The President and Vice Chancellor of the University of the South Pacific (U.S.P.) Professor Pal Ahluwalia was officially welcomed to Samoa Campus at Alafua last Friday.

The welcome ceremony was led by the U.S.P. staff and students and included a traditional ava ceremony as well dance performances to officially mark the commencement of Professor Pal's work at the regional campus. 

Professor Pal was accompanied by his partner Sandy when they were greeted by the staff and students at Alafua.

The telecommunication company, Vodafone Samoa also assisted with the hosting of the welcome ceremony for the U.S.P. Vice Chancellor and President who arrived in Samoa in March this year. 

During an interview with the Samoa Observer upon their arrival, Professor Pal said that they are delighted to be in Samoa.

Despite being in quarantine, Prof. Ahluwalia is ecstatic that when he is released from quarantine, he can finally get on with his job at the Alafua Samoa Campus where he will be based for the next three years. 

"Let me start off by saying that I am very grateful to return home to the Pacific," he told this newspaper. "Since my deportation in February of 2021, I have spent nearly 10 months in Nauru which was an incredible experience for me.

"I suspect that I am the first Vice Chancellor to have spent that much time at a regional campus, and of course I got to learn a lot about what happens at regional campuses. 

"Having said that, I've always been very keen to come to Samoa, my previous visits here had been very fruitful and I think this is one of our largest campuses and I love living in the South Pacific, whether it was Fiji, then Nauru and now Samoa. 

"It really does feel like I'm coming home – that's how the people at the campus have made me feel so far."

He then listed key areas which he will focusing on immediately after he is released from quarantine. 

"First of all, I'm just really glad to be here and to get on with my job, you know this is what the council wanted to me to do. I'm really very thankful to the U.S.P. Council for appointing me to continue my work. I am very pleased."

While he has been working virtually with the assistance of the Samoa Campus' staff in recent months, he said he is looking forward to see and assess key areas that need to be dealt with at Alafua. 

"That is one of the priorities for me to really assess some of the challenges that exists there and also look at how we really start to focus on expanding Samoa Campus and really work to get things moving. 

"One of my key focuses is providing equality education for our students, that has not shifted from the day one since I came to the University that's always been a priority for me. 

"We also want to look at setting up policies, working with our student leaders and our unions whom I have a good relationship with and really assess the needs of the region as a whole."

In saying that, Prof. Ahluwalia said he will be focusing on adding value in terms of health within the regional campus. Due to the increase in the number of non-communicable diseases across the Pacific, the V.C. said they will be looking at ways in which they can engaged and address the health crisis.

At the same time, he said he is also "equally concerned" that U.S.P. students are deeply rooted to their cultural backgrounds and Pacific values. Nevertheless, having integrity in ethics is one area Prof. Ahluwalia said he will prioritise during his time at the Samoa Campus. 

"Another big priority is we have a lot of vacancies, and I will look at how we can fill those academic and administrative positions over the coming weeks," he added. "So there's a lot on my plate."

Consolidating the university's reputation as an internationally recognised academic institution is one area of focus for the V.C. Furthermore, he hopes to strengthen research capacity within Samoa Campus, by working together with local and international organisations.