Independence day of the Republic of Vanuatu

Vanuatu, country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, consisting of a chain of 13 principal and many smaller islands located about 500 miles (800 km) west of Fiji and 1,100 miles (1,770 km) east of Australia. The islands extend north-south for some 400 miles (650 km) in an irregular Y shape. The Torres Islands are the northernmost group. Southward from the Torres group, the main islands are Vanua Lava and Santa Maria (Gaua) in the Banks Islands group, Espiritu Santo, Aoba (Ambae), Maéwo, Pentecost, Malakula, Ambrym, Épi, Éfaté, Erromango, Tanna, and Anatom. Some 200 miles (320 km) to the southeast of Anatom, two uninhabited islands, Hunter and Matthew, are claimed by both Vanuatu and France (as part of New Caledonia). Formerly the jointly administered Anglo-French condominium of the New Hebrides, Vanuatu achieved independence in 1980. The name Vanuatu means “Our Land Forever” in many of the locally used Melanesian languages. The capital, largest city, and commercial centre is Port-Vila (Vila), on Éfaté. Land A diverse relief—ranging from rugged mountains and high plateaus to rolling hills and low plateaus, with coastal terraces and offshore coral reefs—characterizes the islands. Sedimentary and coral limestones and volcanic rock predominate; frequent earthquakes indicate structural instability. Active volcanoes are found on several islands, including Séré’ama on Vanua Lava, Manaro on Aoba, Garet on Santa Maria, the twin volcanic vents of Benbow and Marum on Ambrym, and Yasur on Tanna. There are also several submarine volcanoes in the group, and some islands have solfataras or fumaroles. The highest point is Tabwémasana, 6,165 feet (1,879 metres), on Espiritu Santo, the largest island. There are two seasons—hot and wet from November to April, and cooler and drier from May to October. The southeast trades are the prevailing winds, although northerlies during the hot season provide most of the heavy rainfall. Annual precipitation varies from about 80 inches (2,000 mm) in the south to some 160 inches (4,000 mm) in the northern islands. Much of the group is covered by dense rain forest, but drier regions have patches of savanna grassland. Abundant bird and insect life contrasts with the sparse fauna. Of the approximately 10 types of bats found in Vanuatu, three are found only there. People The indigenous population, called ni-Vanuatu, is overwhelmingly Melanesian, though some of the outlying islands have Polynesian populations. There are also small minorities of Europeans, Micronesians, Chinese, and Vietnamese. Roughly three-fourths of the population lives in rural areas, but since independence the urban centres of Luganville and Port-Vila have drawn a significant number of people attracted by better opportunities. More than 100 local Melanesian languages and dialects are spoken; Bislama, an English-based Melanesian pidgin, is the national language and, along with English and French, is one of three official languages. Some seven-tenths of the population is Protestant, Presbyterians constituting the largest denomination. Other religions include Roman Catholicism, traditional beliefs, and cargo cults. Economy Subsistence agriculture has traditionally been the economic base of Vanuatu, together with an elaborate exchange network within and between islands. Economic changes occurred with the development of European plantations in the island group after 1867: cotton was the initial crop, followed by corn (maize), coffee, cocoa beans, and coconuts (for copra). Cattle ranching was instituted later. By the 1880s French planters had reversed the initial British domination of the plantation sector, though they too found it increasingly difficult to compete with ni-Vanuatu producers, who could fall back on subsistence agriculture in times of economic downturn. French hopes of economic hegemony, based on high world prices for copra and the importation of Vietnamese labour in the 1920s, were dashed by the Great Depression of the 1930s. By 1948 most of the copra in the island group was being produced by the ni-Vanuatu themselves, though it was not until the development of cooperatives in the 1970s that they were finally able to assume control of the trade. Kava, beef, copra, timber, and cocoa are the most important exports; Australia, New Caledonia, Japan, and New Zealand are the main export destinations. Imports—mainly of machinery and transport equipment, food and live animals, and mineral fuels—come principally from Australia, Singapore, New Zealand, and Fiji. Because of its vulnerability to weather and commodity market fluctuations, Vanuatu is working toward supplementing large-scale agriculture with stronger extractive, manufacturing, and service sectors to foster its long-term economic growth. Since independence, Vanuatu’s tourism and offshore financial services have emerged as the largest earners of foreign income. The growing lucre generated by tourism has attracted the attention of foreign companies seeking to develop land into resorts and other attractions. Although, according to the 1980 constitution, all land in Vanuatu is under ni-Vanuatu customary collective ownership and cannot be sold to foreigners, increasing interest from abroad in the late 20th and early 21st centuries prompted the government to allow land to be leased for 75-year periods. Such leases were often negotiated to the disadvantage of ni-Vanuatu, however; many included, for example, a provision that, at the end of the 75 years, the customary owners could regain their lands only by paying in full the cost of any development. In the early 21st century there was concern that such provisions would mean the permanent alienation of customarily owned lands. Forestry, important in the islands’ early colonial history but later eclipsed by plantation agriculture, has also grown in importance. Much of the country is forested (including areas of sandalwood and other valuable tropical species). Because the majority of trees felled during the 1980s were exported as unsawn logs, in the early 1990s the government banned exports of roundwood and limited the annual harvest. Earnings from processed wood (mostly sawn on small portable mills) grew as a result, and wood products accounted for a small but significant proportion of exports in the early 21st century. The sale of commercial fishing rights is another important source of foreign revenue, and there is extensive small-scale fishing for local consumption. Mining of manganese ore on Éfaté ended in the 1970s, but later surveys identified a number of remaining deposits there as well as the likely existence of exploitable gold, copper, and petroleum reserves elsewhere in the islands. On most of Vanuatu’s islands, unpaved roads link coastal settlements; there are few interior roads. Interisland transportation is by boat or airplane. Major airports are located near Port-Vila, near Luganville on Espiritu Santo, and on the northwest side of Tanna. Many smaller airfields are scattered throughout the islands. Government and society Under the terms of the 1980 constitution, the president, who serves as head of state, is elected to a five-year term by an electoral college made up of the unicameral Parliament and the presidents of the Regional Councils. Members of Parliament are elected to four-year terms on the basis of universal franchise. Parliament elects the chief executive, the prime minister, from among its members; the prime minister then appoints a Council of Ministers. The constitution also provides for a National Council of Chiefs (Malvatumauri), composed of elected “custom chiefs,” which advises the government on matters relating to custom and tradition. Provincial authorities are responsible for local governmental functions. The Supreme Court is the ultimate judicial arbiter of both civil and criminal matters. There are also a court of appeal and magistrates’ courts, and island courts may be established by warrant to rule on land disputes. Since independence, defense has been provided through a pact with Papua New Guinea. Vanuatu has no regular military, but the country’s police force operates a domestic paramilitary unit, the Vanuatu Mobile Force. Health care in Vanuatu consists of a main hospital in Vila supplemented by smaller hospitals, clinics, and dispensaries on the other islands. Malaria, tuberculosis, hookworm, and gastroenteritis are the most common diseases. Although attempts have been made since independence to institute a single, English-speaking education system, ongoing economic aid from France for the maintenance of the Francophone school system has ensured that about half of ni-Vanuatu children receive French-language instruction. Education is free and compulsory for ages 6 to 12, but only about one-third of ni-Vanuatu children undertake postprimary education. The country’s school attendance and adult literacy rates are among the lowest in the Pacific, a situation exacerbated by rapid population growth, the distance between settlements, and a shortage of teachers and classrooms in remote areas. The University of the South Pacific’s Emalus Campus at Port-Vila (opened in 1989) provides undergraduate and graduate education; the university’s law school is there, and students may also study at the university’s main campus in Suva, Fiji. A small number of ni-Vanuatu pursue higher education in Papua New Guinea or in France. Cultural life The overwhelming majority of ni-Vanuatu are subsistence agriculturalists, living in small rural villages where activities revolve around the land. The constitution guarantees that land cannot be alienated from its “indigenous custom owners,” or traditional owners, and their descendants. More than an economic resource, land is the physical embodiment of the metaphysical link with the past, and identification with a particular tract of land (expressed by the Bislama phrase man ples) remains one of the fundamental concepts governing ni-Vanuatu culture, although foreign developers have gained control over some land through long-term leases. On many islands, men gather nightly at their local nakamal (men’s house) to drink kava and communicate with the spirits of their ancestors, whose bones typically are buried nearby. Through magic stones, they attempt to contact and control the spiritual realm they view as all-pervasive. Among the vast majority of rural dwellers, kastom (custom), along with Christianity, continues to guide daily life. More … Source: https://www.britannica.com/place/Vanuatu

2022/07/30

Czy są Państwo zainteresowani stażem w parlamencie niemieckim ?

Niemiecki Bundestag wraz z berlińskim Wolnym Uniwersytetem, Uniwersytetem im. Humboldtów w Berlinie oraz Politechniką Berlińską zaprasza do udziału w trwającym pięć miesięcy Międzynarodowym Stypendium Parlamentarnym 2023 (Internationales Parlaments Stipendium IPS) w terminie od 1 marca do 31 lipca 2023 roku w Berlinie.

2022/07/29

Mer Lwowa dziękuje krakowianom za pomoc

Od początku wojny w Ukrainie Kraków przekazuje pomoc humanitarną mieszkańcom i instytucjom Lwowa. Poza darami rzeczowymi, lekami czy agregatami prądotwórczymi, Lwów dostał od Krakowa pięć autobusów miejskich i karetkę pogotowia. 6 lipca 2022 roku do Krakowa przyjechał mer Lwowa Andrij Sadowy, który podziękował prezydentowi Jackowi Majchrowskiemu i mieszkańcom za pomoc udzieloną miastu oraz przedstawił szczegóły dotyczące budowy Narodowego Centrum Rehabilitacji „Niezniszczalni” we Lwowie.

2022/07/29

El Chef colombiano Héctor Jiménez Bravo en la undécima edición de MasterChef Polonia

Como parte del Plan de Promoción de Colombia en el Exterior, la Embajada de Colombia en Polonia coordinó la participación del chef colombiano Héctor Jiménez Bravo como invitado especial en uno de los capítulos de la undécima temporada del programa de televisión culinario MasterChef Polonia. Héctor Jiménez Bravo es un chef, empresario y personalidad de televisión que nació en Bucaramanga, Colombia. También es residente en Ucrania, donde es ampliamente reconocido porque ha sido jurado en los programas MasterChef Ucrania y Ukraine’s Got Talent.

2022/07/28

驻波兰大使孙霖江分别会见波奥委会主席和残奥委会主席

孙大使祝贺波体育代表团在北京冬奥会、冬残奥会上取得佳绩并表示，中方与包括波兰奥委会、残奥委会在内的各国体育部门、组织和机构保持密切沟通与合作，共同向世界呈现了一届简约、安全、精彩的奥运盛会，赢得国际社会广泛赞誉。杜达总统专程赴华出席北京冬奥会开幕式；中波运动员在赛场上同场竞技，赛场下友好交流，结下了真诚友谊；众多波兰体育迷通过电视观看赛事直播，领略冬季运动魅力。这些都表明，加强中波体育人文交流合乎民意，顺应民心，符合双方共同利益。中方愿同波方进一步深化体育文化交流合作，为促进民心相通、巩固传统友谊作出更大贡献。

2022/07/28

Koncert belgijskiego duetu: Zofii Hanny oraz Mathiasa Coppensa "A few words on the soul"

Czy wiedzieliście, że ?? jest obecna na tegorocznym literackim Festiwal Góry Literatury ? We współpracy z Fundacja Olgi Tokarczuk zorganizowaliśmy koncert belgijskiego duetu: Zofii Hanny oraz Mathiasa Coppensa "A few words on the soul", będący muzyczną interpretacją poezji Wisławy Szymborskiej. Wczorajszy koncert był gratką dla miłośników zarówno literatury, jak i muzyki, a Zamek Książ stanowił bajkową scenerię dla tego wydarzenia.

2022/07/28

Independence day of the Republic of Peru

Peru, country in western South America. Except for the Lake Titicaca basin in the southeast, its borders lie in sparsely populated zones. The boundaries with Colombia to the northeast and Brazil to the east traverse lower ranges or tropical forests, whereas the borders with Bolivia to the southeast, Chile to the south, and Ecuador to the northwest run across the high Andes. To the west, territorial waters, reaching 200 miles (320 km) into the Pacific Ocean, are claimed by Peru. Peru is essentially a tropical country, with its northern tip nearly touching the Equator. Despite its tropical location, a great diversity of climates, ways of life, and economic activities is brought about by the extremes of elevation and by the southwest winds that sweep in across the cold Peru Current (or Humboldt Current), which flows along its Pacific shoreline. The immense difficulties of travel posed by the Andes have long impeded national unity. Iquitos, on the upper Amazon, lies only about 600 miles (965 km) northeast of Lima, the capital, but, before the airplane, travelers between the cities often chose a 7,000-mile (11,250-km) trip via the Amazon, the Atlantic and Caribbean, the Isthmus of Panama, and the Pacific, rather than the shorter mountain route.The name Peru is derived from a Quechua Indian word implying land of abundance, a reference to the economic wealth produced by the rich and highly organized Inca civilization that ruled the region for centuries. The country’s vast mineral, agricultural, and marine resources long have served as the economic foundation of the country, and, by the late 20th century, tourism had also become a major element of Peru’s economic development. Favourite destinations for international travelers include Machu Picchu, a site of ancient Inca ruins located about 50 miles (80 km) northwest of Cuzco, and museums housing artifacts excavated from ancient tombs in northern coastal Peru. Land - Relief Peru is traditionally described in terms of three broad longitudinal regions: the arid Costa on the west; the rugged Sierra, or Andes, system in the centre; and the wet and forested Amazonia—the tropical Amazon Basin—on the east. The Costa The coastal plain can be readily divided into three parts—north, central, and south—on the basis of the amount of level land and the distance between the Andean ranges and the sea. Generally speaking, the amount of level coastal land diminishes from north to south. In the northern region, from Ecuador to Chimbote, the plain is typically some 20 to 30 miles (30 to 50 km) wide, with a maximum width of more than 90 miles (140 km) in the Sechura Desert south of Piura. The central coastal region, which stretches from Chimbote to Nazca, is narrower than the northern region and is characterized by areas of rough hills that extend from the Andes to the shores of the ocean. From Nazca southward to the Chilean border the coast is for the most part lined by low mountains; the southern valleys are narrow, and only in scattered spots are level lands found near the ocean. The Sierra, or Andean, region Along the western edge of South America, the Andes Mountains were created by tectonic activity in which the South American Plate overrode the Nazca Plate. The Peruvian Andes are typical of mountain regions of the Pacific Rim: they are young in geologic terms, and their continuing uplift is manifested by frequent earthquakes and much instability. Three main backbones protrude from the Peruvian Andes; they are commonly called the cordilleras Occidental, Central, and Oriental, although these designations are not used within Peru. Slopes are relatively gentle in northern Peru, and maximum elevations seldom exceed 16,000 feet (about 5,000 metres). The Andes in central Peru are higher and more rugged. The ranges of the central zone form particularly difficult barriers to movement. The main pass east of Lima, for instance, is at an elevation of more than 15,000 feet (4,500 metres)—higher than many of the peaks in the north. Many of the mountains of central Peru are snowcapped and are a popular attraction for climbers and tourists. Of particular fame is the Cordillera Blanca, with the country’s highest peak, Mount Huascarán, at 22,205 feet (6,768 metres), and nearby Huascarán National Park (designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1985). In southern Peru the character of the Andes changes to that of a high plateau region; this is the Puna, with vast tablelands and elevations between 13,000 and 16,000 feet (about 4,000 and 5,000 metres). Scattered peaks, with elevations of up to about 21,000 feet (6,400 metres), protrude above the broad southern plateaus. Beginning northwest of Arequipa, many of the southern peaks form a volcanic chain that stretches into northern Chile, including Ampato, Huacla Huacla, and Misti. Amazonia of Peru The lower slopes of the western Andes merge with the heavily forested tropical lowlands of the Amazon Basin to form the region known as Amazonia, which occupies more than three-fifths of the area of Peru. An area of dense cloud forests is found in the zone immediately adjacent to the Andes. This area is referred to as the Montaña; the jungle areas in the eastern part of Amazonia are referred to as the Selva. The physiography of the region is characterized by rolling hills and level plains that extend eastward to the borders with Colombia, Brazil, and Bolivia. Elevations are uniformly low, ranging from about 3,300 feet (1,000 metres) at the eastern edge of the Andes to about 260 feet (80 metres) above sea level along the Amazon River at the Peru–Brazil border. Drainage Distinctive drainage patterns dissect the Costa, the Sierra, and Amazonia. Of the more than 50 rivers that flow west from the Andes across the Costa, most are short (usually less than 200 miles [325 km] long) and precipitous, with highly seasonal rates of flow. Most have a period of peak flow (usually during the December to March rainy season) followed by a long dry period; only the largest of the Costa rivers, such as the Santa, have dependable year-round flows. The Sierra not only contains the headwaters of the streams that flow to both the Pacific and the Amazon but also has a large area of internal drainage. In the south several rivers cross the altiplano in Peru to empty into Lake Titicaca, which is shared with Bolivia and is—at an elevation of 12,500 feet (3,810 metres)—the world’s highest navigable body of water. Amazonia is characterized by great rivers. The Amazon, with the largest volume of flow of any river in the world, has headwaters that rise in several places in the Peruvian Andes; one of the main branches, the Ucayali, originates in southern Peru some 1,700 miles (2,700 km) from its juncture with the main river. The Amazon is navigable, but such large tributaries as the Marañón, Huallaga, and Ucayali can be navigated only for relatively short distances west of the port of Iquitos. These rivers flow northward in long deep valleys before turning east to join the Amazon, forming mostly hindrances to transportation rather than important trade routes. More … Score: https://www.britannica.com/place/Peru

2022/07/28

Wizyta Ambasadora Meksyku

Ambasador Meksyku w RP - Juan Sandoval Mendiolea był gościem Wojewody Pomorskiego Dariusza Drelicha. Rozmowa dotyczyła m.in. wymiany gospodarczej, kultury, biznesu, edukacji i historii. To pierwsza wizyta ambasadora w Pomorskiem. Zacieśnianie współpracy gospodarczej, nawiązanie bezpośrednich relacji między regionami w Meksyku i Polsce - szczególnie w obszarze zaawansowanych technologii, otwarcie wystawy w MIIWŚ w Gdańsku pt. "Meksyk i Polska: wspólna droga.

2022/07/27

Wizyta ambasadora Rumunii na UAM

5 lipca 2022 roku, odbyła się wizyta JE Ambasadora Rumunii, Theodora Cosmin Onisii. Gospodarzem spotkania na UAM był prorektor ds. współpracy międzynarodowej, prof. Rafał Witkowski. Rozmowy toczyły się na tematy ewentualnej współpracy akademickiej, a także sukcesów UAM na polu nauczania filologii, w szczególności filologii rumuńskiej.

2022/07/27