HILARY HOSIA
What was once a dream became a reality last Thursday with the groundbreaking ceremony for the 2022 Micronesian Games site at Jenrok village in Majuro.
During the event, landlords officially signed the 60-year lease before VIPs broke the ground with golden shovels.
Minister of Works, Infrastructure and Utilities Tony Muller offered words of gratitude on behalf of President Hilda Heine, highlighting how rare it is for landlords to offer their properties free of charge.
The expansive land reclamation project on the ocean side reef will when complete feature an international-standard track and field, the first for the Marshall Islands. It will also serve as a buffer against encroaching ocean water.
“I used to see water from the ocean side penetrate through the land before pouring into the lagoon past my house,” Jiktok Ishiguro, who spoke on behalf of older sister and Lerooj Takbad Ishiguro. “At times I thought about building a canoe next to my house so that I could float when the next flood comes, but that will no longer be an issue when the facility is build.”
Majuro Mayor Ladie Jack called the project a “giant seawall” that complements the government’s ongoing seawall projects built to combat rising sea levels.
Nauru and Kiribati Heads of state and major funder for project Taiwan VIPs participated in the occasion. Minister of Education, Sport and Training Wilbur Heine was credited for championing the project and for being the bridge between the government and landlords.
Read more about this in the May 10, 2019 edition of the Marshall Islands Journal.