Benjamin entered the Senior Samoan group and was highly commended for speaking about the importance of caring for the environment.

The annual Pasifika Speech Competition is an opportunity for Pasifika students to compete in the following languages: Cook Islands Māori, English, Fijian, Kiribati, Niuean, Samoan and Tongan, with the opportunity to gain NCEA achievement standards or unit standards.

The aim of the Pasifika Speech Competition is to celebrate and develop Pasifika students’ public speaking confidence, self-esteem, language and literacy skills in their Pasifika language and/or English. 

This year’s theme was Lalaga le si'osi'omaga mo se lumana'i manuia - Weave an environment for a better future.