In this bulletin:
2. PACIFIC — Protect Tuna or lose billions: FFA DG Pakop
3. PACIFIC — Solomon Islands calls for funds to build new Pacific Fisheries Surveillance Centre
4. PACIFIC — Regional surveillances key to protecting Pacific livelihoods: Palau Fisheries Minister
5. PACIFIC — NZ and U.S to build major port on former military base in Cook Islands
6. PNG — PNG MPs need ‘more time’ to debate on referendum
7. FIJI — Fiji’s HIV treatment gap widens as diagnoses rise
8. PNG — PNG PM Marape says leadership reset may mean his exit
9. PACNEWS BIZ — Fiji ensures national development is age inclusive
10. PACNEWS BIZ — Fiji Airways marks 75 years in the skies
11. PACNEWS DIGEST — It is now almost certain the world will warm past 1.5C. But ‘net-negative’ emissions are still possible
12. PACNEWS DIGEST — Pacific leaders push for climate survival as coalition splits on Paris deal
13. PACNEWS DIGEST — Growing Climate Resilience in Kiribati and Vanuatu
PAC – FORUM LEADERS MEET/ORGANISED CRIME: PACNEWS PACNEWS 3: Tue 01 Sept 2026
‘Organised crime is a business’: Pacific Fusion Centre Chief calls for attack on criminal profits
By Pita Ligaiula in Koror, Palau
KOROR, PALAU, 01 SEPTEMBER 2026 (PACNEWS)— Pacific Fusion Centre Director, Viliame Bovoro has called on Pacific governments to target the money behind transnational organised crime, warning that criminal networks are increasingly treating the region as both a transit route and a destination market.
Speaking at a Pacific Islands Forum side event on “Transnational Organised Crime in the Pacific: Evolving Threats and Pacific Response,” Bovoro said governments must recognise that organised crime was driven primarily by profit.
“Make no mistake, transnational organised crime is a business proposition.
“They’re not doing it because they want to propagate drugs or create addicts. They’re doing it because of the financial reward,” Bovoro said at the side event.
He said the scale of the illicit drug trade demonstrated the financial incentive driving criminal networks, highlighting the Australian drug market, which he said was worth an estimated US$4.5 billion.
“That is a huge amount of money.
“We cannot build safe and resilient economies while organised crime continues to profit from our vulnerabilities,” Bovoro said
Bovoro said one of the Pacific’s main priorities must be to disrupt the financial incentives that allow organised crime to operate.
“Firstly, it’s really about removing the financial reward,” he said.
He called for stronger anti-money laundering and counter-financing compliance, better financial oversight and greater use of financial intelligence to identify and disrupt criminal activity.
Pacific countries also needed to protect critical sectors of their economies from criminal infiltration, he said.
Bovoro warned that criminal groups were increasingly exploiting legitimate businesses and supply chains to move drugs and other illicit commodities across borders.
“A lot of the gatekeepers are now being used in our cross-border business sector to facilitate the use of legitimate supply chains to move drugs across the region,” he said.
He said stronger regional information-sharing was needed to track illicit financial flows and drug trafficking networks.
Bovoro warned that the growing availability of illicit drugs in Pacific Island countries had changed the nature of the threat.
“We are no longer a transit route for drugs to get to other markets
“We are a destination market,” he said.
He said efforts to make it harder for criminal groups to move money through formal banking systems could have unintended consequences if criminal networks responded by selling drugs locally.
“They sell the drugs and leave a percentage behind to be sold locally to recover their financial costs.
“That is what’s driving addiction across the region,” Bovoro said.
Bovoro said the impact of organised crime should not be judged simply by the amount of drugs seized or the number of arrests made.
“The greatest impact of organised crime is not measured in the tonnes that are seized
“It is measured in the lives, the families and the communities that have been impacted and affected,” Bovoro said.
He highlighted the growing public health consequences of drug use and trafficking, including the HIV situation in Fiji.
“In Fiji right now, 1.6 per cent of our population is infected with HIV.
“That is a serious warning about what can happen when organised crime and drug markets become embedded in our communities,” he said.
Bovoro said the Pacific needed to strengthen prevention, rehabilitation and public health interventions, alongside law enforcement.
“It is not only about addiction and arrests.
“It needs to be a whole-of-society and whole-of-community response,” he said.
He called for better data collection on the social impacts of organised crime to support stronger policy responses.
Bovoro said Pacific law enforcement agencies must become more agile as criminal networks innovate and exploit weaknesses across jurisdictions.
“Criminal networks are innovating, so our responses must also be equally agile, intelligent and coordinated,” he said.
He called for stronger maritime surveillance and domain awareness, expanded intelligence-sharing, improved cyber resilience and stronger cybercrime capabilities.
Pacific countries also needed more coordinated operations across jurisdictions to disrupt criminal networks before illicit goods reached communities.
Bovoro said initiatives that combine information from regional agencies could be a major step forward.
He said intelligence from fisheries agencies, regional crime networks and the Pacific Fusion Centre could be brought together to provide operational information for authorities to intercept illicit activity at sea.
“It takes information from different agencies and fuses it for an operational and tactical response so that we can interdict drugs at sea,” he said.
Bovoro said recent seizures demonstrated both the scale of regional cooperation and the continuing challenge.
“Just looking at the 17 tonnes we seized, 31 tonnes of illegal drugs were detected in these waters.
“But there is still a whole heap of these illicit commodities moving through the region,” he said.
He said the figures reinforced the need for better integration of intelligence and maritime surveillance.
Bovoro also identified corruption as a growing threat to Pacific institutions and the regional response to organised crime.
“Corruption is a big insider threat.
“It is something that is really beginning to emerge,” he said.
He said corruption could undermine public institutions and damage public confidence.
“It is impacting on institutions. It is impacting on trust,” Bovoro said.
He called for stronger anti-corruption measures, harmonised legislation and expanded intelligence and information-sharing across the Pacific.
Bovoro said regional unity was critical because criminal networks operated across borders without regard for national jurisdictions.
“No Pacific nation can address this alone.
“Criminal networks operate seamlessly. They don’t know any borders, while we continue to be dictated by the borders that we have created,” he said
He said the Pacific response must therefore be collective and based on stronger cooperation between governments, law enforcement agencies and international partners.
As Pacific leaders meet under the Forum theme of Building Economies, Life, Action and Unity, Bovoro said addressing transnational organised crime was central to all four priorities.
“Organised crime threatens our prosperity. It harms our communities, exploits our vulnerabilities and undermines our institutions.
“A safer Pacific requires not only stronger enforcement, but a united regional effort to protect our economies, save our people and strengthen the resilience of our Blue Pacific for future generations,” he said
Bovoro said the message for Pacific governments was clear that follow the money, protect communities and strengthen regional cooperation.
“Transnational organised crime is a business.
“So holding the money is key,” he said……PACNEWS
PACIFIC – FORUM LEADERS MEET/FISHERIES: PACNEWS PACNEWS 3: Tue 01 Sep 2026
Protect Tuna or lose billions: FFA DG Pakop
By Pita Ligaiula in Koror, Palau
KOROR, 01 SEPTEMBER 2026 (PACNEWS)— Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA) Director-General Noan Pakop has called for stronger regional surveillance and monitoring to protect Pacific fisheries, saying the future value of the region’s tuna resources depends on keeping illegal fishing under control.
Speaking at a Forum Fisheries Agency side event in Palau on “Securing Our Blue Pacific: Integrated Monitoring, Control and Surveillance and the Future of the Regional Fisheries Surveillance Centre,” Pakop said Pacific countries could not meet the growing surveillance challenge alone.
“Our ocean is our life, our economy, and our shared inheritance.
“Our fisheries give daily meaning to that connection. They feed our communities, sustain livelihoods and generate revenue for central government services,” Pakop said.
Pakop said tuna remained one of the Pacific’s most valuable shared resources, generating more than US$500 million annually in access fees and around US$1.2 billion in export earnings for FFA members.
However, he said Pacific Island countries faced continued pressure to retain more of the value generated from their fisheries.
“There is considerable pressure to retain more of its value within the region.
“Fully realising that potential begins with protecting the resource,” Pakop said
Pakop said Pacific Island countries, despite being large ocean states, faced major challenges in monitoring and protecting their vast exclusive economic zones.
“As large ocean states, we are responsible for vast waters.
“No country can meet the surveillance challenge alone,” he said.
He said regional cooperation, combined with national efforts and support from partners, was essential to protecting the Pacific’s fisheries.
“Our strength lies in combining national efforts with regional cooperation and the support of committed partners,” Pakop said.
The Director-General acknowledged the work of fisheries officers, analysts, patrol crews and partners involved in regional monitoring, control and surveillance operations.
“Officers conducting inspections, analysts connecting information, crews patrolling vast distances, and partners contributing expertise and surveillance assets — much of this work happens beyond public view,” he said.
Pakop said the Regional Fisheries Surveillance Centre(RFSC) provided a critical platform for connecting information, people and operations across the Pacific.
“The Regional Fisheries Surveillance Centre connects information, people and operations across our region.
“It helps national authorities detect suspicious activities and target enforcement where it matters most,” he said.
He said the Centre strengthened the ability of individual FFA members to exercise their sovereign rights, including countries with limited patrol and surveillance assets.
But Pakop warned that surveillance systems must continue to evolve as illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing becomes more sophisticated and wider maritime security threats increase.
“As illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing evolves, and wider maritime threats grow, our capabilities must keep pace,” he said.
Pakop said investment in a modern and fit-for-purpose Regional Fisheries Surveillance Centre facility would strengthen the Pacific’s ability to analyse information and coordinate surveillance and enforcement operations.
“A modern, fit-for-purpose Regional Fisheries Surveillance Centre facility will strengthen our ability to analyse information, coordinate surveillance operations and support members.
“It is an investment in the security of our fisheries and the long-term resilience of Pacific economies,” he said.
He said the discussion at the Forum side event was focused on practical questions about how regional cooperation should operate and what it must deliver in the future.
“How does this cooperation work? What must it deliver in the future? And how can we strengthen the partnership that sustains it?” Pakop asked.
Pakop said the Pacific’s experience in managing and protecting its fisheries showed what could be achieved through collective action.
He said maintaining those gains would require continued unity among Pacific Island countries and strong partnerships with those supporting regional surveillance efforts.
“Sustaining that achievement requires positive unity amongst members and strong partnerships,” he said.
Pakop said the Regional Fisheries Surveillance Centre provided practical support for the principles being promoted at the 55th Pacific Islands Forum Leaders’ Meeting under Palau’s theme of Building Economies, Life, Action and Unity.
“The Regional Fisheries Surveillance Centre gives practical structure to both.
“It embodies the theme of this latest meeting — Building Economies, Life, Action and Unity,” he said.
Pakop said the long-term task for the Pacific was to ensure that fisheries resources remained secure and continued to provide benefits for future generations.
He said stronger cooperation and investment in regional surveillance would be central to meeting that goal…PACNEWS
PAC – FORUM LEADERS MEET/FISHERIES: PACNEWS PACNEWS 3: Tue 01 Sep 2026
Solomon Islands calls for funds to build new Pacific Fisheries Surveillance Centre
By Pita Ligaiula in Koror, Palau
KOROR, PALAU, 01 SEPTEMBER 2026 (PACNEWS)— Solomon Islands Foreign Minister and head of delegation Rick Houenipwela has called on development partners and philanthropic organisations to help fund a new Regional Fisheries Surveillance Centre (RFSC), warning that Pacific countries cannot protect their vast ocean and fisheries resources alone.
Speaking at the Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA) side event, “Securing Our Blue Pacific: Integrated Monitoring, Control and Surveillance and the Future of the Regional Fisheries Surveillance Centre,” Houenipwela said the centre needed more space, modern equipment and additional investment in Pacific expertise to meet growing threats.
“The centre needs more space. They need space to expand, equipment to modernise and people to have skills.
“In short, they need the funds to build the new RFSC at the FFA,” Houenipwela said.
He urged development partners and philanthropic organisations to provide financial support as soon as possible for a modern and resilient Regional Fisheries Surveillance Centre at the Forum Fisheries Agency headquarters in Honiara.
“The Regional Fisheries Surveillance Centre is a strategic regional resource, a successful platform for cooperation and a worthy investment in sovereignty, economic security and the sustainable future of our Blue Pacific,” he said.
Houenipwela said Pacific fisheries remained one of the region’s most important strategic resources, supporting food security, employment, government revenue and economic development.
“Fisheries are a strategic regional resource, central to our food security, employment, revenue, culture and prosperity — one of our largest regional gold mines of renewable resources,” he said.
He said the Western and Central Pacific Ocean produced more than half of the world’s tuna catch, with a billion-dollar industry operating largely within Pacific waters.
That placed Pacific Island countries in a position of major economic opportunity but also imposed significant responsibility to ensure the resources were sustainably managed and protected from illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.
“Our exclusive economic zones cover an ocean space the size of Africa and China combined.
“No single Pacific Island country can monitor this area alone. Our strength lies in collective action,” Houenipwela said.
Houenipwela said the Regional Fisheries Surveillance Centre had demonstrated the value of regional cooperation for more than three decades.
Honiara has hosted the FFA Secretariat, including the Regional Fisheries Surveillance Centre, since 1979.
“As the Foreign Minister of Solomon Islands, I am proud that Honiara hosts the FFA Secretariat, including the Regional Fisheries Surveillance Centre,” he said.
The Foreign Minister said the Centre brought together information, technology, expertise and surveillance assets to support FFA members and strengthen the regional maritime picture.
“It brings together information, technology, expertise and surveillance assets to support all 17 FFA members, maintaining a regional maritime picture, identifying risks and coordinating operations so that national efforts become part of a coordinated Pacific response,” he said.
He said estimates showing a considerable decline in illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing since 2016 demonstrated that regional cooperation was delivering results.
“This is proof that regional cooperation delivers real results,” Houenipwela said.
But Houenipwela warned that the challenge was changing, with non-compliance and misreporting by licensed vessels becoming harder to detect through traditional surveillance methods.
“Our task is far from complete.
“The threat is shifting towards misreporting and non-compliance by licensed vessels, harder to detect through traditional surveillance alone,” he said.
He said the Pacific would need stronger electronic reporting and monitoring, satellite capability and data analysis to keep pace with changing risks.
Houenipwela also warned that Pacific countries faced wider maritime threats, including transnational organised crime and drug trafficking.
He said the partnerships and information-sharing systems developed through fisheries surveillance could help build a more integrated understanding of activities across the region.
Houenipwela said a future Regional Fisheries Surveillance Centre would require stronger infrastructure and sustained investment.
“Our future RFSC will require resilient infrastructure, secure and modern technology, sustained access to surveillance assets, stronger analytical capability and continued investment in Pacific people,” he said.
He said this must be backed by political commitment from FFA members and “genuine, enduring partnerships.”
The Foreign Minister acknowledged the contributions made by development and security partners over many years, including support for patrol boats, aerial surveillance, satellite information, training and technology.
But he said future partnerships must strengthen Pacific ownership rather than create competing systems.
“Our partnerships must strengthen Pacific ownership, build long-term regional capability and avoid fragmentation or duplication, leaving behind stronger institutions and a more resilient regional surveillance system,” Houenipwela said.
Houenipwela said regional surveillance did not weaken national sovereignty but instead strengthened the ability of Pacific countries to exercise their rights across vast ocean areas.
“The RFSC brings together national sovereignty and regional solidarity,” he said.
“It demonstrates that cooperation does not diminish our sovereign authority. It strengthens our ability to exercise that authority across the vast ocean spaces entrusted to us,” he said.
He said Pacific governments also had responsibilities to make regional cooperation effective, including maintaining confidence in information-sharing arrangements, strengthening national laws and institutions and investing in fisheries, police, customs, immigration and defence personnel.
“Above all, we must continue to approach the protection of our ocean as a shared responsibility,” he said.
Houenipwela linked the work of the Regional Fisheries Surveillance Centre to Palau’s Forum theme of Building Economies, Life, Action and Unity.
“Life, because our fisheries sustain our people, communities and economies,” he said.
“Action, because commitments must be supported by information sharing, technology, capability and enforcement.”
“Unity, because no country can secure our share of the ocean alone,” he said.
Houenipwela said he had visited the Regional Fisheries Surveillance Centre and had been impressed by its existing capabilities, but said more investment was needed to meet future challenges.
“I was very impressed with its capabilities,” he said. “But the centre needs more space.”
He also highlighted opportunities for greater cooperation with other maritime surveillance facilities in the region.
“I had the opportunity to visit the Maritime Surveillance Centre in Fiji just a couple of weeks ago. I think there is a lot that we can do together in terms of collaboration,” he said.
As the immediate past Chair of the Pacific Islands Forum, Houenipwela called on leaders, regional organisations and partners to support the development of a modern surveillance facility.
“I encourage leaders, members, regional organisations and partners to support the development of a modern, resilient, fit-for-purpose RFSC,” he said.
“The ocean connects us. Its resources sustain us. Its protection is a responsibility we share.”
He said the protection of Pacific fisheries was ultimately an investment in the region’s sovereignty, public revenues, economic security and future generations.
“Let us continue our collective approach with purpose, vigilance and unity, securing our Blue Pacific and building economies that deliver lasting benefits for our people,” Houenipwela said….PACNEWS
PAC – FORUM LEADERS MEET/FISHERIES: PACNEWS PACNEWS 3: Tue 01 Sep 2026
Regional surveillanceis key to protecting Pacific livelihoods: Palau Fisheries Minister
By Pita Ligaiula in Koror, Palau
KOROR, 01 SEPTEMBER 2026 (PACNEWS)—Palau Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and the Environment, Steven Victor says stronger regional monitoring and surveillance is essential to protect Pacific fisheries and the economies that depend on them, warning that individual island countries cannot detect every activity taking place across their vast waters.
Speaking during a panel discussion at the Forum Fisheries Agency side event, Securing Our Blue Pacific: Integrated Monitoring, Control and Surveillance and the Future of the Regional Fisheries Surveillance Centre,” Victor said protecting the ocean was ultimately about protecting livelihoods and prosperity.
“Why do we care so much about securing a vast ocean when many of us don’t really get to see what’s happening within those waters,? Victor asked.
“Is it just about securing our borders, or is it just about ensuring that we know what’s going on?
“I think it is about securing our livelihoods. It is about securing our prosperity,” Victor said.
Victor said fisheries resources were central to the economies of Pacific Island countries, making effective monitoring, control and surveillance a critical responsibility.
“The very resource that we spend so much resources managing and enforcing is the basis for many of our economies,” he said.
But he warned that Pacific countries continued to face losses because of their inability to detect every activity taking place across their exclusive economic zones.
“We know there is a big loss because we cannot detect every activity that is happening in our exclusive economic zones,” Victor said.
For Palau, where 80 percent of its exclusive economic zone is closed to commercial fishing, the management and protection of its marine resources is particularly important.
“Many of you know that 80 percent of our exclusive economic zone is closed from commercial fishing,” Victor said.
Palau holds vessel days for fishing access under the regional vessel day scheme, and Victor said partnerships with other Pacific countries had helped Palau generate revenue from those arrangements.
He thanked Papua New Guinea for its partnership with Palau.
“For the last two years, Palau was able to generate some revenues because of the partnership with Papua New Guinea,” he said.
Victor said Palau had benefited from monitoring, control and surveillance partnerships with several countries and organisations.
He said Australia had provided a major maritime vessel asset and maritime advisers, while the Nippon Foundation had supported vessel capacity-building and resources.
Palau had also received maritime support from Taiwan, while cooperation with the United States, including the U.S Coast Guard, and Japan had strengthened Palau’s ability to monitor activities across its waters.
But Victor said those assets alone were not enough.
“They’re not enough because the threat is evolving.
“They’re not there every day,” he said.
The challenge, Victor said, was to integrate different forms of surveillance rather than relying on a single asset.
Victor said Pacific countries needed to combine on-water, aerial and technology-based surveillance systems.
“An integrated approach” was needed, using “on-water assets such as vessels, aerial assets such as airplanes, drones and technology, satellites,” he said.
The FFA’s regional fisheries monitoring systems also provided information on fishing vessels and other large vessels operating across Pacific waters.
But Victor warned that some vessels deliberately attempted to avoid detection.
“We know there are bad actors out there.
“Some of them turn off their AIS so we don’t know where they are,” he said.
He said vessels deliberately switching off their Automatic Identification System(AIS) signals raised serious concerns.
“This is important because they’re the ones who are doing illicit activities,” Victor said. “That’s the only reason why they turn off their AIS.”
Victor said advanced satellite technology could help Pacific countries identify suspicious activity, but it remained expensive and required specialist skills.
“Satellite technology can be very expensive. It requires upskilling of capacity,” he said.
He said this was where the Regional Fisheries Surveillance Centre could provide critical support to smaller Pacific Island countries.
“The Regional Fisheries Surveillance Centre comes into play by providing some of that capacity,” Victor said.
The Centre, he said, could help countries such as Palau overcome limitations in personnel, technology and financial resources.
“It enables a small island like Palau, with limited capacity and resources, to be able to augment what we’re doing,” he said.
Victor’s remarks reinforced calls made during the Forum side event for greater investment in a modern, integrated and technologically advanced Regional Fisheries Surveillance Centre to strengthen Pacific countries’ ability to protect their fisheries and sovereign waters.
For Palau and other small island states, he said, the issue went beyond borders and surveillance.
“It is about securing our livelihoods,” Victor said. “It is about securing our prosperity,” he said….PACNEWS
PAC – DIPLOMACY/SECURITY: TVNZ PACNEWS 3: Tue 01 Sep 2026
NZ and U.S to build major port on former military base in Cook Islands
KOROR, 01 SEPTEMBER 2026 (TVNZ)—The United States has thrown down the gauntlet in the Pacific revealing it’s to develop a deep sea port on a former military base in the Cook Islands – with New Zealand playing a core role and contributing to the cost.
Alongside Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown and New Zealand’s Foreign Minister, U.S Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau has announced the US$60 million (NZ$101 million) port development on the atoll of Penrhyn – once home to a World War II military base.
The move, announced at the Pacific Islands Forum in Palau, comes as geoplitical tensions rise in the Pacific, with the US and China both exerting their influence.
In an exclusive interview with 1News, Peters called the partnership to build the major port a “landmark decision”, describing it as “a seminal moment that we are back in the game looking after our part of the world”.
He said it’s the first time in years that New Zealand has partnered up with the U.S in such a significant project.
Washington is putting in US$50 million and New Zealand, which will manage the building of the port, US$10 million.
Penrhyn is of strategic interest to the United States because of its location – while it already has military bases on Guam and the Marshall Islands and interests in territory American Samoa, the northern Cook Islands atoll opens access to a different and valuable part of the Pacific.
It is also an international port of entry and its deep lagoon will allow in large vessels.
Peters said once the port is built “there will be so many reasons to use it”, including for fishing, transportation and countering transnational crime and the war on drugs.
But New Zealand is responsible for the defence of the Cook Islands and, according to a recently signed Defence and Security Declaration, NZ’s military has access to the Cooks’ exclusive economic zone to “fulfil defence mandates and uphold shared security commitments”. The port investment could potentially provide military access.
Deputy Secretary Landau says the project underscores the U.S’ strong commitment to its Pacific partners.
“Through transformational infrastructure initiatives such as this we are making the United States and our partners safer, stronger and more prosperous,” he said.
Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown said the port will be a “lifeline” for Penrhyn, “allowing for safer landings, better access to services and strong connections between our Pa Enua and the world”.
He said it complements the Cook Islands’ own priorities to improve transportation and shipping investments.
It is significant the announcement takes place at the Pacific Islands Forum, which has been overshadowed with allegations of foreign interference from China. This new partnership is sure to anger Beijing which had its own designs on the Cook Islands.
Last year the Cook Islands signed a number of secret deals with China, infuriating New Zealand which was not consulted as it is constitutionally required to be on issues of security. But the fractured relationship was healed in April with the shoring up of defence and security, essentially sidelining China.
Last week at a realm country meeting with NZ Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, Cook Islands PM Brown reinforced that, saying: “When the call goes out, the Cook Islands will always respond as we’ve done since World War I when it comes to those sorts of security issues.”
While he doesn’t name China, Peters told 1News the port development is a “lesson I hope for others to take a hard look at what’s going on here as opposed to chequebook diplomacy”.
“What’s going on here is for the advancement of the Cook Islands people. There is a big difference between serious investment in the local interests and chequebook diplomacy for international purposes.”
He said there are those who imagine a benign strategic environment but “we are not living in heaven here we have to face reality”.
“The reality is we have to always be on alert, ever on alert, hopefully never ever having to use your defensive capabilities but that is the purpose of defence so that you never have to use it,” he said.
Deep sea mining also plays a major role in the U.S wanting to invest in Penrhyn.
Deputy Secretary Landau said it “builds on the Critical Minerals Framework the United States and the Cook Islands agreed to earlier this year”.
There’s big business involved and battlelines have already been laid down. That business is polymetallic nodules found at the bottom of the ocean, rich in cobalt, nickel, titanium and other critical minerals used for power grids, weapons systems, smartphones and electric batteries.
It’s estimated the Cook Islands has 6.7 tonnes of these resources in its 2,000,000 sq km exclusive economic zone and, while there’s currently no commercial mining, three companies have been granted exploration licences.
The Cook Islands people are divided over deep sea mining, with many concerned about potential serious environmental impacts while others are excited about potential economic benefits.
The United States and China have both made no secret they want in on the action –given the scramble for resources and metals tied to economic stability and national security.
Both countries have signed agreements for deep sea mining cooperation with the Cook Islands – China in February last year in a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, and a few months later the U.S pledging to advance scientific research and the development of seabed minerals resources.
Penrhyn is well suited to support this and today’s deal catapults the US ahead of the competition in a move that will upset Beijing as it finds itself edged out.
Two weeks ago, Jared Novelly – U.S Ambassador to New Zealand, Samoa, the Cook Islands and Niue – visited Rarotonga. He told media that seabed exploration in the Cook Islands was at the top of his priority list.
His visit coincided with the return of NOAA (US government agency the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) ship Okeanos Explorer, which had completed a deep sea and mapping expedition.
At a welcome ceremony at Rarotonga’s Avatiu Wharf, Prime Minister Brown – who has described the precious metals as “golden apples” – was clear the economic benefits for the country were worth pursuing.
“Ships are made for the sea and in some ways those sentiments also apply to a people in the nation,” he said. “We can choose to stay safe and not venture out but that is not us, we come from a line of voyagers and navigators.”
Novelly said the NOAA expedition had made one thing clear: “When we combine the Cook Islands’ proud tradition of navigation with modern American scientific tools, we can go farther and deeper together.”
Cook Islanders have, until now, been unaware of a major strategic port being planned for their country or what this means on a domestic, economic and even geopolitical landscape. They are about to find out…..PACNEWS
PNG – INDEPENCE STRUGGLE: THE NATIONAL PACNEWS 3: Tue 01 Sep 2026
PNG MPs need ‘more time’ to debate on referendum
PORT MORESBY, 01 SEPTEMBER 2026 (THE NATIONAL) —Papua New Guinea Opposition leader James Nomane says more time should be given to Members of Parliament (MPs) to deliberate on the writ for the 2019 Bougainville referendum, the joint consultation report and the Melanesian framework.
Nomane said this would ensure that MPs properly understood the issues before making a decision on the future of Bougainville.
He suggested to Parliament that more awareness should be made among members before the sitting this week.
“For all members of Parliament, this will be the most consequential question that we will have to decide upon.
“It is incumbent on the executive Government and all leaders to understand the issues that have been placed before us, the gravity of the situation and the desires of the people of Bougainville through a 97.7 referendum result.
“We all have to take the time from now until the next Parliament sitting to not only glaze through it, flip through the pages but to apply pensive contemplation.
“This requires us to carefully go through the material before us, to understand the issues at hand, to really look at the desires that the people of Bougainville expressed when they voted for independence, and then to determine the best way forward for our country,” he said.
Nomane also questioned Parliament on the implications of the decision yet to be made.
“What would be the implications if Government grants independence to Bougainville and what would be the implications if an agreement isn’t reached?” he said.
Nomane also suggested that all members should attend the next sitting to debate on whether it accepts the results of the Bougainville referendum.
He said for an issue that was consequential to the country, members should all be present in Parliament.
“This issue has created a lot of anxiety, ambiguity and confusion.
“That is why many members of Parliament have not been informed and Parliament is not full,” he said…PACNEWS
FIJI – HEALTH: FIJI SUN PACNEWS 3: Tue 01 Sep 2026
Fiji’s HIV treatment gap widens as diagnoses rise
SUVA, 01 SEPTEMBER 2026 (FIJI SUN)—Fiji is diagnosing people with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) faster than it is keeping them on treatment.
National HIV Outbreak and Cluster Response Taskforce chair Dr Jason Mitchell said the proportion of diagnosed people receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART) had fallen from more than 98 per cent before 2021 to about 56 per cent.
He said the gap between diagnosis and viral suppression was widening. “We are now finding people faster than we are able to keep them in care,” he said.
The taskforce measures the effectiveness of its efforts against the treatment cascade.
For every person diagnosed the taskforce tracks four things: Whether they are aware of their HIV diagnosis, whether they are started on treatment quickly, whether they are still in care at 12 months and, ultimately, whether their virus is suppressed.
“That last measure, viral suppression, is the one that matters most because a person who is virally suppressed stays well and cannot pass the virus on to someone else,” Dr Mitchell said
However, viral suppression cannot yet be reliably measured nationwide.
“Our viral-load testing and data systems are still being built out,” he said.
“Fixing that through viral-load scale-up and unique patient identifiers is a priority in the Outbreak Response Plan, because you cannot manage what you cannot measure.”
The taskforce is also addressing factors contributing to people defaulting on ART after being diagnosed and this included systemic supply bottlenecks and fear of disclosure.
To ensure supply continuity, the taskforce is moving to multi-month dispensing, buffer stocks and dispensing closer to home through primary care.
This means people do not have to choose between a day’s wages and collecting their next refill.
“Against fear of disclosure, we are shifting to community and peer-led models, differentiated services and plain public messaging that undetectable equals untransmittable, so that a diagnosis feels survivable rather than shameful,” Dr Mitchell said.
The Ministry of Health and Medical Services, through the unit, had established its own procurement and supply chain, including its own warehouse….PACNEWS
PNG – POLITICS: THE NATIONAL PACNEWS 3: Tue 01 Sep 2026
PNG PM Marape says leadership reset may mean his exit
PORT MORESBY, 01 SEPTEMBER 2026 (THE NATIONAL) —Papua New Guinea Minister James Marape says any reset has to begin with leadership and if he is a stumbling block for the people of this nation, he asked God to remove him from the office.
“Today I want to say to the God of Heaven who is listening in, if I stand in the way of prosperity for this people please remove me from this office,” he said.
“I repeat again, please remove me from this office.”
Marape said this when addressing a National Prayer and Repentance Day event last Wednesday at the Sir John Guise Stadium in Port Moresby.
“I prayed this prayer last year and I pray this same prayer again,” he said.
“If my presence in leadership stands in the prosperity of this nation, come next year, please remove me from this office.
“It is the prayer that all of us must prayer.
“It is not I but the country.
“It is not I but others wherever we are especially those of us holding elected and appointed offices.
“Our jobs is the call for service of others.
“We cannot ask our citizens to live honestly if leaders do not demonstrate honesty.
“We cannot ask our young people to respect the laws if leaders disrespect the laws.
“We cannot ask our people to unite if we leaders create division.
“As leaders we must re-examine ourselves whether we have served faithful, managed public resources responsibly and placed people’s interest above our own.
“The buck stops with leadership and as I speak today, I want to focus my speech directly to my cluster of Papua New Guineans, elected and appointed leaders in public service that our time is short, he said.
“No one will displace the churches in this country as their roles remain.
“Our government has started assisting churches and I am 100 percent certain any government that calls into office in the future will still respect the church.”
Marape said the reset was all about a reset in character.
“Without resetting character than our resets are in vain,” he said.
“If all the people we are serving are pledging reset today in the church of God that it is us too that have to choose God to come first,” he said…PACNEWS
PACNEWS BIZ
FIJI – SOCIAL PROTECTION: ISLANDS BUSINESS PACNEWS BIZ: Tue 01 Sep 2026
Fiji ensures national development is age inclusive
SUVA, 01 SEPTEMBER 2026 (ISLANDS BUSINESS)—Elders are foundations of the present and remain important for the future.
Fiji’s Minister for Women, Children, and Social Protection, Sashi Kiran, highlighted this during the National Validation Workshop on Fiji’s Voluntary National Survey for the Fifth Asia-Pacific Review and Appraisal of the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing.
Kiran said the national report must be evidence-based and reflect the lived experiences of older persons across Fiji, emphasising the growing importance of ensuring older persons remain included, protected, and supported in national development.
While the workshop is underway, existing government support for older persons includes the Social Pension Scheme, transport assistance, access to free general practitioner services, and investment in aged-care facilities.
Work is also progressing on the proposed Older Persons Act to strengthen protection against abuse, neglect, and exploitation.
She stressed that ageing should not be viewed only through the lens of vulnerability, recognising the continued contribution older Fijians make through employment, caregiving, community leadership, volunteering, mentoring, and the sharing of cultural knowledge.
Meanwhile, representatives from the Government, the National Council for Older Persons, HART Homes, non-governmental organisations, and civil society will review and strengthen Fiji’s national survey ahead of its submission for the regional review in 2027 during the workshop.
The process will consider the different experiences of older people in urban, rural, maritime, and island communities, including older women, persons with disabilities, caregivers, and those who have worked mainly in the informal sector.
Fiji’s Draft National Ageing Policy 2026–2035 was developed following consultations with more than 2000 people across 13 provinces and 37 districts.
The policy is built across six core pillars: social protection and financial security, health and aged care, transport and accessibility, digital inclusion, climate-resilient community infrastructure, and legal protection.
The two-day workshop will help finalise Fiji’s national survey and support further development of the National Ageing Policy 2026–2035 and its implementation framework.
There are currently more than 90,000 people aged 60 years and over in Fiji, representing more than one in every 10 Fijians. …PACNEWS
FIJI – AIRLINE: FIJI SUN PACNEWS BIZ: Tue 01 Sep 2026
Fiji Airways marks 75 years in the skies
NADI, 01 SEPTEMBER 2026 (FIJI SUN) —From a seven-seat aircraft flying between Nausori and Drasa to a modern international carrier connecting Fiji to more than 900 destinations worldwide, Fiji Airways today marks 75 years of operations.
The national airline’s first commercial flight took off on September 1, 1951, when a seven-seat de Havilland Dragon Rapide flew from Nausori to Drasa, near Lautoka.
Seventy-five years later, the Fiji Airways Group operates a fleet of 23 aircraft, including the Airbus A350, and directly connects Fiji to 37 destinations across 14 countries.
Through its full membership of the oneworld alliance, the airline connects passengers to more than 900 destinations worldwide.
Fiji Airways also carries approximately 70 per cent of visitors who fly to Fiji and employs more than 2,000 people across the Group.
Managing director and chief executive officer Paul Scurrah said the anniversary recognised the generations of employees, passengers and partners who had contributed to the airline’s growth.
“From a seven-seat aircraft flying between two small airstrips to a global oneworld carrier flying to 900-plus destinations, we’re still doing what we set out to do in 1951, connecting Fiji to the people and places that matter most.
“That’s only possible because of the thousands of Fijians who have worn this uniform and the millions of customers who’ve trusted us with their journeys.
“Today we celebrate them, our people, our customers, our partners, and everyone who has helped make Fiji Airways what it is today. We are proud of how far we have come and excited about where we are going next,” he said.
From Fiji Airways to Air Pacific and back
Founded by aviation pioneer Harold Gatty, Fiji Airways began commercial operations on September 1, 1951.
In 1970, the year Fiji gained independence, it was renamed Air Pacific as its regional operations expanded.
The Air Pacific name remained for more than four decades before the airline returned to its original Fiji Airways name in 2013.
The change introduced a new aircraft livery inspired by traditional Fijian masi and designed by Fijian artist Makereta Matemosi.
Since 2017, Fiji Airways has also been the title sponsor of the Fiji Rugby Union’s Fijian 7s and Fijiana 7s teams.
Anniversary sale
To mark its 75th anniversary, Fiji Airways has launched an eight-day sale from September 1 to 8 across markets including Australia, New Zealand, the United States, Canada, Asia, Fiji, Samoa and Tonga.
The first three days will feature what the airline describes as its sharpest fares, followed by five days of special anniversary fares.
Promotional fares are available for travel from 01 September 2026, to 15 August 2027, with travel periods varying by market.
Seats are limited and fares apply to selected flights and dates….PACNEWS
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The views expressed in PACNEWS are those of agencies contributing articles and do not necessarily those of PINA and/or PACNEWS
It is now almost certain the world will warm past 1.5C. But ‘net-negative’ emissions are still possible
By Wesley Morgan
SYDNEY/KOROR, 01 SEPTEMBER 2026 (THE GUARDIAN)—Anthony Albanese is in Palau this week for the annual Pacific Islands Forum and regional security is expected to top the agenda.
China is testing nuclear-capable missiles in the Pacific, prompting talk of a new regional agreement. The United States-Iran war has exposed a reliance on costly fossil fuels that is undermining Pacific economies.
And as the world comes perilously close to the Paris agreement’s 1.5C temperature goal, a record-breaking El Niño looms in the Pacific Ocean.
But the forum will be missing key leaders – Solomon Islands’ prime minister, Matthew Wale, made a shock departure, flying out of Palau just hours after arriving, in order to deal with a looming leadership challenge back home.
And the Kiribati president, Taneti Maamau, the Samoan prime minister, Laʻauli Leuatea Schmidt, and Vanuatu’s prime minister, Jotham Napat, are also not attending. It is unclear if Fiji’s prime minister, Sitiveni Rabuka, will be present.
Pacific nations will want Albanese to address the world’s key security threat – climate change. As president of negotiations of the Cop31 climate talks in November, Australia can work with the Pacific to keep 1.5C within reach and secure much-needed finance for island nations at the climate frontline.
China’s missile test
Since the second world war, the United States has maintained fortified bases in the Pacific and an unrivalled deep-water navy (the US also regularly tests long-range missiles in the region). However, China’s investment in military capabilities has challenged the status quo.
In July, China launched a nuclear-capable test missile that flew over multiple Pacific nations and hit waters close to Tuvalu’s exclusive economic zone.
This sparked calls for a new regional security agreement: Wale said China’s missile test was “not the act of a friend”.
Ironically, it was Solomon Islands that signed a security deal with China in 2022. This changed the security dynamics of a region long aligned with the US and Australia (notwithstanding concerns about nuclear testing and decolonisation).
Since then, Canberra has pursued a web of bilateral deals to shore up Australia’s place as Pacific security partner – first with Tuvalu (2023), then Naoero (formerly Nauru) (2024), Papua New Guinea (2025) and Vanuatu (2026). Discussions are ongoing with Tonga and Solomon Islands. The most recent agreement, an Ocean of Peace Alliance signed with Fiji in July, is a mutual defence pact that is open to other Pacific nations to join.
Canberra was already pursuing a treaty allowing for coordinated regional responses to disasters and other crises. China’s missile test may have opened the door for something more.
Renewables the solution to fuel crisis
The Middle East conflict has pushed the Pacific toward an energy crisis. About 80 percent of the region’s energy relies on imported oil products, much of which would normally transit the strait of Hormuz. Even before the U.S-Iran war, Pacific Island countries spent an eye-watering percentage of GDP (between 10% and 25 percent) buying fossil fuels to run power plants, generators, boats and vehicles. This compares with a regional average of 8 percent spent on education and 6 percent on health.
The Middle East conflict has only added to the bill. According to a new report, Fiji’s annual refined fuel import costs could rise by US$375m (AUD$520m) if high oil prices persist. This is more than Fiji’s entire healthcare budget.
Renewable energy offers a clear solution. Replacing diesel generators with grid-scale solar and battery storage could save Pacific countries about US$700m (A$520m) each year in avoided fuel costs.
The incoming chair of the Pacific Islands Forum, the Palau president, Surangel Whipps Jr, wants the region to become the first in the world 100 percent powered by renewables. He says investment of US$120m (AUD$ 166m) is needed for Palau to add 60MW of solar and battery storage, which would enable 90 percent of its power needs to be met by renewables.
The greatest Pacific threat
When climate change was first debated at the UN Security Council in 2007, Pacific countries argued the impacts of a warming planet were “no less serious than those faced by nations and peoples threatened by guns and bombs”.
Since then, Pacific Islands Forum leaders have explicitly reaffirmed climate change is “the single greatest threat” to Pacific security.
In 2025, Earth was 1.44C warmer than the long-term average. Pacific countries are reeling from stronger cyclones, dying reefs and ocean acidification. Without urgent action to shift away from coal, oil and gas impacts will get much worse. Just this week, the world’s oceans are the warmest on record, fuelled by climate change and a rapidly intensifying El Niño event.
It is now almost certain the world will warm past 1.5C. Yet it remains possible, following a temporary “overshoot”, that countries can limit warming to 1.5C by the end of the century. This will require deep and immediate emissions reductions and some carbon dioxide removal to achieve “net-negative” emissions.
Limiting global warming to 1.5C is a line in the sand for low-lying Pacific nations – “1.5 to stay alive” is the slogan. Pacific negotiators helped secure this temperature goal in the 2015 Paris agreement.
Pacific nations expect Australia to reaffirm global commitment to 1.5C. Australia is helping Fiji and Tuvalu host a pre-Cop summit in October that will remind world leaders the survival of island nations is at stake.
Pacific countries will also seek new finance for a Pacific-owned climate fund to invest in community-scale adaptation projects.
Some argue collaboration with the Pacific in the lead-up to Cop31 is an expensive exercise. But climate action is crucial to Australian strategy in the region. Investing in renewables and adaptation in the Pacific is an investment in shared security, even as geopolitical competition sharpens between China and the U.S….PACNEWS
Wesley Morgan is a research associate at the Institute for Climate Risk and Response, UNSW.
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The views expressed in PACNEWS are those of agencies contributing articles and do not necessarily those of PINA and/or PACNEWS
Pacific leaders push for climate survival as coalition splits on Paris deal
By Sam Sachdeva
KOROR, 01 SEPTEMBER 2026 (NEWSROOM)—As delegations and observers stream into Palau for this year’s Pacific Islands Forum, they receive a stamp in their passport offering them entry into the country – but only if they offer something in return.
“Children of Palau, I take this pledge, as your guest, to preserve and protect your beautiful and unique island home,” the Palau Pledge states, part of a 2017 eco-initiative that the Micronesian nation followed up three years later with a ban on sunscreen containing reef-toxic chemicals.
Given that desire to safeguard future generations, it is hardly a surprise that climate change – always at the top of the agenda in the Pacific – is an even more pronounced topic of conversation in this year’s proceedings.
Palau president Surangel Whipps Jr is among those pushing for the region to become entirely powered by renewable energy, and his speech as the new forum chair at Monday’s opening ceremony emphasised the need to tackle global warming.
“A fraction of a degree is not a decimal point to us: it is a shoreline, a freshwater lens, a coral reef, a crop, and a home. The Pacific must continue to carry one clear message to the world: keep 1.5 degrees within reach.”
That target forms a critical part of the global Paris climate deal signed in 2016, with Pacific nations among those who advocated at the time for a suitably ambitious deal.
Yet as New Zealand’s election draws near, the Paris deal has been the subject of attacks from some members of the coalition Government. Act leader David Seymour has suggested we should renegotiate the accord or withdraw, while NZ First leader (and Foreign Minister) Winston Peters has pledged to “pull out of the failing Paris Agreement that is senselessly hamstringing our economy”.
It is a message that seems unlikely to resonate with the Pacific representatives holding meetings with Peters during his time in Palau, although the minister was unrepentant when asked by Newsroom about the significance of the Paris deal and the 1.5 degree target on Monday.
“Well, the problem is that whilst they’ve got that and that’s a serious focus for them, the other problem is that … four countries – namely China, Russia, the United States, and India – are responsible for 60 percent plus [of emissions].
“This is our problem we’ve got here – how can we possibly actually honour the Paris accord in any meaningful way while that is going on? It’s very difficult to say it here because it doesn’t suit the conversation, but we’ll have to face reality about what the sign-up of Paris was, particularly since New Zealand’s position was secured in the context that food supply would be exempt.”
Speaking to RNZ’s Morning Report the same day, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon (who replaces Peters in Palau on Wednesday) indicated remaining in the Paris climate deal would be a non-negotiable for the National Party in any post-election negotiations, to the evident ire of the NZ First leader: “The only comment you can make about that is that it’s a demonstration that experience does matter in politics,” Peters retorted.
Shiva Gounden, the head of Greenpeace Australia’s Pacific programme, tells Newsroom it is crucial for Pacific leaders to keep up their levels of climate ambition at this year’s forum – including a commitment to the 1.5 degree target in the Paris deal.
“If you go beyond this, this means more extreme floods, more extreme weather patterns – but for Pacific people, if you make it literal, you lose your culture. You’ve got people who lose their homes because they have to move to another country, that means their children have to speak a different language … generations and generations of memories and wisdom and their spiritual footprint goes missing.
“I always say it’s not just a number threshold anymore – it’s a survival threshold for the Pacific.”
While it is the world’s largest emitters who have pushed the globe into a climate crisis, Gounden says that depth of connection to the Pacific ecosystem places a separate burden on New Zealand (among others in the region) to strive for their own reductions.
Peters and New Zealand have so far escaped any public criticism for the Government’s mixed messages on the Paris deal, but that doesn’t mean the country has got away entirely unscathed when it comes to its climate policy.
On the sidelines of the forum, the Pacific Islands Students Fighting Climate Change hosted an event to look back on the International Court of Justice’s 2025 advisory opinion that states had a legal obligation to prevent climate harm.
Describing the legal opinion as “a real tool that we can and must use in different ways”, Marshall Islands climate envoy Tina Stege warned that partnership and policy efforts would still be important given the ability of countries to find a way out of litigation – with New Zealand a somewhat unwilling poster child after the Government changed the law last monthvto prevent findings of liability in tort for climate change damage.
“We’ve seen recently, even in one of our own good neighbours, New Zealand, that there can be efforts to amend laws that then would prevent climate litigation to move forward,” Stege said.
The coalition Government has argued the move was necessary to give businesses certainty, with Parliament rather than the courts best placed to devise climate policy – an argument that the Marshalls envoy politely rebutted.
“One of the ways that citizens have recourse to protection is through the courts. I’m not speaking about climate action, I’m speaking generally: if you curtail citizens’ ability to protect themselves, then I think that doesn’t serve your citizens.”
How well the Pacific’s inhabitants are served by this week’s proceedings remains to be seen, with Whipps and others eager to see leaders produce a suitably ambitious statement ahead of the annual COP climate summit in November.
But if New Zealand is not at the top of the list of emitters facing heat in the region, it is still being closely watched……PACNEWS
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The views expressed in PACNEWS are those of agencies contributing articles and do not necessarily those of PINA and/or PACNEWS
Growing Climate Resilience in Kiribati and Vanuatu
TARAWA/KIRIBATI, 01 SEPTEMBER 2026 (THE BORGEN PROJECT) —Over the past decade, a changing climate has increasingly affected the Pacific island nations of Kiribati and Vanuatu. In response, local communities and aid organisations are working to build resilience.
This effort has drawn support from global organisations such as the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), along with government agencies from South Korea and the European Union. Together, they have taken a range of steps to strengthen climate resilience in Kiribati and Vanuatu.
Changing Climate in Kiribati and Vanuatu
Small, developing island nations like these contribute little to global emissions. According to the IFRC, Kiribati and Vanuatu together produce just 0.02 percent of global emissions, yet they face some of the most severe consequences of a warming climate. In 2025, Vanuatu’s gross domestic product was US$1.35 billion, while Kiribati’s was US$350 million. None of Kiribati’s 33 islands rise more than four meters (about 13 feet) above sea level at their highest points, leaving them vulnerable to flooding and saltwater intrusion. Rising seas also make drought more common.
These nations rely heavily on the sea for food and income, particularly fishing. When ocean temperatures rise, however, fisheries suffer, as has been the case in Vanuatu. Increasingly severe storms have also damaged food supplies. In 2015, Cyclone Pam destroyed much of Vanuatu’s food crop — an estimated 96 percent. Many families in these nations live in extreme poverty and cannot afford enough food. As food scarcity worsens, so does malnutrition among the most vulnerable. Damage to infrastructure also reduces tourism, cutting island-wide income and further straining the economy.
With a population of around 135,000, Kiribati recorded about 4,000 displacements from natural disasters across 2023 and 2024, according to the nation’s 2024 household income and expenditure survey. More than a quarter of the population reported either damage to their homes or a sharp drop in agricultural output. These figures underscore the urgency of climate resilience efforts in Kiribati and Vanuatu.
Recent Climate Resilience in Kiribati
In 2021, the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), part of the Government of the Republic of Korea, provided $6 million to the WHO and the Kiribati Ministry of Health and Medical Services to drive the Te Mamauri project.
Te Mamauri aimed to improve conditions at health centres, schools and other public buildings on Marakei, one of Kiribati’s outer islands. Because the outer islands are especially exposed to natural disasters, their health care systems have suffered. Over four years, the WHO installed solar lamps at health centres to provide reliable lighting, as many had lacked a sufficient power supply.
Environmental health teams also inspected water systems at schools and other community sites, repairing faulty pipes to improve Marakei’s water access during droughts. By the project’s close in 2025, the WHO reported that 800 health workers benefited directly, with further effects reaching across the outer islands.
Coming Together
In 2025, the IFRC joined the Vanuatu and Kiribati Red Cross Societies to launch a locally led climate resilience programme funded by DG Clima, the European Union’s climate action department. The programme emphasises local participation and community knowledge. Vanuatu Red Cross Secretary-General Dickinson Tevi said a risk-assessment process would guide the partners toward “risk-informed solutions to the challenges” their communities face.
The programme follows a risk-informed, ecosystem-based approach intended to remain effective and adaptable across both nations. Community members and volunteers help identify local risks and set priorities, including island-council climate policies, integrated climate-and-health assessments, and broader efforts to build safety and resilience across the Pacific.
The IFRC reports that the approach has encouraged collaboration both between the two nations and among local residents, supporting their capacity to act and, in turn, advancing poverty reduction. The IFRC has also said it plans to expand the programme to Belize and Guyana….PACNEWS
