Kiribati MP wants voice heard too as popular vote nears

With Members of Parliament and the Speaker elected in Kiribati, the focus is now on the vote for the country's leader.

The presidential vote will be held at the end of next month when MPs elect the President.

Kiribati Parliament Building at Ambo, Tarawa. Photo/Maneaba ni Maungatabu

However, the vote can't come any sooner for the 17 new MPs voted in last month's general election for the next four years.

A record five women MPs are among those in the Maneaba ni Maungatabu, Legislative Assembly.

Ruta Teretia Babo-Nemta became the first woman to win the Maiana seat, and she told Pacific Mornings' William Terite that she's raring to get on with the job.

Watch Ruta Teretia Babo-Nemta's full interview below.

Babo-Nemta, of the incumbent ruling party Tobwaan Kiribati Party (TKP), says much work is needed for her island and i-Kiribati.

She says her journey has since been one of humility.

"I did not expect to win because it was my first time running the campaign with my husband. It was very humbling to see how my people of Maiana get together and unite in what they want.

"They voted for me and it's a humbling experience to have those that you look up to, you know, put the responsibility on your shoulders and so, I feel so blessed.

"Maiana needs a lot of improvement in terms of infrastructure, the roads are not that good. And shortage of fuel, shortage of medical supplies, cargo, you know, transportation for kids to school.

"Those are commonly the main issues on Maiana that I would like to address for the next four years. As simple as having an assembly hall, they're called maneaba.

"There are quite a few primary schools that do not have maneaba so their kids, for example, if they're going to have school assemblies, they meet under the shadows of the trees.

i-Kiribati have elected their 45 MPs for the next four years. Photo/Rimon Rimon

"So it's not really, you know, fit for our primary kids at Maiana. So those are a few things that I would like to address in the next four years."

Opposition leader Tessie Lambourne says over the past eight years, Kiribati under the TKP, has "rapidly declined into authoritarianism and isolationism".

She adds that basic services, such as health, education, and utilities "have deteriorated to the point of near collapse and will not continue without the ongoing support of our development partners".

With climate change at the forefront of the election, Kiribati is among the low-lying Pacific islands threatened by sea-level rise.

A United Nations general assembly held a special session this week as experts warned rising sea levels meant the disappearance of many atolls.

i-Kiribati climate advocates say the ocean around the Pacific island nation has been infected - steadily encroaching, contaminating underground wells, and leeching salt into the soil.

They say residents affected can't survive since the water changed after the sea level rises. The freshwater crisis is one of many threats the islanders face including extreme and regular flooding, frequent coastal erosion, and persistent food and water insecurity.

The presidential election will be held on 30 October where 45 MPs will choose the country's next leader.

The climate crisis remains front and centre in Kiribati. Photo/supplied