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There is a 7 year compulsory school for the children from
the age of 6. The high school is 8 years old. There are also
vocational schools and teacher schools. A branch of the
University of the South Pacific was opened in Port Vila in
1989. Check topschoolsintheusa for test centers of ACT, SAT, and GRE as well high schools in the country of Vanuatu.
During the 1970s, most of the surrounding archipelago gained
independence. It stimulated the establishment of the New
Hebrides National Party in 1971 - today Vanuaaku Pati
(VP, Our Country Party). It organized groups of all the
islands on the basis of the Protestant church. The party
quickly became the country's strongest political force, and
began to demand full independence, in opposition to the
"moderate" pro-French parties who preferred to maintain the
colonial situation. When the party in the 1979 election won
two-thirds of the vote, it was clear to the British that
independence could no longer be postponed. Vanuaaku Pati put
forward a clear policy against nuclear weapons, making
Vanuatu the first Pacific country to join the Alliance Free
States Movement.
During the same period, French and North American agents
stimulated the development of the separatist group Na
Griamel on the island of Espíritu Santo. It had emerged as a
popular protest movement against the sale of land to North
American hotels. But its leader, Jimmy Stevens, ended up
receiving $ 250,000, weapons and a radio from the
ultra-right-wing North American organization the Phoenix
Foundation, in return for the new "Republic of Vemarana"
surrendering the concession to create a casino and cover for
other shadows activities.
Stevens visited France to get support from Giscard
D'Estaing, and the French police did nothing to prevent the
rebellion or the displacement of members of Vanuaaku Pati
from the island. At the same time, the French-speaking
parties in the other islands endorsed Na Gramiel's
accusations against the government of Walter Lini for being
authoritarian, fiercely centralist and closely linked to
Britain and Australia.
Ultimately, Lini, supported by forces from Papua New
Guinea, managed to disarm the separatists and deport Stevens
and his supporters seeking asylum in New Caledonia.
Vanuatu's independence was proclaimed on July 30, 1980.
Steps were immediately taken to transfer to the Melanesians
the lands that had hitherto been on foreign hands, set up a
unitary education system, and form a national army.
In February 1981, the French government expelled
Vanuatu's ambassador, Barak Sope of Nouméas airport. The
purpose was to prevent him from speaking at the Congress of
Melanesia's Independence Front, whose headquarters were in
New Caledonia. Vanuatu replied immediately: The Lini
government declared the French ambassador to persona non
grata and demanded the French diplomatic mission
reduced to 5 people. The events postponed a planned
collaboration between the two governments.
Government revenues are largely dependent on foreign aid.
The country is a tax haven. Alone in the capital Vila there
are over 60 banks and 1,000 drawer companies are registered.
Nevertheless, legislation has not yet been implemented
providing sufficient funds for the Treasury. One of the
proposed projects is to make the country an international
ship register for ships under flags of convenience. The
country's export revenue covers only half of the import
cost.
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