In this bulletin:
1. PACIFIC — Fiji PM Rabuka calls for “Constructive Pacific Journalism” while defending media freedom
2. PACIFIC — Pacific must have a strong voice in shaping its own destiny: Fiji PM Rabuka
3. PACIFIC — PINA honours PM Rabuka for repeal of Fiji’s media law
4. PACIFIC — Fiji PM Rabuka launches Pacific Centre for Communications and Journalism
5. PACIFIC — FNU, FMA launch regional media training centre
6. UN— “This is no time to backtrack” as climate action gap widens: UN Climate chief Stiell
7. PACIFIC — Tuvalu climate minister says Pacific aid means little as Australia backs fossil fuels expansion
8. PACNEWS BIZ — Growth in developing Asia and Pacific to slow but remain resilient
9. PACNEWS BIZ — External pressures temper FIJI’s GROWTH outlook—ADB
10. PACNEWS IN FOCUS — How El Niño offers a test of whether the world can adapt to a changing climate
11. PACNEWS DIGEST — The UN funding crisis: Implications for the Pacific
12. PACNEWS DIGEST — ‘Ask us first’: Children demand a voice on AI’s future
13. PACNEWS DIGEST — UN panel calls for stronger safeguards as AI agents advance
PAC – PACIFIC MEDIA SUMMIT: PACNEWS PACNEWS 3: Wed 23 Sep 2026
Fiji PM Rabuka calls for “Constructive Pacific Journalism” while defending media freedom
By Pita Ligaiula in Savusavu
SAVUSAVU, 23 SEPTEMBER 2026 (PACNEWS)—Fiji Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka has called for what he described as “Constructive Pacific Journalism”, urging media organisations to remain independent and fearless while helping connect Pacific communities and strengthen democracy.
Speaking at the opening of the 8th Pacific Media Summit in Savusavu, Rabuka said constructive journalism should not mean less scrutiny of governments or public institutions.
“It does not mean less independent journalism.
“It means journalism that remains independent, fearless and questioning, while also recognising its ability to connect our people and strengthen our region,” Rabuka said.
Rabuka said the media, as the Fourth Estate, had a responsibility to ask difficult questions, investigate and hold institutions accountable.
“You must ask difficult questions. You must investigate. You must hold institutions to account and where the evidence demands it, you must expose corruption, abuse of power and failures in public administration.
“That is not a threat to democracy. It is part of democracy,” he said.
Rabuka highlighted the repeal of Fiji’s Media Industry Development Act as one of his Government’s early decisions, saying it was based on the principle that democracy requires a free media.
“We did so because we believe a strong democracy requires a media that is free to question, investigate, challenge and inform,” he said.
He also highlighted the expansion of the Public Service Broadcasting Grant to a wider range of media organisations.
Rabuka said the aim was to support content that educates and informs the public while ensuring important information reaches Fijians, particularly those in remote, rural and maritime communities.
“A pluralistic, financially resilient and independent media sector is important to a healthy democracy,” he said.
Rabuka said media freedom must be matched by professional responsibility, particularly as technology allows information to spread rapidly.
“A headline can reach thousands of people before the facts have been checked. A false claim can spread before the truth has left the newsroom,” he said.
He said artificial intelligence, synthetic content and digital manipulation were creating new challenges for journalists and the public.
“This is why professional standards matter more than ever,” Rabuka said.
He referred to a caution he had given the media in 1993 about exercising care when reporting events or comments that could inflame social tensions or incite conflict.
“This is not a call for silence. It is a call for responsible journalism,” he said.
Rabuka said digital innovation should improve public understanding and regional cooperation rather than fuel misinformation, disinformation and sensationalism.
He called for greater media literacy among citizens and urged newsrooms to adapt to new technologies while protecting professional standards.
“We need citizens who can question what they see and hear. We need journalists who can verify information and we need newsrooms that can adapt to new technologies while protecting professional standards,” he said
Rabuka also highlighted the Government’s SAUTU Counter-Disinformation Framework, launched at the inaugural Government Communications Conference in March.
He said the framework was designed to strengthen public trust, safeguard democratic institutions and improve Fiji’s capacity to identify and respond to false, misleading and deliberately manipulative information.
He acknowledged British Government support for Fiji’s work on government communication and information resilience, but said governments could not build resilient information environments alone.
“We need professional journalists. We need strong newsrooms. We need media-literate citizens and increasingly, we need cooperation across the Blue Pacific,” Rabuka said.
Rabuka said the summit theme, “Reaching the Remote: Media and Digital Innovation for a Connected Blue Pacific,” highlighted the information challenges faced by communities far from Pacific capitals and major centres.
He said access to information, education, services and economic opportunities remained affected by distance.
“This is why connectivity is more than a technological issue. It is a development issue. It is an inclusion issue and it is a resilience issue,” he said.
Rabuka said reliable information could save lives during cyclones, floods and other disasters, while journalism could bring the concerns of isolated communities into national and regional discussions.
“Reaching the remote means reaching the people,” he said.
Rabuka also called for Pacific media to strengthen the region’s voice internationally by reporting on issues affecting Pacific communities.
He higlighted climate change, oceans, fisheries, natural resources, poverty, inequality, economic pressures and transnational crime as issues requiring stronger Pacific reporting.
“These are not simply statistics. They are stories about people, families, communities and livelihoods,” he said.
“We need you to reach our distant coastlines. We need you to document what is happening to our oceans, our villages and our communities and we need you to take those Pacific stories beyond our shores.”
Rabuka said Pacific countries needed to tell their own stories rather than have the region defined by others.We must tell our own stories. The Pacific should not only be spoken about. The Pacific must also speak for itself,” he said
He then officially declared the 8th Pacific Media Summit open……PACNEWS
PAC – PACIFIC MEDIA SUMMIT: PACNEWS PACNEWS 3: Wed 23 Sep 2026
Pacific must have a strong voice in shaping its own destiny: Fiji PM Rabuka
By Pita Ligaiula in Savusavu
SAVUSAVU, 23 SEPTEMBER 2026 (PACNEWS)— Fiji Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka has called on Pacific media to help strengthen the region’s vision of an Ocean of Peace by ensuring communities, particularly those in remote islands, are heard and connected.
Opening the 8th Pacific Media Summit in Savusavu on Wednesday, Rabuka said the Ocean of Peace was a shared vision for a secure, resilient, peaceful and united Blue Pacific.
“I first introduced the concept of an Ocean of Peace in December 2022. Following regional consultation, Pacific Leaders endorsed the Ocean of Peace Declaration in Honiara in September 2025.
“At its heart is a simple principle – the Pacific must have a strong voice in shaping its own destiny,” Rabuka said.
He said the vision was based on sovereignty, peaceful resolution of conflict, regional unity, environmental security and human security.
Rabuka said these principles were closely linked to the summit theme, “Reaching the Remote: Media and Digital Innovation for a Connected Blue Pacific.”
He said digital innovation was helping overcome the geographic challenges facing Pacific island countries separated by vast stretches of ocean.
“It allows information to travel faster. It allows communities to connect. And it allows voices from our most remote islands to reach national, regional and global audiences,” Rabuka said.
Rabuka said a connected Pacific must ensure that people in remote communities were not excluded from public debate and decisions affecting their lives.
“A truly connected Blue Pacific must ensure that no community is left unheard and no citizen is left voiceless in decisions that affect their future,” he said.
Rabuka said Pacific media had a direct role in building the Ocean of Peace and should not see itself simply as an observer of regional developments.
“The Pacific media is not simply an observer of the Ocean of Peace. You are part of building it,” he said.
He said independent journalism, digital innovation and professional integrity could help create a Pacific that was better informed, connected and resilient.
“Through independent journalism, digital innovation and professional integrity, you can help build a Pacific that is better informed, better connected and more resilient,” Rabuka said.
Rabuka challenged journalists and media organisations attending the summit to examine how technology could strengthen Pacific journalism.
“As you deliberate over the coming days, I encourage you to challenge yourselves, share your experiences and explore how technology can strengthen Pacific journalism,” he said.
Rabuka also welcomed delegates to Savusavu, describing it as his hometown and encouraging participants to experience the area during the summit.
“You may discover, as I did a long time ago, that it is a difficult place not to love,” he said.
Rabuka said the discussions at the summit should contribute to ensuring communities across the Pacific, regardless of how remote they were, remained part of the region’s future.
“May your discussions help ensure that every corner of our Blue Pacific — no matter how remote — can be heard, connected and included,” Rabuka said. ……PACNEWS
PAC – PACIFIC MEDIA SUMMIT: PACNEWS PACNEWS 3: Wed 23 Sep 2026
PINA honours PM Rabuka for repeal of Fiji’s media law
By Pita Ligaiula in Savusavu
SUVA, 23 SEPTEMBER 2026 (PACNEWS)— The Pacific Islands News Association (PINA) has recognised Fiji Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka for the repeal of the Media Industry Development Act 2010, describing the move as a defining moment for press freedom in Fiji.
The recognition was presented to Rabuka during the Pacific Media Summit in Fiji, with PINA acknowledging the repeal in April 2023 as an important reform for the media sector.
PINA President Kalafi Moala said the repeal marked a significant step in restoring press freedom and recognised the role of government in protecting media freedom.
“The Pacific Islands News Association recognises the repeal of the Media Industry Development Act of 2010 in April 2023,”
“It is a defining moment in the restoration of press freedom in Fiji,” Kalafi said.
PINA said the recognition was made in keeping with the principles of a free press, which must both acknowledge reforms that protect media freedom and hold leaders to account when those freedoms are threatened.
“This recognition is offered in the spirit in which a free press operates, acknowledging when leaders act to protect their freedom as readily as it holds them to account when it is threatened,” Kalafi said.
It also called for the reform to remain in place beyond the current government.
“May the standard set by this reform outlast any government that upholds it,” he said
PINA President Kalafi Moala and SIBC CEO Johnson Honimae then presented an award to Rabuka in recognition of the repeal.
The association said the presentation marked a milestone for journalism in Fiji and the wider Pacific region.
The Media Industry Development Act was repealed by the Fiji Parliament in April 2023, removing provisions that had governed the media industry under the previous legal framework.
The recognition comes as journalists, media organisations and regional stakeholders gather in Fiji for the Pacific Media Summit, which is examining the challenges facing journalism, including press freedom, safety, artificial intelligence and the changing media environment…..PACNEWS
PAC – PACIFIC MEDIA SUMMIT: PACNEWS PACNEWS 3: Wed 23 Sep 2026
Fiji PM Rabuka launches Pacific Centre for Communications and Journalism
By Pita Ligaiula in Savusavu
SAVUSAVU, 23 SEPTEMBER 2026 (PACNEWS)— Fiji Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka has formally launched the Pacific Centre for Communications and Journalism, calling for stronger cooperation between governments, media, academia, civil society and development partners to strengthen journalism across the region.
The centre, established through a partnership between Fiji National University (FNU) and the Fijian Media Association (FMA), will support professional training, research, regional cooperation and the development of the next generation of Pacific media leaders.
Speaking at the opening of the 8th Pacific Media Summit in Savusavu, Rabuka said no single institution could address the challenges facing the Pacific media sector alone.
“No Government, media organisation or institution can do this alone. We need Government. We need the media. We need civil society. We need academia. We need development partners and we need stronger regional media networks,” Rabuka said.
He said cooperation between the Government and media must be based on mutual respect and a shared commitment to the public interest.
“Our relationship must be based on mutual respect and a shared commitment to the public interest. We will not always agree. That is normal in a democracy,” he said.
Rabuka said differences between governments and the media should not prevent dialogue.
“But disagreement should not prevent dialogue. It should encourage better questions, better information and better decisions,” he said.
He said the new centre could help strengthen digital journalism, media literacy and the responsible use of emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence.
Rabuka said the objective was to build a media sector that could adapt to technological change without losing the professional standards that underpin journalism.
“Our objective should be clear. We want a media sector that is independent, professional, credible and trusted.
“A sector that can adapt to technological change while maintaining the standards that give journalism its value,” he said.
Rabuka said the centre should develop into a regional platform for journalism knowledge, skills and collaboration.
“I therefore look forward to seeing the Centre grow as a regional platform for knowledge, skills and collaboration,” he said.
He said stronger cooperation across the media sector would also contribute to public trust, stronger institutions and a more connected Pacific.
“This is how we strengthen public trust. This is how we strengthen our institutions and this is how we build a more connected and resilient Blue Pacific,” Rabuka said…. PACNEWS
PAC – PACIFIC MEDIA SUMMIT: PACNEWS PACNEWS 3: Wed 23 Sep 2026
FNU, FMA launch regional media training centre
By Pita Ligaiula in Savusavu
SAVUSAVU, 23 SEPTEMBER 2026 (PACNEWS)– The Fiji National University (FNU) and the Fijian Media Association (FMA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to establish the Pacific Centre for Media and Journalism, aimed at strengthening journalism training in Fiji and across the Pacific.
The agreement was signed during the Pacific Media Summit in Savusavu, bringing together the university, the FMA and the Pacific Islands News Association (PINA) to support professional development for journalists and media workers.
FNU Vice-Chancellor Professor, Unaisi Nabobo said the partnership would help strengthen the university’s media programme while extending its reach across Fiji and the Pacific.
She said journalists and universities shared a responsibility to seek truth and serve communities, despite resource constraints.
“But you journalists are like us. We look for truth, even though resources may not be around,” Nabobo said.
She said the university had been working to reach people in rural and remote communities and saw the media partnership as another way to connect with people across the country and the region.
“The Fiji Media Association, and PINA would help us talk to the people in the country and the Pacific using our platform,” she said.
Nabobo said FNU, with close to 40,000 students across its programmes, had a responsibility to serve Fiji and the wider Pacific.
She acknowledged the challenges facing FNU’s Department of Media and said the partnership with the media industry would provide an opportunity to strengthen the programme.
“We look at you doing your job and doing it very well, and doing it with struggle, and we think this partnership with Rosi and PINA and FMA is enabling today,” Nabobo said.
She said the university would work with media organisations across the Pacific to support journalism education and professional development.
“We think we’re always seeking truth, to save the people, and to write our history, and to enable us to transform our sad histories into good futures,” she said.
FMA President, Rosi Tamani Doviverata said the signing marked an important shift for Pacific journalism, with the industry taking a leading role in shaping journalism education.
“For many years, most of us in this room sent our reporters to cover everyone else’s big moments. Today, that story is ours,” Doviverata said.
She thanked FNU for giving the media industry the opportunity to lead the new programme.
“You have given our industry something that is rarely offered, the opportunity to lead, here in Fiji and across the Pacific,” she said.
Doviverata said the rapid changes facing journalism meant training programmes needed to be shaped by journalists and editors working in newsrooms.
“The people best placed to say what a journalist needs to know are the people doing the job every day.
“That is what makes this different. The industry is not a guest in this program. It is a founding partner,” she said.
She said the programme would have a regional focus, providing opportunities for journalists from across the Pacific to train in Fiji.
“For years, when newsrooms in one of our smaller Pacific nations needed an experienced journalist, the answer was often to recruit from Fiji.
“So here’s a better offer. Don’t only hire our journalists. Send us yours. Come and train with us. Come and grow with us.”
“Fiji is ready to lead the way, and we would rather lead together than alone,” she said.
Doviverata also challenged national media associations across the Pacific to strengthen cooperation and urged development partners to support journalists who cannot afford training opportunities.
“To my fellow National Media Associations across the Pacific, a friendly challenge. We will always achieve more together,” she said.
She called on development partners to sponsor places for Pacific journalists at the centre.
“Sponsor a seat in the classroom. For a journalist for a country that cannot afford to send one, it costs no more than another workshop, and it lasts a career of several weeks,” Doviverata said.
She urged media organisations and journalists to make use of the new partnership.
“Come and grow with us,” she said.
The Pacific Media Summit also paid tribute to members of the Pacific media fraternity who have died, recognising their contribution to journalism in the region…. PACNEWS
UN – CLIMATE CHANGE: PACNEWS PACNEWS 3: Wed 23 Sep 2026
“This is no time to backtrack” as climate action gap widens: UN Climate chief Stiell
NEW YORK, 23 SEPTEMBER 2026 (PACNEWS)— UN Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell has called for faster action to close the gap between climate pledges and delivery, warning that countries must accelerate emissions cuts while building resilience to worsening climate impacts.
Speaking at the Build Clean Now Industry Acceleration Summit in New York on Monday, Stiell said temporarily exceeding the 1.5°C temperature limit was now unavoidable, but governments could still work to bring warming back below that threshold as quickly as possible.
“How to respond? By doing something about it: Building resilience. And cutting greenhouse gas pollution faster – to bring the temperature rise back below 1.5 degrees as quickly as possible,” Stiell said.
He said international cooperation must now focus on implementation and supporting countries to deliver climate targets, plans and commitments already agreed.
Stiell said international and national climate efforts had helped reduce projected global warming from more than 4°C to about 2.6°C, but stressed that this progress remained insufficient.
“Pointing to progress is not about complacency. It is essential. To combat disinformation and show that this is a fight we can win,” he said.
Stiell pointed to the rapid expansion of renewable energy as evidence of the economic opportunities from the clean energy transition.
Citing new data from the International Renewable Energy Agency, he said 693 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity was added last year, while more than US$2 trillion was invested in clean energy.
He said renewables had also helped avoid almost US$500 billion in fossil fuel costs.
“This is the moment to mobilise more. To narrow the gap between pledges and action on the ground,” Stiell said.
He said this would be a central focus of COP31 in Türkiye and COP32 in Ethiopia next year, with countries expected to demonstrate substantial progress by the second global stocktake in 2028.
Stiell said the Action Agenda would be an important mechanism for translating climate commitments into projects, bringing together governments, businesses, investors, cities and regions.
“The Action Agenda is a vital part of the work ahead. It’s where business, investors, governments, cities and regions, and many more, come together to deliver real economy actions,” he said.
“In other words, it’s the fast lane to more implementation.”
Stiell urged governments, businesses and investors to respond to the COP31 Presidency’s call for solutions that can accelerate implementation, including projects in developing countries.
He also called for greater access to climate finance and said public and private finance, climate funds and multilateral development banks must work together to move the Baku to Belém Roadmap towards its US$1.3 trillion goal.
“This is no time to backtrack. This is the time for all shareholders who believe in science, facts, and saving millions of lives to stand firm and step-up on climate,” he said.
Stiell also challenged the technology industry to address the climate costs of artificial intelligence, saying AI should be used to accelerate climate solutions rather than increase emissions and inequality.
He said AI could help improve early warning systems and grid efficiency, but developing countries must also have access to the technology.
“We need every country to benefit from AI today – not vague promises of future solutions,” Stiell said.
He warned that the global clean energy transition was already developing at different speeds and said AI should help bridge that divide.
“At the same time, energy guzzling Artificial Intelligence is driving up planet-heating pollution from coal, oil and gas, while ratcheting up energy costs for households and businesses,” he said.
Stiell called on technology companies to set credible climate targets, improve energy efficiency, disclose their energy and water use and power data centres with renewable energy.
“Tech titans need to start showing why the benefits of AI outweigh its skyrocketing costs – for the many, not just the tiny few,” he said.
Stiell said the world would also need carbon dioxide removal alongside rapid cuts in fossil fuel emissions if it was to bring global temperature rise back below 1.5°C.
He stressed that carbon removal must not be used as a substitute for moving away from fossil fuels.
“Absolutely not as a replacement for transitioning away from all fossil fuels. But in addition to it,” he said.
He also called for the protection and expansion of natural carbon sinks, while acknowledging concerns that carbon removal could be used by polluters to delay emissions reductions.
“Many of those fears may well be valid. But simply ignoring CDR is no longer viable,” Stiell said.
Stiell said the growing impacts of climate change were already affecting economies, food systems, health and household costs.
“The climate crisis is now a national economic and security emergency for all nations,” he said.
He said climate disasters were reducing crop yields, increasing food prices and inflation, while heatwaves and other climate impacts were putting pressure on health systems.
Stiell also warned that continued dependence on fossil fuels was exposing consumers and economies to higher costs and volatility.
He said countries resisting the clean energy transition risked losing investment, innovation, jobs and new industries to economies moving faster on clean technologies.
“Renewables are now cheaper in almost all places. The brute power of market forces is taking hold,” he said.
Stiell said renewable energy had overtaken coal as the world’s leading electricity source last year and argued that the shift to clean energy was irreversible.
He said the global response must now build on the Paris Agreement and strengthen international cooperation.
“For these reasons and more, we are still absolutely in this fight. But to win will take far more.
“Now’s the time to double down on climate multilateralism – the bedrock of the world’s progress so far.”
“At COP30 every nation agreed – the Paris Agreement is working, and we will make it go further and faster,” Stiell said……PACNEWS
PAC – CLIMATE CHANGE: PMN PACNEWS 3: Wed 23 Sep 2026
Tuvalu climate minister says Pacific aid means little as Australia backs fossil fuels expansion
AUCKLAND, 23 SEPTEMBER 2026 (PMN)—More than 80 rangatahi from across Aotearoa are putting their experiences of climate change into a youth statement they want decision-makers to hear before the next global climate summit.
The young people came together in Auckland for Aotearoa Youth Conference of the Parties (COP) 2026, organised by Save the Children and its Generation Hope ambassadors.
The statement is now being drafted and is expected to be taken to a pre-COP event in Fiji before being presented at COP31 in Türkiye later this year.
Save the Children ambassadors Betty and Ollie told Pacific Mornings the goal was to make sure young people, who will live with the long-term effects of climate decisions, have a real voice in those decisions.
“Children are disproportionately affected by climate change, and the other issues which face the rest of the world,” Ollie says.
He says young people are aware of the problems facing their communities but are often missing from the rooms where decisions are made.
“The youth have education, they’re aware of the issues, but they just don’t have the voice to make a meaningful change.”
Four workshops at the Youth COP focused on youth leadership and governance, water, food, and loss and damage.
Betty says the sessions brought together young people’s knowledge and lived experiences, including experiences from the Pacific.
“We basically engaged in different conversations during those workshops, and in that we eventually gathered all of that information and gathered all of those lived experiences of other people and put them into what is a youth statement.”
The Pacific was a key part of those conversations, with representatives from Pacific nations involved in the workshops and speakers from countries including Vanuatu sharing their experiences.
The Aotearoa youth push comes as Pacific young people are also building their own regional climate agenda ahead of COP31.
More than 100 young people from across the Pacific have taken part in a series of talanoa dialogues, with a regional youth climate statement now being used to inform engagement with decision-makers ahead of the Fiji-led Pre-COP and COP31.
Fiji has also said young Pacific people will have a direct role in its COP31 preparations, with youth representatives expected to be part of the country’s official delegation rather than simply attending as observers.
A large proportion of the rangatahi attending were also of Pacific descent, according to Ollie.
For Betty, giving young people a place at the table is about more than simply being heard.
“A lot of the time decisions about climate action don’t really involve our perspective,” she says. “And more often than not, young people are just asking to be listened to, to have our ideas and our experiences and have a genuine voice at the table.”
Ollie says one comment from a rangatahi at the event captured that frustration.
“As one of the Rangitsahi at the event said, if you’re not at the table, you are on the menu.”
The message is also being echoed by Pacific climate leaders. Fiji’s Permanent Secretary for Environment and Climate Change, Dr Sivendra Michael, told nearly 70 Pacific youth climate leaders at a July talanoa in Suva: “If young people are not at the table, how can they be part of the decisions that will shape their future?”
Ollie says young people are already experiencing the effects of decisions made by governments and organisations. “We’re here, we’re educated, we want to make a change.”
The Ambassadors say the statement will also reflect the links between climate change and everyday issues in Aotearoa.
Betty says climate policy cannot be treated as an issue that only matters during elections.
“It is connected to everything in Aotearoa, cost of living, jobs, infrastructure, and just our whole entire future is basically inherited from what will happen and what decisions will be taken for climate.”
The statement is still being drafted and is expected to be more complete within the next week or so, before being taken to the pre-COP event in Fiji towards the end of the year.
For Betty, there is still reason for young people to have hope, even as climate pressures grow.
“I feel like it’s really important to have a sense of hope in these kinds of situations.”
Ollie says the next generation is ready to take on the responsibility of creating change.
“There are still incredible rangatahi out there who will soon inherit these positions and who do want to make a change.”
The final youth statement is expected to be shared publicly before being taken to COP31, where the young people hope their concerns will reach governments and other decision-makers.
COP31 will be held from 9 to 20 November in Antalya, Türkiye….PACNEWS
PACNEWS BIZ
PAC – ECONOMY: ADB PACNEWS BIZ: Wed 23 Sep 2026
Growth in developing Asia and Pacific to slow but remain resilient
MANILA, 23 SEPTEMBER 2026 (ADB)— Economic growth in developing Asia and the Pacific will moderate from 5.5 percent in 2025 to 5 percent this year before edging up to 5.1 percent in 2027, according to a new report by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
The 2026 forecast is 0.1 percentage points higher than the previous outlook in July.
“The region has remained resilient, but the risks are growing,” said ADB President Masato Kanda.
“A strengthening El Niño with drier conditions means smaller harvests and reduced hydropower, pushing food and energy prices higher, and hitting the most vulnerable the hardest.The prolonged energy crisis and renewed risks in financial markets make it even more important for governments to prepare and protect the people most exposed. ADB is strongly supporting such efforts.”
Strong investment, government stimulus, and robust technology exports driven by the global artificial intelligence (AI) investment cycle are supporting growth, even as geopolitical tensions and a strengthening El Niño push up energy and food prices.
In the Asian Development Outlook (ADO) September 2026, released today, ADB trimmed its regional inflation forecast for 2026 to 4.2 percent from 4.3 percent in July, as price stabilisation measures partly offset the impact of persistently high energy prices. The inflation forecast for 2027 is revised up slightly to 3.5 percent, compared with 3.4 percent in July. The revised inflation projections for both years remain above the 3 percent recorded in 2025.
ADO September 2026 identifies two main risks to the region’s growth and inflation outlook. The first is escalating conflict, particularly a broadening of the Middle East conflict and an intensification of Russia’s war in Ukraine, which could keep global energy prices elevated and volatile, and spill over to other commodities.
The second is a very strong El Niño, forecast to persist through the first quarter of 2027, which could raise energy demand and lower agricultural production, pushing up fuel and food prices. A sharp correction in AI-related equity valuations, tightening financial conditions, and renewed trade policy uncertainty pose further downside risks.
Subregional growth prospects are mixed. Stronger-than-expected performance in the first half of 2026 has slightly improved the outlook for developing Southeast Asia, with the 2026 and 2027 forecasts now at 4.7 percent and 4.9 percent, up from 4.6 percent and 4.8 percent, respectively. The outlook is unchanged for developing East Asia, including the People’s Republic of China.
For South Asia, the growth forecast for this year is revised up to 6.4 percent from 6 percent in July, driven by strong public investment and firm export growth in India. The 2027 projection is lowered by 0.2 percentage points to 6.5 percent, reflecting lower forecasts for Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, and Nepal amid trade, energy, and weather-related shocks. For the Caucasus and Central and West Asia, forecasts are revised down by 0.1 percentage points for both years, to 3.7 percent and 4.1 percent, mainly on weaker-than-expected external demand, particularly in Türkiye.
Economies in the Pacific face the largest downward revisions, with projections for both years cut by 0.3 percentage points, to 3 percent and 2.9 percent, on prolonged energy market disruptions and the expected effects of El Niño on mining and agriculture…..PACNEWS
FIJI – ECONOMY: ADB PACNEWS BIZ: Wed 23 Sep 2026
External pressures temper FIJI’s GROWTH outlook—ADB
SUVA, 23 SEPTEMBER 2026 (ADB)— Economic growth in Fiji, the Pacific’s second largest economy, is expected to moderate as elevated energy prices and climate-related risks weigh on economic activity, according to a new Asian Development Bank (ADB) report.
ADB’s flagship economic publication, Asian Development Outlook (ADO) September 2026, forecasts growth of Fiji’s gross domestic product (GDP) will moderate to 2.2 percent in 2026 and 1.9 percent in 2027.
Resilient tourism and continued momentum in investment are expected to support the economy, while higher living costs, elevated energy prices, and external headwinds will likely moderate growth.
“Fiji’s economy continues to demonstrate resilience, supported by strong tourism, investment, and proactive policy measures,” said Regional Director of ADB’s Pacific Subregional Office Azusa Sato.
“However, elevated energy prices and climate-related risks are expected to moderate growth in the near term. Continued investment in critical infrastructure and public services, alongside efforts to strengthen resilience to climate-related shocks, is essential.”
Trade strengthened in the first half of 2026, with increased container, dry bulk, and tanker shipments showing strong import demand for construction materials, consumer goods, and fuel.
Investment remained robust, supported by strong credit growth and the implementation of major public and private sector projects.
Tourism remained resilient despite higher airfares and global uncertainty, with visitor arrivals from January to July 2026 growing by 4.3 percent and forward bookings remaining strong. However, consumption was subdued, with higher fuel prices weighing on disposable income and consumer and business confidence.
Price pressures will likely persist through the remainder of 2026, with annual average inflation projected to rise to about 3.9 percent, reflecting electricity fuel surcharges, high energy costs, and lagged passthrough effects from import prices.
Emerging El Niño conditions could place additional upward pressure on prices by disrupting agricultural production and food supply. Inflation is projected to ease to 2.5 percent in 2027 as fuel-related pressures gradually ease.
Proactive government measures to mitigate higher fuel costs and supportive fiscal policies should help cushion external shocks and support the economy…..PACNEWS
PACNEWS In Focus
The views expressed in PACNEWS are those of agencies contributing articles and do not necessarily those of PINA and/or PACNEWS
How El Niño offers a test of whether the world can adapt to a changing climate
NEW YORK, 23 SEPTEMBER 2026 (UN NEWS CENTRE) —El Niño is strengthening in a world that is already hotter, raising the risk of drought, floods and crop losses across some of the world’s most important food-producing regions. But unlike many disasters, this one can be seen coming. UN experts say the months ahead offer countries a chance not only to protect the next harvest and our food security, but to prepare for a more unpredictable climate in the long run.
A chilly, wet Tuesday morning greeted presidents and prime ministers arriving at United Nations Headquarters in New York on Tuesday, as the 81st General Debate got underway.
The weather did little to slow the pace inside. Leaders moved between the General Assembly Hall, bilateral meetings and a crowded programme of events, with climate change a theme threaded throughout the day’s discussions, from drought, floods, extreme heat, rising seas and growing pressure on food and water.
All are risks that El Niño is threatening to intensify.
Born in the tropical Pacific thousands of kilometres away, El Niño is strengthening again, reshaping rainfall patterns and temperatures in ways that can affect harvests and food supplies across several regions.
“El Niño now is building on a much higher baseline,” Kaveh Zahedi, Assistant Director-General at the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and climate lead, told UN News on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly’s annual High-Level Week.
“It’s a hotter world that the El Niño is happening in, which means it’s going to be magnifying some of the impacts,” he added.
For farmers, that can mean the difference between a harvest and a failed season, enough pasture for livestock or none at all, a manageable shock or a food-security crisis.
But unlike some other disasters, El Niño “announces” itself. Scientists can track it as it develops across the Pacific, buying governments precious time to prepare – if they have the means, and the will, to act.
A disaster you can see coming
The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) says the climate pattern is strengthening rapidly and its effects are already being felt in climate-sensitive sectors.
“We expect this El Niño to be very strong. That’s actually the top classification that we have. We don’t go stronger than that”, a spokesperson said this Tuesday in Geneva.
It is expected to peak towards the end of the year, but WMO cautions that “the peak is a forecast, not a finish line”. The impacts will continue well beyond it.
“We have the forecast. We have the science,” WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo has said, underscoring how much more governments now know about the risks before they materialize.
While WMO tracks the large-scale changes taking place across the Pacific, FAO adds another layer: more than four decades of data on how previous strong El Niño events affected agriculture.
By combining that record with current conditions, seasonal forecasts and information on food insecurity, FAO can narrow the risk considerably. In some cases, its mapping can identify vulnerable areas at a resolution of roughly one square kilometre, helping governments decide where and when to act first.
“When you put these two pieces of information together, you get a fairly good idea of where the big El Niño impacts are going to be and how they’re going to undermine food and food security,” Zahedi said.
FAO sees a high chance of agricultural drought in Southern Africa and the Sahel, Central America’s Dry Corridor and parts of South and Southeast Asia. Elsewhere, heavier rainfall and flooding may pose a greater threat, while unusually warm waters can disrupt fisheries and coastal livelihoods.
The consequences are not theoretical. During the 2023 to 2024 strong El Niño event, Morocco’s cereal yields fell by 43 percent amid extreme heat and drought. In Southern Africa, the region endured its worst drought in more than a century, leaving 61 million people in need of assistance and pushing more than eight million into food insecurity, while poor harvests also drove up the prices of some staple foods across the world.
“We have a glimpse of what happened last time when we weren’t prepared,” Zahedi said.
Climate adaptation on a ‘shorter clock’
Preparation can be surprisingly practical: drought-resistant seeds, better water storage, healthier soils, protection for livestock, and warnings that reach farmers early enough to change planting dates or crops.
“There’s plenty we can do,” Zahedi said. “We have a lead time… [but] we’ve got to act quickly because the window is shrinking,” he said. “We have to get these measures in place by February, March to, in essence, safeguard the next harvest.”
The same investments that help farmers through El Niño are also the ones they need for a hotter and less predictable climate. Better water management, early warnings, resilient crops and livestock, healthier soils and stronger ecosystems all serve both purposes. In FAO’s formulation, preparing for El Niño is climate adaptation on a shorter clock.
Yet there’s less and less money reaching agrifood systems.
A forthcoming FAO analysis finds that climate-related development finance for agrifood systems dropped by 10 percent in 2024, to US$26.9 billion. Crops, livestock, forestry, and fisheries received only about five per cent of total climate-related development finance. In Africa, such financing fell by 20 per cent even as overall climate-related development finance to the continent increased.
“Not enough is going into the productive sectors and building that resilience,” Zahedi said. “That needs to increase if we want to safeguard food security, especially in an El Niño year.”
Before the next crisis
That argument will follow world leaders into Wednesday’s Climate Summit at UN Headquarters, where adaptation and finance are expected to feature prominently.
El Niño adds urgency to the debate. Its arrival cannot be prevented, but many of its likely impacts can already be mapped, and in some of the places at greatest risk there are still months in which governments can act.
“Investing in adaptation in El Niño is a no-brainer,” Zahedi said. “Right now, we have a window of opportunity.”
For FAO, that investment is not only about protecting agriculture from climate shocks. It is also about using agriculture itself as part of the solution.
“We’re not just positioning it as saying they are being impacted or they are the victims, but rather demonstrating that they have solutions,”Zahedi said.
Restoring degraded land, expanding agroforestry and making livestock and aquaculture more sustainable, he added, can strengthen resilience while also supporting food security, biodiversity and efforts to cut emissions.
“There is no better investment in climate, or in food security, probably in biodiversity as well, than agrifood system solutions.”….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
The UN funding crisis: Implications for the Pacific
By Saber Salem
SUVA, 23 SEPTEMBER 2026 (PACIFIC ISLANDS TIMES)—The United Nations’ budget crisis may seem irrelevant to the daily concerns of people in Fiji and other Pacific island countries. However, when the UN faces a financial crisis, the consequences can eventually reach the Pacific in very practical ways.
The multilateral institution is currently facing a serious liquidity crisis. In simple terms, the organisation has approved programs and responsibilities, but some member states have not paid their required contributions on time. The result is a shortage of funds to implement projects that governments have already agreed to implement.
For the small island nations of the Pacific region, this could become a development, climate, humanitarian and diplomatic problem.
The United Nations General Assembly approved a regular budget of US$3.45 billion for 2026, about 7 percent lower than the budget approved in 2025. The approved fund pays for activities such as peacekeeping, dispute resolution, human rights, humanitarian relief and development projects.
However, approving a budget does not automatically put money into the United Nations’ bank account. Member states have to pay their assessed contributions. That is where the problem begins.
A budget without cash
In April 2026, outstanding regular budget assessments were about US$2.8 billion, compared with US$2.4 billion at the same point in 2025. UN officials have warned that cash conservation measures would remain necessary because the organisation could not be certain of having enough money to meet its obligations throughout the year.
Furthermore, outstanding UN assessments have reached about US$6.5 billion, according to a statement made during the General Assembly’s consideration of UN finances. This will create a difficult situation. UN member states collectively tell the UN to undertake more work, but the organisation cannot effectively implement those decisions if the money does not arrive. The UN itself says the financial crisis is caused by delays and shortfalls in assessed contributions from member states.
There is also an unusual problem in the United Nations’ financial rules. Under the current system, money that is not spent must be returned to member states, even when the reason it was not spent is that the money was never actually collected. The UN secretary general has argued that this can create a damaging cycle of shortages.
In June this year, the United Nations General Assembly approved a temporary change to the financial rules intended to prevent an immediate financial collapse. The new ruling states that “We will give money back only if we actually received it.” This reform is important, but it does not solve the basic problem, which is member states still need to pay their assessed contributions on time and in full. That distinction matters for the Pacific island nations.
Why the Pacific should care
The small island nations of the Pacific region are some of the most vulnerable countries to climate change, natural disasters and external economic shocks in the world. These island states face particular difficulties because of their geographical isolation from major global markets, small populations, small economies and dependence on international markets. The UN underscores that these countries are affected by natural disasters and climate change despite contributing a miniscule amount to global greenhouse gas emissions.
Therefore, for the Pacific island countries, the United Nations is more than a diplomatic organisation. It is an important source of technical assistance, development support, humanitarian coordination, climate expertise and international advocacy.
For example, the UN and Fiji developed an Anticipatory Action Framework for tropical cyclones designed to help before a cyclone makes landfall. The purpose of the framework is that acting early can reduce suffering, protect development gains and lower the cost of disaster response. The initiative received support from the UN Central Emergency Response Fund and several UN agencies. This demonstrates the important role that the United Nations plays in providing critical resources and needs.
It also illustrates that the multilateral organisation does not arrive after a disaster with humanitarian aid. Instead, it takes pre-emptive measures to address the problem before it actually starts. Thus, specialized UN agencies work with Pacific governments to strengthen systems before disasters happen. If international organisations face severe financial shortages, such vitally important activities could become harder to maintain or expand.
Climate change and severity of the problem
The Pacific region cannot afford a financially weaker multilateral body particularly at a time when climate risks are increasing. The United Nations’ Pacific office considers the region the frontline of the climate crisis. Environmental disasters such as rising sea levels, tropical cyclones, floods, droughts and other hazards threaten communities, infrastructure and economies.
This indicates that Pacific small island nations need multilateral institutions that can help mobilise climate finance, provide technical expertise and keep climate change high on the global agenda. The problem is that climate finance is already difficult for small island states to access.
A UN initiative involving Pacific Small Island Developing States has highlighted two major difficulties such as limited access to climate financing and a shortage of well-developed projects that is capable of attracting investment. Thus, a weaker United Nations could make this challenge even more difficult. It would be wrong to suggest that every dollar cut from the United Nations’ regular budget automatically means one less dollar for a Pacific climate project. The UN’s financial structure is much more complicated than that.
However, there is a broader connection. The UN provides institutions, expertise, coordination and political platforms through which vulnerable countries can pursue their interests. If those institutions have fewer resources and less capacity, countries with small administrations may have fewer opportunities to obtain technical assistance and influence international negotiations.
The Pacific’s voice could also become weaker
For the small island nations of the Pacific region, the UN is one of the most important platforms where size does not necessarily determine whether a country has a voice. Fiji, Samoa, Tonga, Vanuatu, Tuvalu and other Pacific states may have small populations and limited economic power. However, at the United Nations they participate as sovereign states. This gives Pacific countries an important diplomatic platform. Climate change and other environmental disasters provide a good example.
Pacific governments have repeatedly used international forums to draw attention to sea level rise, climate finance, loss and damage, ocean governance and the special vulnerabilities of small island states.
The UN system also supports regional initiatives which deal with disaster preparedness, social protection, climate resilience and sustainable development. For example, a UN-funded project is helping selected Pacific island nations strengthen strategic foresight and climate-risk planning, with the aim of establishing operational foresight capacities by 2028. These may appear to be relatively small programs when compared with the budgets of major powers. However, for a small island state, a relatively modest UN-supported program can have considerable practical value.
There is another danger: competing global priorities
The small island nations are also facing a changing international environment where wars, geopolitical tensions, humanitarian emergencies and economic crises are putting pressure on international budgets. The United Nations’ 2026 financing report warns that geopolitical tensions, climate shocks, trade barriers and weaker global cooperation are worsening the financing environment for sustainable social development. When financial and technical resources dwindle, governments focus on immediate crises. Such policy reorientation arguably creates a risk for the Pacific island countries.
Global focus on climate adaptation, disaster preparedness and sustainable social development are essential for the Pacific region, but they often compete for attention with wars and humanitarian emergencies elsewhere. The danger is not that the world suddenly forgets the Pacific small island nation. It is that Pacific priorities gradually receive less funds, less political attention and fewer international resources. For the small island states with tight operating budgets, this matters a lot.
The Pacific should not be a passive observer
The United Nations’ current budget crisis should therefore concern the Pacific small island nations, but it should also encourage them to become more active. Pacific island nations have a strong interest in maintaining an effective multilateral system. They should continue to advocate for predictable financing for climate adaptation, disaster preparedness, sustainable development and humanitarian assistance. They should also push for greater efficiency and accountability within international organisations.
Supporting the United Nations does not mean arguing that every UN program is perfect or that every dollar is spent efficiently. The organisation needs reform, stronger financial management and careful prioritization. The multilateral institution itself recognizes that its current financial difficulties require institutional changes. Nonetheless, institutional reforms and underfunding are two different things. The former many not result in addressing the latter particularly when member states do not fulfil their financial commitments. Thus, a more efficient United Nations still needs sufficient financial and technical resources to perform the responsibilities assigned to it by its member states.
The bigger issue is multilateralism
The current United Nations budget crisis begs the question as to what happens when governments collectively create international institutions but do not provide those institutions with necessary resources? For the small island nations of the Pacific region, this is not an abstract question.
The small island states depend on international cooperation because many of their biggest challenges cannot be solved alone. The current environmental problems are global catastrophes, which do not respect borders or national sovereignty. Climate change cannot be addressed by the small island countries in the Pacific alone. In the meantime, ocean governance requires international rules, norms and regimes which must be honoured by world governments.
Moreover, sustainable social development and economic growth require access to finance, technology and expertise. Therefore, the Pacific island countries have a direct interest in a functioning multilateral system at the international level.
It is worth highlighting here that the current United Nations liquidity crisis does not suggest that the multilateral agency is on the verge of disappearing. Indeed, the UN General Assembly’s decision in June helped prevent an immediate financial collapse. However, despite such a timely move, the underlying problems remain unresolved. It is necessary that all member states must provide the resources required to implement the decisions they themselves make.
If the United Nations face a serious financial crisis, the small island countries in the Pacific region with the smallest economies and the greatest vulnerabilities will feel the consequences first. Bearing that in mind, the Pacific island nations should be watching the UN budget crisis closely not because the numbers in New York are interesting, but because what happens to those numbers can eventually affect what happens on Pacific islands.
Dr Saber Salem is an associate professor of International Relations and Diplomacy at the University of Fiji. The views expressed in the column are personal and do not necessarily reflect that of the University of Fiji or the Pacific Island Times.
The views expressed in PACNEWS are those of agencies contributing articles and do not necessarily those of PINA and/or PACNEWS
‘Ask us first’: Children demand a voice on AI’s future
NEW YORK, 23 SEPTEMBER 2026 (UN NEWS CENTRE) —The first generation to grow up with AI may also be the last one anyone thinks to ask about it – and that has to change, the UN’s top human rights official said on Tuesday.
“Today’s children are the first generation to grow up with artificial intelligence – yet often the last to be asked for their views,” UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk told a high-level meeting in New York on protecting children in the age of AI, held on the sidelines of the General Debate.
Children, he insisted, must be treated as full rights-holders in how AI is built and used – not an afterthought once the technology has already shaped their lives.
The meeting was co-chaired by French President Emmanuel Macron, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, Kenyan President William Ruto and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
What’s the worry?
Türk’s office, working with partners, surveyed more than 1,000 children across 49 countries.
Their answers paint a sharp picture of unease: fake images made of real people, personal data harvested and exploited, creativity quietly eroded, and a fear that AI could edge out real relationships with family, friends, teachers or therapists.
The throughline was simple. Children want to be heard before the decisions get made and not handed the results afterwards.
Building in safeguards
For Türk, the answer already exists on paper: the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the most widely ratified human rights treaty in the world, applies just as much to AI as to anything else.
That puts real obligations on the companies building these systems, he said – human rights risk assessments before products ever reach the market, genuine transparency and independent oversight, not self-policing.
Governments, too, have to do more than encourage good behaviour. “Voluntary commitments are not enough,” Türk warned.
The New York meeting builds on a coalition launched in Geneva in July, another wordy but important grouping known as the Coalition for Children’s Rights and Protection in the Age of Artificial Intelligence.
It brings together governments, UN agencies, tech companies, civil society groups and outside experts.
Seventeen countries have signed on so far. Its goal: get children themselves into the room when AI systems that shape their lives are designed, deployed and monitored.
“Children’s rights apply to AI,” Türk said, “just as they apply everywhere else.”
Sexualised images proliferate
For Catherine Russell, Executive Director of UNICEF, children are not hanging around waiting for adults to finish defining the rules: they are already using AI, which can offer them important opportunities to learn, create and access information and services.
But the risks are also considerable. According to UN Children’s Fund research, at least 1.2 million children in 11 countries saw their likenesses transformed into AI-generated sexual images during the past year.
She said there was no disguising the damage that AI is already doing to a whole generation of children, Ms. Russell said. …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
UN panel calls for stronger safeguards as AI agents advance
NEW YORK, 23 SEPTEMBER 2026 (UN NEWS CENTRE) —-The world’s first scientific body on Artificial Intelligence called on Monday for AI safeguards to be adapted as current firewalls are “unravelling”.
The UN-backed Independent International Scientific Panel on AI’s warning followed the hack of the online platform HuggingFace between May and July by “AI agents” during a test initiated by OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT.
AI agents are software that can perform tasks independently and on behalf of a user, compared to chatbots, which are prompted by questions or instructions.
The panel issued its first thematic brief which found that the security breach was the result of a culmination of key risk factors, raising fears that humans will one day no longer be able to steer, constrain or stop AI.
Guterres welcomes report
The UN Secretary-General António Guterres issued a strong statement of support for the panel’s brief later on Monday, encouraging external experts “from frontier AI labs and AI safety institutes, to engage” further.
He also welcomed the leadership of the Finnish President and Norway’s Prime Minister which led to a declaration adopted on the sidelines of the General Assembly by 22 countries on Monday saying AI “must remain under human direction, insight and control,” indicating that an independent supervisory body needs to be set up.
Guterres noted the call for Member States “to build on existing international mechanisms and explore creating an international institution, able to set standards, enable verification, and convene states when capability thresholds are crossed.”
AI training advancing
“Researchers have long warned that three conditions could lead to loss of control: a misaligned goal, the capability to pursue it and an environment that allows it. This summer, all three came together in a real system, not a laboratory,” said scientific panel co-chair Yoshua Bengio.
“Since this is not an isolated observation of misaligned goals, this raises serious questions about the way AI agents are currently trained.”
The panel’s independent experts stress that the incident provides no assurance that humans can reliably keep AI agents under control, particularly as they become more capable, harder to monitor and better at finding loopholes or hiding their activity.
Going rogue
The brief said AI agents bypassed testing safeguards, coordinated across separate runs through an internal software tool not designed to enable communication between agents, and gained unauthorized internet and administrator access.
Agents concealed attempts to cheat cybersecurity evaluations, with some opting to “sacrifice” themselves for the benefit of the group.
Around 1,200 agents exchanged more than 70,000 messages and files during the period examined, and activity extending beyond HuggingFace to an OpenAI research cluster.
Current safeguards ‘unravelling’
For the panel, the immediate lesson from the incident is that basic cybersecurity practices were overlooked, while safeguards are not keeping pace.
However, they pointed to a more insidious concern: that current training methods can lead AI agents to adopt their own goals, knowingly violate safety instructions and conceal their actions.
“This is not only a question of speed,” the panel’s experts said. “It leaves open whether safeguards designed today will work once agents can understand them and plan around them. In simple terms, the traditional model of safeguarding is unravelling.”
Wider context, future risks and governance
The AI panel’s brief sets the HuggingFace incident against wider research on two issues: agentic misalignment – that is, when AI agents act in a similar way to a threat – and AI control.
Another issue examined is how governance is moving from AI models, which use algorithms to recognize patterns, to AI agents.
Learn and adapt
The brief also reviews practical approaches already in use in other high-risk sectors such as aviation, medicine and cybersecurity where incident reporting, independent scrutiny and layered safeguards are in place.
“But those practices may not be enough as AI agents become more capable, autonomous and difficult to monitor,” said panel member Qinghua Lu.
About the panel
The Independent International Scientific Panel on Artificial Intelligence was established by the UN General Assembly in August 2025.
It produces annual reports on the opportunities, risks and impacts of AI in the non-military domain, alongside thematic briefs on emerging issues, that will inform the Global Dialogue on Artificial Intelligence Governance to be held at UN Headquarters in New York in May 2027…..PACNEWS
