Remote Pacific boarding school runs out of food

Updated

A boarding school on a remote Pacific Island in the Federated States of Micronesia has run out of food to feed its nearly 300 students.

Weipat High School on Onoun, one of the remote outer islands of the Federated States of Micronesia state of Chuuk, provides education and accommodation to around 270 students from all the islands around the region.

Map: Onoun Island is part of Chuuk state in the Federated States of Micronesia

The Principal, Father Floren Akkin, has told Radio Australia the school ran out of food last week.

"The school has been cancelled until we are stabilised here," he said.

"I'm sending the kids to the community, to the families, to find food there - the community is so generous in giving us something."

"The problem is the population here is around 400 or 500 people - plus the 274 students - and I don't think the community can feed these people every day for every meal."

Father Floren says the school was given provisions at the start of the year, but that wasn't enough.

He says the Chuuk education department has promised to send another 25 bags of rice, but there's no sign when they will arrive by sea.

"When will that come? We're not sure yet," he said.

"We have nothing definite yet on transportation. I'd say that the closest island is about 35 miles away...so they need transportation, they need boats.

"I'm hoping they'll send also some vegetable and meats to supplement this rice - here we only have bananas, taro and breadfruit."

ABC

Topics: human-interest, education, food-and-cooking, micronesia-federated-states-of, pacific

First posted