What is ROTA PACIFIC ?

Rota Pacific is a rotary International District 9920 educational program which brings a group of young people from the five Pacific Islands nations of the District to Auckland for three weeks of vocational and leadership training.

Rota Pacific takes place in June each year, and the group numbers five to eight.

The objectives of the ROTA PACIFIC program are:

1. To encourage young people of the Pacific Islands to develop leadership qualities and to accept the responsibilities of good citizenship.
2. To develop understanding between the countries of the South pacific by allowing young people to meet and live together in a spirit of friendship.
3. To involve Rotarians from the 29 Auckland based clubs with the 15 Island Clubs of District 9920.
4. To expose the participants to new sights, experiences lifestyles and challenges, to build their confidences and maturity.

The ROTA PACIFIC program is run by the District Rota Pacific Committee, made up of Rotarians from Auckland City District 9920 clubs. The committee members are listed in the current edition of the District 9920 handbook.

The committee is responsible for fundraising, all event organisation and for the selection of the grantees.

The ROTA PACIFIC study tour brings a group of young people from the Pacific Islands to Auckland, New Zealand for three weeks in June – July of each year. In the past, this group has numbered six to eight.

Two thirds of return airfares, food, accommodation and associated expenses are met by the ROTA PACIFIC Committee and by Rotarians in Auckland Clubs. The sponsoring Pacific Island Rotary Clubs contribute one-third of the airfare for each awardee they sponsor.

Study tour members are responsible for clothing, medical and travel insurance, and personal spending money.

The awardees generally stay with Rotarians in their own homes for the first two weeks.

In the first week of the study tour, the awardees are given an orientation tour of the City of Auckland and its attractions, including visits to industrial plants and businesses considered to be of interest to them.

In the second week, the awardees spend each day working in an Auckland business related tot heir own occupation at home, learning more about their own occupational field.

In the third and final week, the awardees attend the Rotary-sponsored RYLA Seminar. RYLA stands for Rotary Youth Leadership Award, and it is a live-in leadership training seminar attended by about 80 young people in total.

At the conclusion of RYLA, the awardees depart for home.

Participation by Island Rotary Clubs

It is the task of the 15 Rotary clubs in Fiji, Samoa, American Samoa, Cook Islands and Tonga to promote and publicise the ROTA PACIFIC program and to find suitable applicants. At least one press article or paid advertisement should be inserted in a local newspaper, and contact be made with local companies, organisations, churches, youth clubs, sports bodies, etc to invite applications.

The sponsoring Rotary club in the Pacific Islands contributes one third of the International return airfare to Auckland for each grantee selected.

Each grantee meets their own personal expenses while in New Zealand. Most meals will be provided by the grantee’s Rotarian hosts or by Rotary Clubs at meetings. All official program expenses, entry fees to RYLA, etc, are met from the ROTA PACIFIC committee budget.

A vital part of the ROTA PACIFIC program is the interculturation experience, and to provide the opportunity for this the grantees live in the homes of Auckland Rotarians for the first two weeks of the program. For the final week they live — in at the RYLA seminar with the other RYLA awardees.

For the first two weeks of the ROTA PACIFIC program, the committee will arrange for grantees to attend meetings of Rotary Clubs in Auckland, where they will be expected to deliver a short speech about themselves and ROTA PACIFIC. Attempts are made to have grantees visit each club who donated to the program.

Any young person can apply for the ROTA PACIFIC study tour providing they:

1. are a citizen and resident of one of the five pacific Island countries in District 9920.
2. have not previously been on ROTA PACIFIC study tour.
3. have completed at least one year working on a full-time basis, and are able to take leave from their job for the three weeks of the program in June.
4. are between 20 and 25 years of age at the time of application.
5. are not a Rotarian, or a relative of a Rotarian by blood or marriage.
6. if female is not pregnant.

Applications are made on the forms available from Rotary Clubs in Fiji, Samoa, American Samoa, Tonga and the Cook Islands. It is the responsibility of these clubs to interview each applicant. The final selection of grantees is made by the ROTA PACIFIC committee in Auckland. Applications close on December 31, and selections are made by February 28.

Week 1 starts with an orientation meeting to explain the details of the program. Orientation is to familiarise the participants with the City of Auckland geographically and to visit industries and attractions in the region.

Previous programs have included:

• visit to BHP New Zealand Steel at Glenbrook
• visit to Rotorua
• participation in TVNZ television audience
• visit to Auckland Zoo and agriculture displays
• sailing and shopping

Arrangements are made for each participant to spend five days in jobs related to the work they do in their own countries, or to undergo a training program related to their work.

Some examples of this are:

• an insurance claims officer from Rarotonga works in his company’s head office in Auckland
• a computer programmer from Fiji undertakes a training course at an Auckland training institute
• a trainee accountant from Fiji works in the Auckland office of a related company and visits a manufacturing plant in another city

This provides the participants in the ROTA PACIFIC program with experiences, which would not otherwise be available.

No payment or remuneration is made for any work undertaken during ROTA PACIFIC.

RYLA stands for Rotary Youth Leadership Award, and ROTA PACIFIC participants receive this award when they join about 75 similar aged people from all walks of life for a program of lectures, discussions and interaction about a variety of leadership subjects of interest to young people.

They are addressed by leaders and experts in many fields, to better equip, instruct and encourage promising young people from differing cultures and backgrounds to better serve their community and their country.

They learn about leadership, teamwork, planning and communication, interspersed with physical activities.

Participants live-in in dormitories under close supervision by Rotarians, and are awarded RYLA certificate at the completion of the week.

At the conclusion of the ROTA PACIFIC program the participants must prepare a report for the ROTA PACIFIC Committee and on returning home, address their sponsoring Rotary Clubs about the tour.

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The following Rotary Clubs can receive applications for the ROTA PACIFIC program:

Apia 
Pago Pago 
Savusavu
Ba 
Rarotonga
Labasa 
Sigatoka
Lautoka 
Suva
Nadi 
Suva East
Nuku’alofa 
Suva North
Suva Peninsula 
Nausori

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This application must be accompanied by two testimonials, one from the employer and one from a person who has known the applicant for at least 2 years.

AND

Two passport-sized photographs of the applicant.

The tour takes place from 14 June to 4 July 1998. You will be informed by 1 May 1998 if you are successful, and the exact dates of departure and return, flight numbers, etc notified to you soon after.

NAME IN FULL_____________________________________________________________ (Underline family name)

NAME by which you prefer to be called___________ DATE OF BIRTH____/____/____

HOME ADDRESS___________________________________________________________

PHONE NO Home___________________ Bus______________ Fax_______________

BUSINESS ADDRESS________________________________________________________

COUNTRY OF CITIZENSHIP____________________________________________________

I HAVE VISITED THE FOLLOWING COUNTRIES (show year of visit)

________________________________________________________________________

LANGUAGES I SPEAK AND UNDERSTAND__________________________________________

MARITAL STATUS______________________ SPOUSE’S NAME_______________________

NUMBER OF CHILDREN IF ANY________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

SPECIAL RECOGNITION you may have received, including scholarships, honours, awards and prizes:

____________________________________________________________________________________

EMPLOYMENT RECORD List your most recent employment first.

(Indicate if it is part-time or full-time)

Describe your current responsibilities________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________

List clubs you belong to__________________________________________________

Have you been on the Committee?___________________

WHAT IS YOUR RELIGION?_______________________

____________________________________________________________________

WHAT NZ COMPANY DOES THE COMPANY YOU WORK FOR HAVE BUSINESS LINKS WITH, IF ANY?

____________________________________________________________________

Date:_____/_____/_____

After interviewing this applicant, the Rotary Club of______________________________

Considers_______________________________________________________________

and this applicant is our ______________ preference out of ____________ applicants.

PRESIDENT………………………….……… SECRETARY…………………………………..

Your Rotary Club is to retain a copy of this application form.

All applications are subject to confirmation by the Rota Pacific Committee.

No announcements of any kind should be made until confirmation has been received.

Your sponsor Rotary Clubs should forward this application to The RotaPacific Chairperson whos contact details can be found in the current RI District 9920 Handbook.

CONDITIONS OF THE AWARD (to be completed by the applicant)

If you are accepted as a member of the ROTA PACIFIC study tour, you must undertake to:

1. Keep a daily journal of events, activities and discussions when on the tour in New Zealand.
2. Prepare a 5-minute speech about yourself and your job, etc to give at a Rotary club meeting in New Zealand.
3. Present a report of your experiences to your sponsoring Rotary Club when you return home.
4. Accept every opportunity upon your return to pass on your experiences through both everyday contacts and in speaking to local groups, including Rotary.
5. Promote understanding and goodwill when appearing in your own country or in New Zealand as a member of the ROTA PACIFIC group, and respect the rights of each person and their opinions and be cautious about expressing your own personal opinions concerning any political, racial or religious issue.
6. Provide sufficient money for you own personal expenses while in New Zealand.
7. Obtain your own travel and full medical insurance for the duration of the study tour.
8. Return to your home country at the conclusion of the study tour.
9. Accept as final the decisions of the Rota Pacific committee at all times and fully participate in the program organised each day.
10. As the purpose of the study tour is to experience and assimilate the New Zealand lifestyle, the awardees are expected to stay with their New Zealand hosts. It is therefore inappropriate for family members to accompany the awardees.
11. I have read, understood and agree to these conditions of the ROTA PACIFIC Study Award.

Signed:__________________________________ Date:_____/_____/_____

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ROTA PACIFIC is a three-week educational study tour to Auckland, New Zealand in June and July of each year, under the sponsorship of Rotary Clubs in District 9920. Its objectives are:

1. To encourage young people of the Pacific Islands to develop qualities and accept the responsibilities of good citizenship.
2. To develop understanding between countries of the South Pacific by allowing young people to meet, talk and live together with each other in a spirit of friendship.
3. To involve Rotarians in the 29 Auckland clubs with the 13 Island clubs of District 9920.