The Editor of the Samoa Observer, Mata’afa Keni Lesa, is on his way to Guangzhou, south of China.

He is honouring an invitation by the Center for Pacific Island Countries Studies, Guangdong University of Foreign Studies to be one of the guest speakers at a conference there.

The theme of the conference is  “The Pacific Islands in Transition: Opportunities and Challenges.” Mata’afa has been invited to speak about “The role of the media in the cooperation between the Pacific Islands and the World.”

He will be joining other speakers from China, Australia, Hawaii and New Zealand including Toeolesulusulu Damon Salesa, of the University of Auckland.

The conference will also feature Michael Powles, New Zealand’s former Ambassador to China, Tarcisius Kabuttaulaka of the University of Hawaii, Tony Browne and John Overton  of Victoria University among others.

The two-day conference, which starts tomorrow, is being held at the International Conference Hall of Guangdong University of Foreign Studies.

It is being organised by the Center for Pacific Island Countries Studies of Guangdong University of Foreign Studies and the Center for Oceania Studies of Sun Yat-sen University Guangdong Institute for International Strategies.

In the invitation from the Director of Pacific Island Countries Studies, Zhou Fangyin, he noted the importance of the Pacific region in terms of global developments.

“It is the aim of the seminar to further the understanding and research of Pacific Islands, explore effective path for their development, and promote cooperation between Pacific Island countries and other countries,” he writes.

“In view of your outstanding achievements in these fields, we are honoured to invite you to participate and speak at this Forum.”