MV Bougainville Atolls by Aloysius Laukai

Bougainville Atolls departing Samarinta Port last week in Java Island, Indonesia for Port Moresby.

By Picture and Story Aloysius Laukai
Source:  http://bougainville.typepad.com/newdawn/
Link:  http://bougainville.typepad.com/newdawn/2011/07/280711-mv-bougainville-atolls-by-aloysius-laukai-the-border-development-authority-bda-has-a-latest-barge-in-its-fleet-to-p.html

The Border Development Authority (BDA) has a latest barge in its fleet to provide shipping services in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville.
MV Bougainville Atolls now on its way to Port Moresby from Samarinta City in Java Island, Indonesia will be used in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville (ARB). The Barge which is expected to arrive early next month will mostly be used to provide shipping services to the isolated and scattered atolls of the Feat, Cataretts, Mortlock and Tasman. It will also be used to service other areas of the ARB.
A delighted Autonomous Bougainville Government (ABG) Education Minister John Tabinaman yesterday thanked the National Government on behalf of the atoll’s people and ABG for establishing the BDA. “We now see that BDA can come and help us in remote coastal border areas like ARB within a short notice. Many times no ship in the past and the Atolls people suffer. Teachers, Health and Government Officers do not arrive in time and mobility was a problem. There was no help to ship cargos. Now people can see the Government’s hands through BDA. The people will be relieved to see the Barge.”
Mr Tabinaman said from Buka in the ARB that before ABG had to charter private ships and it was expensive. “Those ships had to meet up to their tight schedule runs and we had to cut short some of our trips. It was hard to do awareness and get to know the people’s real conditions. Besides the ships allocated were small and do not have facilities like a health room on the ship. But now with MB Bougainville Atolls we will have a medical bay with medical supplies on board.”
Early this month BDA responded after North Bougainville MP Lauta Atoi appealed for assistance saying that about 15,000 people on the Atolls with the islands of Nissan and Pinabel needed immediate relief supplies due to the four month old prolonged drought.
BDA provided its Barge MV Andreas and donated K100, 000 worth of relief supplies such as food (over 500 bags of rice and garden food such as kaukau, taro and bananas), water containers, and medical and education supplies.”
BDA already have MV Muntai, MV Ulayut, MV Gloucester, MV Manus Atolls and MV Milne bay Atolls in its fleet of Barges.