Port Vila Explained

Port Vila
Other Name:Vila
Settlement Type:City
Pushpin Map:Vanuatu
Pushpin Label Position:left
Pushpin Map Caption:Location in Vanuatu
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name: Vanuatu
Subdivision Type1:Province
Subdivision Name1:Shefa Province
Subdivision Type2:Island
Subdivision Name2:Efate
Leader Title:Mayor
Leader Name:Jenny Regenvanu (GJP)
Area Total Km2:23.6
Population As Of:2020
Population Footnotes:[1]
Population Total:49034
Population Density Km2:auto
Timezone:VUT
Utc Offset:+11
Coordinates:-17.7333°N 187°W
Elevation M:59

Port Vila (; French: Port-Vila), or simply Vila (pronounced as /viˈla/), is the capital and largest city of Vanuatu. It is located on the island of Efate.

The population was 49,034 as of the 2020 census.[2] In 2020, the population of Port Vila formed 16.3% of the country's population.

On the south coast of the island of Efate, in Shefa Province, Port Vila is the economic and commercial centre of Vanuatu. The mayor is Jenny Regenvanu of the Land and Justice Party, the first woman to hold the position, elected in August 2024. Her deputy is Marie Louise Milne, of the Green Confederation.[3]

On 13 March 2015, Port Vila suffered extensive damage from Cyclone Pam.[4]

Name

Locally the town is most commonly referred to simply as "Vila", whether in French or Bislama pronounced as /viˈla/ or in English (not like English "villa").

The name of the area is Efil in the native South Efate language and Ifira in neighbouring Mele-Fila language. Vila is a variant of these names. Ifira is a small island in Vila harbour where many of the area's traditional landowners reside.

History

The area occupied by Port Vila has been inhabited by Melanesian people for thousands of years. In Autumn of 2004, an archaeological expedition known as Teouma discovered a burial site of 25 tombs containing three dozen skeletons of members of the Lapita culture. Pieces of ceramics found at the site were dated to the 13th century BC.

Efate Island was charted in 1774 by James Cook, who named it Sandwich Island. Cook's expedition did not land but noted the presence of good harbours and land suitable for European settlement. In late 19th century when the islands were known as the New Hebrides, the British were initially the dominant European presence, though by the 1890s, the economic balance had begun to favour the French, who established large plantations. French citizen Ferdinand Chevillard began buying and clearing land around Port Vila to be converted into the largest French plantation on the island. Instead, it was converted into the municipality of Franceville, which declared independence on 9 August 1889, though this only lasted until June of the following year.

It was the first self-governing nation to practice universal suffrage without distinction of sex or race. Although the population at the time consisted of about 500 native islanders and fewer than fifty whites, only the latter were permitted to hold office. One of the elected presidents was a US citizen by birth, R. D. Polk, a relative of American president James K. Polk.[5]

After 1887, the territory was jointly administered by the French and the British. This was formalized in 1906 as an Anglo-French Condominium. During World War II, Port Vila was an American and Australian airbase.

In 1987, Cyclone Uma severely damaged the city. A powerful earthquake in January 2002 caused minor damage in the capital and surrounding areas. The city suffered massive damage from a category 5 cyclone named Cyclone Pam in March 2015, whose eye wall passed just to the east of Port Vila.

Geography

Climate

Port Vila has a tropical climate, more specifically a tropical rainforest climate, with noticeably wetter and drier months. As the trade winds are almost permanent and cyclones are not rare in Port Vila, the climate is not equatorial but maritime trade-wind tropical climate.[6] Rainfall averages about 2338.92NaN2 per year, and the wettest month is March. The driest month is September. There are 153 wet days in an average year. The area also has south-east trade winds. Temperatures do not vary very much at all throughout the year, and the record high is 35.61NaN1. The coolest month, July, has an average high of 271NaN1, and an average low of 181NaN1. The hottest month, February, has an average high of 31.21NaN1 and an average low of 231NaN1. The record low for Port Vila is 8.51NaN1. Humidity is often high.

Economy and transport

See also: Economy of Vanuatu. Port Vila is Vanuatu's most important harbour and the center of the country's trade. The international airport, Bauerfield International (VLI) is also located in the city. Air Vanuatu has its head office in Vanuatu House in Port Vila.[7]

Major industries in the city remain agriculture and fishing. Tourism is also becoming important, especially from Australia and New Zealand. There were over 80,000 visitors in 1997.[8]

Vanuatu is a tax haven, and offshore financing in Port Vila is an important part of the economy.

Vanuatu is still dependent on foreign aid, most of which comes from Australia and New Zealand, although in recent years aid has also come from China. One example was New Zealand paying to train doctors selected from the local community, then paying part of their wages during the first year after qualification. Australia has paid consultants to work in Port Vila Central Hospital.

35.7% of exports leave from Port Vila and 86.9% of imports arrive in Port Vila.

Population

Demographics

See also: Demographics of Vanuatu.

The population is around 45,000; predominately Melanesian, with small Polynesian, Asian, Australian and European populations, mainly French and British.

Languages

Port Vila is home to many languages, reflecting the country's high linguistic diversity.

The day-to-day lingua franca in the capital city is Bislama. In addition, English and French are also widespread.

Among Vanuatu's 100 indigenous languages, many are spoken in the capital, as people from rural areas come to live in the city, either temporarily or permanently.

Religion

Christianity is the predominant religion across Vanuatu, followed by more than 90% of the population. The largest denomination is the Presbyterian Church in Vanuatu, followed by one third of the population. Roman Catholicism and the Church of Melanesia are also common, each about 15%. Cathédrale du Sacré-Cœur is a modern Roman Catholic cathedral in Port Vila. The seat of the Diocese of Port Vila,[9] the church is dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.[10] On October 5, 2020, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints announced plans to construct a temple in the city, and the Bahá'í community is also established in Port Vila.[11]

Culture and education

Highlights of the city

The capital of Vanuatu has various sights to offer. There are several memorials, e.g. opposite the Parliament where two traditional totem poles and a monument representing a pig's tusk can be seen. The Presbyterian Church of Port Vila is an impressive and sightworthy building opposite the Independence Park. A colourful wall painting can be seen on the administration building opposite the market hall. Another noteworthy wall painting is on the façade of the post office. The City Hall of Port Vila is an oblong and sightworthy building on a hill in the city centre.

Vanuatu Cultural Centre

See main article: Vanuatu Cultural Centre. The Vanuatu Cultural Centre, hosting the Vanuatu National Museum, is located at the Saralana Park in front of the national parliament, close to the National Library and the Malvatumauri (Vanuatu National Council of Chiefs). This institution is an important place for the preservation and promotion of the different aspects of the local culture. Traditional artifacts from several islands are on display in the museum. The centre host also the National Audiovisual Archives which is the most important fund of documents from the late 19th century until today.

World Heritage

Port Vila was the location in August 1999 for the "2nd World Heritage Global Strategy Meeting for the Pacific Islands Region" held by UNESCO. One of the major topics related to Vanuatu and the Pacific region was the question of the suitability of underwater heritage for inscription on the World Heritage List.[12]

Education

Port Vila is one location of the University of the South Pacific, an educational institution co-owned by twelve Pacific countries. The Vanuatu campus is the only law school in the university, and it also teaches languages.

Upper secondary (sixth form/senior high school) institutions include:

Junior secondary (seventh form to tenth form) institutions include:

Institutions

Municipality

The municipality of Port Vila is divided into four wards and administered by a council consisting of 14 members. The four wards are:

  1. Malapoa-Tagabe: Western and far northern neighborhoods
  2. Anabrou-Melcofe-Tassiriki: Northern and eastern neighborhoods
  3. Centre: Nambawan and Seaside neighborhoods
  4. South: Nambatu, Nambatri, and Elluk neighborhoods

Malapoa-Tagabe and South are allotted three representatives each to the council while Anabrou-Melcofe-Tassiriki and Centre have four.[13]

The municipality handles primary education, primary health care, regional planning, road maintenance and construction, trash collection, cemeteries, parks and open spaces and the promotion of tourism.

There are also informal settlements such as Blacksands which are effectively suburbs of Vila but are outside the municipality. Living conditions in some of these neighbourhoods are very poor, and lack of service provision and insecure land tenure are major problems.[14] Blacksands was squatted in the 1960s.[15]

The most recent municipal council election was held in 2022.

Constituency

Port Vila is one of the eighteen constituencies in Vanuatu, and elects six Members of Parliament. Following the 2016 general election, its representatives are:[16]

MemberParty
Kenneth NatapeiVanua'aku Pati
Alatoi Ishmael KalsakauUnion of Moderate Parties
Jean Pierre NiruaIndependent
Kalo SeuleGreen Confederation
Ephraim KalsakauIndependent
Ulrich SumptohUnion of Moderate Parties

Twin towns – sister cities

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Oceania. Port Vila is twinned with:

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 2020 National Population and Housing Census - Basic Tables Report, Volume 1, Version 2 . 2021-11-17 . vnso.gov.vu . . 2023-09-05 .
  2. Web site: 2020 National Population and Housing Census - Basic Tables Report, Volume 1, Version 2 . 2021-11-17 . vnso.gov.vu . . 2023-09-05 .
  3. Web site: Roberts . Anita . First female Mayor urges respect for PVCC . Daily Post . 9 August 2024.
  4. Web site: Monstrous Category 5 cyclone makes direct hit on tiny Vanuatu. Andrew Freedman. Mashable. 13 March 2015. 4 April 2015. 12 July 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190712081608/https://mashable.com/2015/03/13/cyclone-pam-direct-hit-vanuatu/. live.
  5. "Wee, Small Republics: A Few Examples of Popular Government," Hawaiian Gazette, 1 Nov 1895, p. 1
  6. "Climatologie" by Pierre Estienne and Alain Godard, Éditions Armand Colin, "CHAPITRE XVI 1. Les climats équatoriaux et subéquatoriaux 2. Les climats tropicaux 3. Les climats d'alizé 4. Les climats de montagne LES CLIMATS DE LA ZONE INTERTROPICALE : LES VARIÉTÉS", pages 314, 315 and 322.
  7. "Contact Us ." Air Vanuatu. Retrieved 22 June 2010.
  8. Web site: International tourism, number of arrivals - Vanuatu Data. 2021-07-25. data.worldbank.org. 25 July 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210725043830/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/ST.INT.ARVL?locations=VU. live.
  9. Web site: Cathédrale du Sacré-Coeur. GCatholic.org. 9 May 2013. 4 February 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140204020102/http://www.gcatholic.org/churches/oceania/2269.htm. live.
  10. Book: Les Missions catholiques. 1938. fr. 294.
  11. Web site: Bahá'í Community of Vanuatu. bahai.org. 26 April 2021. 22 January 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210122162514/https://www.bahai.org/national-communities/vanuatu. live.
  12. Web site: Second World Heritage Global Strategy Meeting for the Pacific, Port Vila (Vanuatu) 24-27 August 1999. 26 December 2019. 19 December 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20191219050619/http://whc.unesco.org/archive/vanuatu99.htm. live.
  13. Web site: 1. Composition of Port Vila Municipal Council. 27 January 2019. 9 January 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150109234739/http://be.convdocs.org/docs/index-87100.html. dead.
  14. Web site: Archived copy . 10 September 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160304201939/https://ourarchive.otago.ac.nz/bitstream/handle/10523/4461/LeslieEmilyM2013MPlan.pdf?sequence=3 . 4 March 2016 . dead.
  15. News: Hill . David . Chung . Margaret . Urban informal settlements in Vanuatu: Challenge for equitable development . 16 March 2021 . Report prepared for Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat and UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, Pacific Operation Centre . 2020 . 19 April 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210419144648/https://mjcs.gov.vu/images/research_database/Vanuatu_Squatter_Settlement_Study_2002.pdf . live .
  16. https://parliament.gov.vu/index.php/memebers/members-of-11th-legislatture "Members of the 11th Legislature of Parliament"
  17. Web site: Sister cities between Borabora and Port Vila. Daily Post. 2019-05-11. 2020-07-20. 20 July 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200720062318/https://dailypost.vu/news/sister-cities-between-borabora-and-port-vila/article_bd631540-db0e-5aef-a4c0-da869db080ba.html. live.
  18. Web site: New Caledonia Enhances Ties With Vanuatu Capital City. pireport.org. Pacific Islands Report. 2017-03-13. 2020-07-20. 20 July 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200720063816/http://www.pireport.org/articles/2017/03/13/new-caledonia-enhances-ties-vanuatu-capital-city. dead.
  19. Web site: Foshan doctors here to treat children. sista.com.vu. Sista. 2020-01-10. 2020-07-20. 20 July 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200720073942/https://www.sista.com.vu/foshan-doctors-here-to-treat-children/. live.
  20. Web site: Mayor Sumptoh to renew 22-year-old relations with Shanghai. Daily Post. 2016-10-15. 2020-07-20. 20 July 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200720060647/https://dailypost.vu/news/mayor-sumptoh-to-renew-22-year-old-relations-with-shanghai/article_4bb41f18-f633-5d98-a07e-4bf9178b734d.html. live.
  21. Web site: 银川市友好城市及交流合作情况. yinchuan.gov.cn. Yinchuan. zh. 2020-07-20. 16 June 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220616160320/http://www.yinchuan.gov.cn/sshc/ycgk/yhcs/. live.