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King Charles' upcoming Samoa trip

King Charles III and Queen Camilla
Source: RNZ Pacific

Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — More of the plans have been revealed for King Charles and Queen Camilla's Samoa trip next month.

The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Samoa is the first the King will attend as Head of the Commonwealth. Samoa's Prime Minister Fiamē Naomi Mata'afa, in a public address last week, said all 56 member countries have indicated their attendance.

The royal office said as well as attending CHOGM, the King's program in Samoa will be supportive of one of the meeting's key themes — "a resilient environment" — and the meeting's focus on oceans.

The King and Queen will be formally welcomed by an 'Ava Fa'atupu ceremony before meeting people at an engagement to highlight aspects of Samoan traditions and culture.

They will also attend the CHOGM opening ceremony and host a dinner for Commonwealth Heads of Government.

Charles will also attend the CHOGM Business Forum to hear about progress on sustainable urbanization and investment in solutions to tackle climate change.

He will visit a mangrove forest, a National Park, and Samoa's Botanical Garden, where he will plant a tree marking the opening of a new area within the site, which will be called 'The King's Garden'.

The Queen's engagements include visiting an aoga faifeau to see first-hand how pupils are taught to read and write, and will visiting the Samoa Victim Support Group, an organization which assists survivors of domestic violence and sexual abuse, where she will learn more about the services the group provides to those in crisis.

With gender equality and women's empowerment another CHOGM theme, Queen Camilla will also attend a side event to the Women's Forum on the subject of 'Advocating for Women and Girls in the Commonwealth', with a focus on eliminating violence against women and improving health.

Charles and Camilla's tour — running from Oct. 18- 26 — also includes Australia, where they will tour the National Botanic Gardens and learn about indigenous plant use, and also hear from staff and volunteers about how climate change is affecting biodiversity.

The King, who has been receiving treatment for cancer this year, will also meet two Australians of the Year to hear about their work help those affected by melanoma, one of Australia's most common cancers.