Palau Consul Eileen Kintol said they are now in the design stage of the project, which is to construct a traditional Palau meeting house, or “abai,” on public land that the CNMI government leased for free to the Palau government.
She said they have already hired an architect for the project.
In coordination with the Palauan Community in Saipan, Kintol said they also intend to set up a youth center in the area.
“We are targeting to finish it this year,” she said.
Then-Palau President Tommy Remengesau was able to raise $25,000 for the project, she said.
The project, Kintol said, will help boost Palauan culture and customs in the CNMI.
Early this month, Palauan youths attended a conference on Saipan and met with Palauan community officials here.
Conference participants agreed that more training and activities for the youth should be introduced to prevent them from engaging in unproductive activities like drug addiction, alcohol and smoking.
Kintol said they accepted the challenge to help Palauan youth on Saipan become more productive community members.
