Vuvale Skills Hub ready for launch

Fiji’s newly refurbished Vuvale Skills Hub in Walu Bay, Suva, can host up to 75 students on its main floor and close to 100 more in its upstairs classroom at any one time.

Pacific Australia Skills Country director Gareth McGrath revealed the capacity during a media pre-briefing and walkthrough of the facility on Friday, ahead of the official country launch of Pacific Australia Skills in Fiji.

Minister for Public Works, Transport and Meteorological Services Ro Filipe Tuisawau and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will officially open the Vuvale Skills Hub next Monday.

The refurbished facility, previously used for training under the now-concluded Australian Pacific Training Coalition (APTC), will now serve as a shared space for Fiji’s TVET providers.

“Whereas APTC was renowned for doing the doing, Pacific Australia Skills will be looking at enabling our partners, our close friends and colleagues, our peers within the TVET community to achieve success through skills training,” Mr McGrath said.

He confirmed that qualifications earned under APTC, managed by TAFE Queensland, remain valid.

“That qualification is still current,” he said, adding that graduates do not need to be concerned despite APTC’s conclusion.

Mr McGrath said Pacific Australia Skills will work closely with the Fiji Commerce and Employers Federation (FCEF) and the National Employment Centre to address identified skills gaps.

He said priority areas include maritime, the digital economy, construction, and other trade-related sectors.

Recruitment for training places, he added, will be “fair, equitable and inclusive to all,” including maritime schools nationwide.