Preparations for the construction of the access road to the Tina River Hydropower Development are now underway and with it, approximately 145 newly created jobs for the local community will be available. Advertising to recruit local residents to fill these jobs has commenced and people are being urged to apply to work on the nation building infrastructure project. The positions are posed to provide those keen on a career in construction, valuable training and experience.
The project, which is due to be completed and commissioned in 2024, will employee approximately 145 locals during the first phase of construction of the access road. In total, the 15-megawatt hydropower infrastructure project will eventually employee approximately 350 locals during the peak of construction, providing a much-needed boost to the local job market. A soft recruitment launched before Christmas and advertised jobs for both skilled and unskilled team members in areas such as Excavator Operators, Carpenters, Concrete workers and general labourers, to name a few.
With the Solomon Island Government highly invested in ensuring locals benefit from the jobs created by the project, the Minister of Commerce, Industry, Labour and Immigration, Honourable Clezy Rore, said “This project is not only important for our country to reduced electricity costs but also will provide employment opportunities for our people to earn money and at the same time, learn valuable skills in the construction industry.”
It is the first project in the country to also introduce unique landowner participation schemes that promotes sharing of project benefits, through royalty payment and land lease agreement. A crucial element to the Community Benefit Sharing Program (CBSP) also includes providing employment opportunities to applicants living in the Bahomea Malango Cultural community.
The access road, which will wind through difficult terrains in the Malango Ward of the Guadalcanal Province from the Black Post Junction east of Honiara, will lead to the Power station and the Dam Sites of the Hydro Project. It is approximately 20.6 km in length and will take 15 months to construct. The Australian Government and The Green Climate Fund, both of which have been instrumental in supporting the project to date, are jointly funding the road access construction phase.
The new Australian High Commissioner, Dr Lachlan Strahan, joined project managers on a recent site visit and was impressed by the detailed plans for the access road and the world-class project preparations. “The Australian Government has been supporting this vital infrastructure project for 10 years now,” he said. “It is a real achievement to be at this point. Now that construction has commenced, access to cheaper, cleaner electricity is a closer reality for the people of the Solomon Islands.”
Jobs will continue to be advertised by construction partners Tina Hydro Limited (THL) in local newspapers and on the radio.