Vanuatu
About Vanuatu
Vanuatu is a Melanesian country 800 kilometres west of Fiji and 1,770 kilometres East of Australia. It consists of 13 principal, and about 67 smaller islands that stretch for 1,300 kilometres. The largest island is Espiritu Santo (or just Santo) which the first Europeans, Portuguese, visited in 1606. In the 1880’s both France and the UK claimed parts of the archipelago and in 1906 they agreed to jointly govern it as the New Hebrides. After WW II an independence movement developed and the Republic of Vanuatu was founded in 1980. The people of Vanuatu are referred to as Ni-Vanuatu or Vanuatuan. Vanuatu’s motto is: “Long God Yumi Stanap” (Bishlemar) - “In God let us stand Tall”.
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Capital
Port Vila
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Main Religions
Christianity (Presbyterian, Roman Catholic, Anglican, Bahá’í Faith, Seventh-day Adventist Church, the Church of Christ, Neil Thomas Ministries (NTM), Jehovah’s Witnesses, and others)
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Time Zone
U.T.C + no daylight saving
changes
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Languages
Bislama, French and English
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Population
243,304
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Area
12,189 km2
Arrival of Marists
1991
Number of Marist Brothers communities & locations
1
Number of Brothers
4
Marist schools & locations
Lycee et College Technique St Michel governed by the Diocese.
Marist Resilience in Vanuatu: Navigating Challenges and Rebuilding
History
The Marist Fathers first arrived in Vanuatu in 1887 and the Marist Brother soon followed. They opened a school in Port Vila in 1905. However, due to a number of factors, it closed after only eight years.
The Brothers returned in 1991 to conduct a vocational centre, the St Martin De Porres Centre at Lololima. This was staffed by Brothers from New Caledonia, mostly French. They withdrew in 2010. The Brothers are still present at the St Michel Catholic Technical College on Santo.
Today there are four Brothers in Vanuatu. Three are Ni-Vanuatu and one is a Solomon Islander. The Brothers’ House is located at ‘Lycee et College Technique St Michel’, which is a diocesan school.
The Brothers are involved in teaching, both in the academic and technical sections, administration, boarding and the school development projects. In 2020 the savagery of Cyclone Harold destroyed much of the school and the Brothers’ house.
With the assistance of Australian Marist Solidarity and SOTS the school has been repaired and rebuilt, and a new Brothers’ house constructed.
Marist Life and Mission Groups
A Marist group exists with the name, Champagnat Marist Family.
It consists of Brothers, teachers and students. At the moment there 15 Marist teachers and over 60 students, boys and girls are involved. The purpose of the group is to deepen the Marist Spirit and strengthen spiritual awareness and life within the school.
The group also does outreach work with the sick in the parish and the nearby local communities.
It gathers for prayer and helps animate Masses in the Parish.
School Ministry ‘Lycee et College Technique St Michel’ is a co-educational school and technical college from Years 7 to 12 governed by the Diocese.
It has both academic and technical strands. The Technical section helps students develop their skills so they can find employment in fields such as joinery, mechanics, cooking, hospitality, sewing and housekeeping.
