Millennium Cave becomes a Company

One of Vanuatu’s top Tourist attractions, the Millennium Cave tours, on the Island of Santo has recently emerged from being a tourist site attraction to a more professional outlook registering the business name in July this year to become a company. The new name of the Company is ‘Millennium Cave Limited’.

The shift from the informal state to the current formal business position was a milestone for the family Andikar and the Community of Funaspef as a whole.

Managing Director, Sam Andikar told Daily Post the Company is a community business which aims to support and help the current generation and future generation through job opportunities, trainings and improve the education of village kids. It was reported a total of 8 villages altogether could benefit from the company. This covers tour guiding, handicraft sales and the new funded Millennium Cave primary school.

Andikar was described by Australian High Commissioner, Jeremy Bruer, as a hero, a Village boy who strives through the waves of challenges in order to gain success which in fact developed the business into the current status. Mr Andikar and Family in Funaspef Village worked tirelessly with the hope that this tourism project of bringing tourists and visitors to Millennium Cave will eventually benefit the Community. The efforts caught the attention of the Department of Tourism and assistance was provided by the Australian Technical Vocational and Education Training (TVET) program, the Australian high Commission and the New Zealand High Commission. Currently, Millennium Cave hosts 33 well trained tour guides who accompany tourists in the tour. They are certified for tour guiding, first aid, safety and evacuation.

The company’s legal consultant is Mr Bill Bani who has been instrumental in legally defending the interests of the Family Andikar and Millennium Cave since 2008. Even the professional training of the Tour guides, the establishment of the office in Luganville and the network and preparedness of safety of the visitors to millennium Cave, all potential visitors are encouraged to first call into the Luganville Office of Millennium Cave Tours to register and pay the fees before the tour.

Having becoming a company the management believes security is one of the essential needs. The Santo Maximum Security Services was in Partnership with the Company to provide security services. Thus, the Millennium Company has instructed for all tour operators around Luganville who wish to take visitors to the cave must pass through the office or will be sent back at the security check point at BP Bon. This new system was implemented for the safety of all the visitors and a well defined tourism procedure to be always followed.

The Managing Director would like to thank the police in Luganville, their Legal officer, the Security Company, AusAID, NZAid, the Espiritu Santo Tourism Members, the Vanuatu government and other partners for their support and help which saw the progress in the company so far.