesian features, incorporating aesthetic expression of cultural values. The design weaves Micronesian cultures together by embodying the rich traditional forms of Micronesia in the architecture and emphasising the following:
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i. Energy efficient design incorporating renewable energy and energy conservation principles. ii. Sustainable, low-maintenance design. iii. Appropriate selection of materials. iv. “Green approach”, incorporating the landscape in the building design and retaining existing trees.
14. The office spaces are ‘open plan’ with a minimum of enclosed offices. The offices needs of SPC and other organisations will be determined and made clearly identifiable. There will be shared spaces including reception, library, meeting rooms, training rooms, conference centre and maintenance facility, as well as specific facilities for each agency. The general planning of the complex will recognise the needs of the agencies that will be housed in the Micronesian Village and the importance of balancing the development with the environment on which the complex is built.
Potential tenants of the Micronesian Village
15. An information note was sent to all regional and international organisations in March 2010 informing them of the project and requesting them to advise the MVWC if they were interested in being considered for space allocation. Heads of CROP agencies (FFA, PIFS, SOPAC, SPREP and USP), heads of UN agencies (FAO, ILO, UNDP, UNESCAP, UNIFEM, UNICEF, UNFPA), and the EU Delegation were informed.
Conclusion
16. The government of FSM and Pohnpei State Legislature have made significant progress in their quest to provide a permanent office facility to accommodate the SPC North Pacific Regional Office in Pohnpei through the proposed construction of the Micronesian Village.
17. The government of FSM has commissioned Conway Architects of Fiji as the project architects and is currently exploring funding options to enable construction to begin in the next year, with a view to having the facility opened at the latest in 2013.
18. The Government of FSM and the Pohnpei State Legislature would appreciate a statement of support from CRGA 40 on the importance of this initiative to help them in their search for funds to implement this groundbreaking project.
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27 September 2010
Attachment 1: Current site layout
Attachment 2: Proposed master plan of Micronesian Village site