In this bulletin:
1. PACIFIC — Pacific Newsrooms need clear rules for AI use: Pacific AI creator
2. PACIFIC — AI emerges as key issue at Pacific Islands News Association summit
3. FIJI — Fiji Elections Office urges Media to put accuracy first
4. PACIFIC — French Polynesia faces two drug trafficking threats: Pacific Gateway
5. NAURU — Advocacy groups warn Naoero’s ICC split risks eroding human rights protections
6. FIJI — Narube warns against Fiji Constitution rush
7. AUST — Australian newsrooms unite to defend trusted journalism in AI age
8. PNG — Indonesian navy hospital ship rescues 11 PNG nationals stranded at sea
9. AUST — Counting the cost: Tool estimates fossil fuel impacts
10. PACNEWS BIZ — Pacific needs Climate finance action, Not more talk: PCRIC
11. PACNEWS BIZ — PNG PALM scheme workers driving economic growth and stronger communities
12. PACNEWS BIZ — WPRFMC to develop experimental fishing permit to collect information on commercial fishing in Papahānaumokuākea
13. PACNEWS DIGEST — Making loss and damage count in climate plans
14. PACNEWS DIGEST — Pacific produces gender data, but too much remains difficult to access, new report shows
PAC – ARTIFICIAL INTELIGENCE/MEDIA: PACNEWS PACNEWS 2: Tue 29 Sep 2026
Pacific Newsrooms need clear rules for AI use: Pacific AI creator
By Pita Ligaiula
SUVA, 29 SEPTEMBER 2026 (PACNEWS)—Pacific newsrooms should adopt short, public rules on the use of generative artificial intelligence, with clear boundaries on what journalists can use AI for and what must remain off limits, says Pasifika AI creator and Kanaky Tech founder Kevyn Wahuzue.
Wahuzue told PACNEWS that AI policies should be simple enough for every journalist and editor to understand and follow.
“Yes. Short, written, public. One page, not a 40-page policy nobody reads,” he said.
He proposed a three-tier system to guide newsroom use of generative AI.
Under the green category, journalists could use AI without seeking additional approval for tasks such as transcription, first-draft translations that are checked by the speaker, summarising documents already read by journalists and searching newsroom archives.
The orange category would require editorial approval and disclosure to audiences. This could include publishing an AI-assisted translation without further editing or using AI-generated graphics.
The red category would prohibit certain uses, including invented quotes, generated images or voices of real people, and AI-written stories about communities or cultural matters where there is no journalist reporting and verifying the information.
Wahuzue also warned newsrooms against putting confidential material or source identities into external AI systems.
“That last one gets forgotten.
“Protecting your sources now includes where you paste their words,” he told PACNEWS.
He said news organisations should publish their AI policies so audiences understand how the technology is being used.
“And publish the rules. Readers trust a newsroom that tells them how it works,” he said.
Wahuzue said Pacific media organisations should begin training journalists now as AI becomes part of routine newsroom work.
“Train people now. Not a one-off workshop: practice, on real newsroom tasks, with someone who can say ‘this output is wrong, and here’s why,’” he said.
He said newsrooms also needed to be realistic about the tasks AI was likely to change.
“Transcription, routine first drafts, formatting, monitoring: those will shrink,” he said.
But he said time saved through automation should be redirected towards reporting that requires journalists to engage directly with communities.
“Use the time saved to put journalists back where machines can’t go: in the village, at the court, at the council meeting, with the people.
“If AI is only used to cut staff, the region loses reporters it cannot replace. If it’s used to free reporters, the region gets more journalism,” Wahuzue told PACNEWS.
Wahuzue said verification would remain one of the most important skills for Pacific journalists as AI-generated material becomes more common.
“Verification first: reading sources, checking claims, spotting a generated image or an invented quote. That was always the job. It’s now the most valuable part of it,” he said.
He said journalists also needed to understand how AI systems fail, particularly in Pacific languages and when dealing with different cultures.
“They sound sure when they’re guessing, they’re weaker in our languages, they blend peoples together.
“You can’t catch a mistake you don’t know is possible,” he told PACNEWS.
Wahuzue said journalists should also strengthen skills that cannot easily be automated, including building trust and working directly with communities.
“The human skills that don’t automate: building trust, talanoa, knowing who to ask and how to ask, being there,” he said.
He also highlighted the importance of Pacific languages as AI becomes more widely used.
“And language.
“A journalist who writes and speaks a Pacific language well is becoming more valuable, not less, because that’s exactly where the machines are weakest,” he said….PACNEWS
PAC – ARTIFICIAL INTELIGENCE/MEDIA: ABC PACIFIC PACNEWS 2: Tue 29 Sep 2026
AI emerges as key issue at Pacific Islands News Association summit
SAVUSAVU/SUVA, 29 SEPTEMBER 2-26 (ABC PACIFIC)—The Pacific’s biggest media gathering has wrapped up in Savusavu, the first time Fiji has hosted the Pacific Islands News Association summit in 14 years.
The last time, back in 2012, the country was under a military dictatorship, the local media was heavily censored and some regional journalists stayed away.
This time, Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka was given a plaque for scrapping the media decree put in place by the former regime and record numbers of people turned up.
But the mood was not all celebratory.
Editors warned newsrooms are fighting to survive with new research showing Pacific outlets are using artificial intelligence faster than they are writing rules for it, and Fiji’s Deputy Prime Minister flagged new regulatory requirements on misinformation may be coming.
President of the Fijian Media Association(FMA), Rosi Doviverata says they have been involved the regulatory development process.
“We are very aware of what’s happening on the ground and we are also making sure that we are taking part in those conversations, because some of these issues don’t only affect the public, also affects the work that we do,” she said.
“We are very mindful that journalists are protected and that they are able to do their job well,” she said…. PACNEWS
FIJI – ELECTION PREP/MEDIA: PACNEWS PACNEWS 2: Tue 29 Sep 2026
Fiji Elections Office urges Media to put accuracy first
SUVA, 29 SEPTEMBER 2026 (PACNEWS)— Fiji’s Supervisor of Elections Ana Mataiciwa has urged journalists to provide voters with accurate and reliable election information as the country prepares for the next general election.
Mataiciwa made the call Monday while opening a three-week Media and Elections Reporting Training for media organisations, stressing that credible election reporting is critical to informed voter participation.
“For voters to participate confidently in an election, they need access to timely, accurate, and reliable information. This is where your role becomes especially important,” Mataiciwa said.
She said elections were not the responsibility of the Fijian Elections Office alone, but a national undertaking involving institutions, stakeholders, communities and the media.
“The media is one of the most important links between the electoral process and the public.
“Through your reporting, you help voters understand how elections work, what is happening, when it is happening, and, importantly, where they can access verified information,” she said.
Mataiciwa said journalists needed a strong understanding of the electoral system to report accurately and explain election processes to the public.
“We intend to ensure that when the elections come, you are equipped not only to report what is happening, but to report it accurately and with confidence,” she said.
She said the speed at which information spreads made accuracy increasingly important, particularly as misinformation and disinformation can reach voters within seconds.
“In an environment where information can travel across the country in seconds, and misinformation can travel just as quickly, accuracy matters more than ever,” Mataiciwa said.
The three-week training covers the legal framework governing elections, the role and responsibilities of the media, fact-checking and the growing challenge of misinformation and disinformation, including AI-generated content.
The programme also covers inclusive election reporting and equitable coverage of women and marginalised candidates.
Journalists will also examine ways of making election information accessible and relevant to Fiji’s diverse voter groups, including young people and communities in rural and maritime areas.
The training is being attended by media organisations as the country prepares for the next general election…..PACNEWS
PAC – DRUGS FIGHT: PACNEWS/CLOBAL INITIATIVE PACNEWS 2: Tue 29 Sep 2026
French Polynesia faces two drug trafficking threats: Pacific Gateway
PAPEETE, 29 SEPTEMBER 2026 (PACNEWS/ GLOBAL INITATIVE) — French Polynesia is emerging as a key Pacific transit route for cocaine and methamphetamine bound for Australia and New Zealand, while also facing a growing domestic methamphetamine market that is fuelling crime and social harm.
The territory’s 118 islands cover a maritime area comparable in size to Europe, creating major challenges for French authorities responsible for policing and border security and providing traffickers with opportunities to move drugs through the Pacific.
The growing trafficking activity reflects wider changes in the global drug trade, with cocaine and synthetic drugs expanding rapidly and Oceania increasingly being used as a transit region.
French authorities say cocaine generally moves from Colombia and Ecuador through French Polynesian waters towards Australia and New Zealand, while methamphetamine from Mexico and the United States, particularly California, is moved through Hawaii and French Polynesia to the two countries.
The routes are increasingly sophisticated.
Mexican criminal groups, including the Sinaloa Cartel and Jalisco New Generation Cartel, are increasingly using merchant shipping to move larger consignments, alongside traditional sailing vessels.
The shift has been driven by high demand and drug prices in Australia and New Zealand, pressure on trafficking routes elsewhere and continued cocaine production in South America.
But French Polynesia is not considered a major storage or redistribution hub.
Its main value to international traffickers is its vast maritime space and location along routes to lucrative markets.
The proceeds from these large shipments generally do not enter the local economy, and authorities have found little evidence that Latin American criminal groups maintain permanent operations in the territory.
The more immediate threat for French Polynesia is its own methamphetamine market.
Crystal methamphetamine, known locally as “ice”, is the territory’s dominant illicit drug and is linked to increasing crime and social harm.
French Customs estimates that about 95 percent of methamphetamine entering French Polynesia originates in the United States, either produced there or manufactured in Mexico before entering US distribution networks.
Smaller quantities come from metropolitan France and, to a lesser extent, Belgium and the Netherlands.
Unlike the international trafficking routes, the domestic market is largely controlled through tightly connected Polynesian family and diaspora networks rather than Mexican cartels.
Investigators estimate that three or four major organisations dominate the local trade, with outsiders facing significant barriers to entering the market.
Methamphetamine sourced from Mexican producers is often channelled through Polynesian communities in southern California before being transported to Tahiti by couriers from French Polynesia.
A smaller trafficking route also operates through New Zealand and the Polynesian diaspora.
The profits are substantial.
Methamphetamine bought for about US$20 a gram in California can sell for between US$500 and US$700 a gram in French Polynesia.
Commercial air travel remains the main import route, but investigators have also identified postal services, cargo shipments, commercial vessels and darknet marketplaces.
Authorities suspect drugs are sometimes concealed on aircraft and retrieved by complicit airport workers.
At sea, traffickers have used offshore drops, with drugs later collected by local boats.
The trafficking methods exploit weaknesses in French Polynesia’s border controls.
The territory has no body scanners and limited X-ray capacity despite receiving about 40,000 shipping containers each year.
Unlike the proceeds from international shipments, profits from the domestic methamphetamine trade largely remain in French Polynesia.
Authorities say illicit money has been invested in hotels, vehicle rental companies, food trucks, car washes and other cash-intensive businesses.
The continued use of cash also makes money laundering easier.
The social impact is increasingly visible.
Law enforcement and civil society organisations report links between methamphetamine use and burglary, interpersonal violence and survival sex work.
They are particularly concerned about children and adolescents being drawn into both consumption and dealing.
One reported practice involves dealers giving methamphetamine to young people for free and later demanding payment after dependence has developed.
Authorities say the scale of the practice is difficult to establish, but it points to a more exploitative domestic market.
Traffickers are also adapting to law enforcement pressure.
After a series of interceptions involving passengers travelling from California, authorities believe traffickers have increasingly turned to cruise ships.
Major seizures in January and March 2026 involved couriers who boarded in California and disembarked in French Polynesia.
A second emerging route links French Polynesia and New Caledonia.
People with family connections across the two French Pacific territories have been transporting methamphetamine on commercial flights, creating a trafficking corridor that could expand because of the close social, economic and administrative links between the territories.
Authorities are also monitoring financial activity involving CFP franc notes at exchange bureaux in metropolitan France.
Because the currency has limited circulation outside the Pacific, investigators suspect some of the transactions could be connected to drug trafficking or money laundering.
There are also signs that international trafficking networks may be looking more closely at the local French Polynesian market.
Since late 2025, and particularly during 2026, French authorities have intercepted several European and US nationals linked to methamphetamine shipments destined for French Polynesia.
The cases do not establish that foreign criminal organisations have created permanent structures in the territory.
But they indicate growing interest in entering a market that has traditionally been dominated by local Polynesian networks.
The distinction between French Polynesia’s two drug economies remains clear: international traffickers largely use the territory as a maritime passage, while the domestic methamphetamine trade is deeply embedded in local and diaspora networks.
That distinction, however, may be changing.
For French Polynesia, authorities and civil society groups say the most serious threat may not be the multi-tonne drug seizures attracting attention offshore, but the smaller quantities of methamphetamine reaching local communities.
Those drugs are fuelling a domestic criminal economy while placing increasing pressure on public health, policing and families.
Treatment capacity remains severely constrained, with no dedicated rehabilitation facility and only one specialist psychiatrist available to address the territory’s growing methamphetamine problem….PACNEWS
NAOERO – DIPLOMACY: ABC PACIFIC PACNEWS 2: Tue 29 Sep 2026
Advocacy groups warn Naoero’s ICC split risks eroding human rights protections
SYDNEY/YAREN, 29 SEPTEMBER 2026 (ABC PACIFIC) — Amnesty International says Naoero’s withdrawal from the International Criminal Court risks undermining human rights protections in the Pacific.
Naoero’s president David Adeang announced the move before the UN General Assembly last week, citing the international body’s “irrelevance” to his country.
Pacific leaders also used the meeting to call for action on major issues like deep-sea mining and climate finance.
Kate Schuetze, the Pacific researcher at Amnesty International, says Naoero’s move may backfire on the nation, putting the nation out of step with most of its partners in the region.
“Naoero is shunning the international community but also asking to be taken seriously as a major player,” she said.
“Naoero stepping away from that signifies that it doesn’t see itself as deeply intertwined with that global accountability fabric,” she said…PACNEWS
FIJI – CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM: FIJI TIMES PACNEWS 2: Tue 29 Sep 2026
Narube warns against Fiji Constitution rush
SUVA, 29 SEPTEMBER 2026 (FIJI TIMES)—Unity Fiji leader Savenaca Narube has warned the Government against rushing through the proposed Constitution, saying political convenience must not take precedence over properly consulting the people.
Narube said Fiji had an opportunity to build a constitutional framework that could strengthen national unity, but this required time, public discussion and proper scrutiny.
“Our greatest concern is that this is being hurried for political convenience which is dangerous,” Narube said.
He said the proposed amendments should be taken directly to communities so ordinary Fijians could understand what was being proposed and raise their concerns.
“We must take these amendments to the communities and explain to the grassroots people in their own languages and answer their concerns. We must do this right.”
Narube warned that Fiji should not repeat the experience surrounding the 2013 Constitution.
“It appears that we have not learnt from the mistakes of the FijiFirst party who imposed the 2013 Constitution without consultations.”
He questioned why the process was being accelerated when the country also needed to focus on preparing for free and fair elections.
“What is the hurry? We must focus our resources in delivering free and fair elections.”
Narube urged Parliament to allow sufficient time for debate and consultation, arguing that the constitutional review should not be driven by the immediate political timetable.
“We have the greatest opportunity to unify our country, build trust and tolerance.
“We can leave this to the next government. That is the wisest thing to do.”
Meanwhile, Unity Fiji leader Savenaca Narube has thrown his support behind a proposed constitutional ban on immunity for people involved in future coups, but warned that simply removing immunity provisions would not prevent another unconstitutional takeover.
“I fully support this,” Narube said when asked about the proposed prohibition on immunity for future coup-makers.
However, he said Fiji must confront what he described as the “elephant in the room” — what happens if another coup leader seizes power and simply disregards the Constitution.
“But what happens when there is another coup and the coup leader throws away the Constitution and introduces immunity again.
“This is the elephant in the room that we have not addressed.”
The Constitutional Review Commission has recommended that people involved in future coups should not be granted legal immunity.
Narube said stronger economic and social conditions were also necessary to address the underlying instability that has contributed to Fiji’s history of coups.
“My answer is that we use the economic pathway of raising wellbeing and incomes.
“There is still no guarantee but it will allow the country to transit into structural solutions to instability.”
Narube also rejected the idea that the proposed Constitution adequately addresses Fiji’s history of coups.
“No it does not.”
He said constitutional safeguards must be accompanied by broader measures aimed at improving the wellbeing of Fijians….PACNEWS
AUST – ARTIFICIAL INTELIGENCE/MEDIA: AAP PACNEWS 2: Tue 29 Sep 2026
Australian newsrooms unite to defend trusted journalism in AI age
SYDNEY, 29 SEPTEMBER 2026 (AAP)—Australians are being urged to look beyond the headline and understand how journalism is made as news organisations confront a rapidly changing information landscape dominated by social media algorithms and AI.
More than 1000 newsrooms across 100 countries united on Monday to mark World News Day and urge the public to choose trusted journalism.
Australian media academics warn professional journalism is becoming harder to distinguish from a flood of content produced by influencers, platforms and AI.
University of Sydney media professor Catharine Lumby said she was deeply concerned about the state of trusted journalism as social media algorithms pushed people towards increasingly partisan content.
“Social media uses algorithms to monetise data and attention spans and drive us down rabbit holes into rabbit warrens of opinion,” she told AAP.
“It means that people are now getting biased information all the time, and it is radically polarising Western liberal democracies.”
AI-generated videos and other synthetic content have intensified the problem, making disinformation easier to produce and distribute.
“Who knew that access to all the information in the world could make people dumber and angrier?” Professor Lumby said.
University of Sydney media expert Timothy Koskie said Australians were increasingly getting news from platforms they did not necessarily trust.
“People have demonstrated that they can happily get news from a source that they do not trust,” he told AAP.
“The most distrusted news source … is social media. Its popularity also goes up every year, to now be one of the most dominant sources of news.”
At the same time, audiences are increasingly questioning journalists’ traditional role as impartial and accurate arbiters of information.
Dr Koskie said social media personalities could build unusually strong relationships with audiences – something that helped independent creators on platforms such as YouTube attract enormous followings.
Traditional newsrooms, however, operate through a formal editorial process.
“In newsrooms you go through an editorial process. You’re not allowed to just write what you want,” Prof Lumby said.
“There are sub-editors or producers. There’s a process. There’s a professional process that curates the information that is then delivered.”
Journalism was not infallible, she said, but professional news organisations were subject to editorial standards and accountability mechanisms often absent from social media.
Dr Koskie said AI was taking on some functions traditionally performed by editors, deciding which information audiences see.
“AI is making decisions about what content to show, decisions that a newspaper hands to a qualified and accountable editor, but they are definitely different decisions,” he said.
His 2026 research found AI systems were favouring major international outlets while under-representing Australian journalism, raising concerns about the future of local news.
Dr Koskie said governments needed to recognise local journalism as essential democratic infrastructure and work with AI companies to ensure Australians continued to have access to locally produced reporting.
The economic challenge is becoming increasingly urgent.
“The biggest threat to Australian press freedom right now is that there’s no money left in it,” Prof Lumby said.
Dr Koskie said AI companies had little financial incentive to direct users to original reporting.
“It wants to be the answer for every question,” he said.
AI could nevertheless make journalism more accessible, Dr Koskie said, particularly through concise summaries and tools that checked sources.
But accountability remains crucial.
“If people are misinformed about how things are going … they won’t be able to make effective decisions about how to vote, protest, or participate in public discussions,” he said……PACNEWS
PNG – RESCUE MISSION: NBC PNG NEWS PACNEWS 2: Tue 29 Sep 2026
Indonesian navy hospital ship rescues 11 PNG nationals stranded at sea
PORT MORESBY, 29 SEPTEMBER 2026 (NBC PNG NEWS)—Eleven Papua New Guineans, including two children, were rescued in the Pacific Ocean early Sunday morning after their boat engine failed, leaving them adrift in open waters.
The group was saved by the crew of the Indonesian Navy hospital ship KRI dr. Wahidin Sudirohusodo-991 [KRI WSH-991], which was en route to Vanuatu as part of the 2026 Integrated Port Visit Task Force mission.
The rescue unfolded between 12:30am and 2:30am local time on 27 September, approximately 11 nautical miles southwest of Green Island.
An Officer of the Watch spotted distress signals flashed from a handheld light in the distance, prompting ship commander Colonel Benedictus Hery Murwanto to immediately deploy medical, security, and response teams.
By 1:02am, the 99-meter naval hospital ship had cut its engines alongside a seven-meter vessel carrying eight men, one woman, and two children.
The passengers had departed Buka Island at 7:00am on Saturday, September 26, bound for Nissan Island, when their outboard motor suffered a mechanical failure. Plagued by worsening sea conditions, the group drifted for hours into the night before spotting the naval vessel.
Upon boarding, medical personnel led by Lieutenant Commander Dr Chairi examined all 11 individuals.
The crew provided the passengers with medical evaluations, food, clean drinking water, dry clothing, blankets, and quarters to rest.
Following the rescue, KRI WSH-991 altered course back toward waters off Buka to facilitate a safe drop-off. Once within cellular range, one of the rescued passengers contacted relatives on shore, allowing navy personnel to hand over the group and their belongings directly to family members.
Indonesian naval leadership emphasised that the operation highlights the country’s maritime humanitarian commitments in the region.
“The Indonesian Navy’s responsibilities extend beyond safeguarding maritime sovereignty and security to upholding humanitarian values in every mission,” said Chief of Staff Admiral Dr. Muhammad Ali.
The KRI WSH-991 has since resumed its voyage towards Vanuatu to continue its South Pacific diplomacy and medical outreach mission….PACNEWS
AUST – CLIMATE CHANGE/FOSSIL FUELS: AAP PACNEWS 2: Tue 29 Sep 2026
Counting the cost: Tool estimates fossil fuel impacts
BRISBABE/SYDNEY, 29 SEPTEMBER 2026 (AAP)—Emissions from coal, oil and gas projects will be translated into extreme heat, rising seas, poverty, and coral loss on the Great Barrier Reef using a tool created by Australian researchers.
The Australian National University (ANU) and UNSW announced the launch of the Carbon Impacts Tracer on Tuesday and revealed analysis for five major fossil fuel projects in Queensland, NSW and Western Australia.
Emissions from Queensland’s Carmichael coal mine alone would expose an additional 2.8 million people to unprecedented heat, according to the tool.
The launch will come one day before a decision is expected on the Hunter Valley Operations coal mine extension and less than a week before global leaders gather in Fiji and Tuvalu for pre-COP meetings.
The Carbon Impacts Tracer estimates the real-world impact of fossil fuel projects using a method developed by researchers from six universities in Australia and the UK and published in Climate Action in 2025.
It calculated that Woodside’s Scarborough Energy Project off the coast of Western Australia would expose an extra 516,000 people to unprecedented heat based on its lifetime emissions.
The open-access tool expands on that research to analyse the impact of other existing and proposed fossil fuel developments, Australian National University climate science professor Sarah Perkins-Kirkpatrick said.
“Many new fossil fuel projects describe their emissions as negligible in the context of global totals,” she said.
“This tool changes that.”
The tracer features estimates from Queensland’s Carmichael coal mine, the proposed Narrabri Gas Project in NSW, and three developments in Western Australia, including the Browse to North West Shelf Project and North West Shelf Extension.
It estimates the extension, approved in 2025, will expose 2.6 million people to unprecedented heat, raise sea levels by .057mm due to glacier loss, and endanger 80.4 million coral colonies during each Great Barrier Reef bleaching event based on its lifetime emissions.
Australian National University research officer Claudia Stepin, who built the tool, said additional measures were added to demonstrate the projects’ impact on populations.
“Expanding the tool to include impacts such as poverty, labour loss and food insecurity allows us to build a much more comprehensive picture of the consequences of fossil fuel emissions,” she said.
Users could also input customised scenarios into the online tool, Ms Stepin said, to calculate the impact of future projects.
“Every single potential project matters and now we can begin to quantify what those impacts could mean before a project is built.
“This opens up the possibilities for accountability, advocacy and decision-making,” she said…PACNEWS
PACNEWS BIZ
PACIFIC – CLIMATE INSURANCE: PACNEWS/PCRIC PACNEWS BIZ: Tue 29 Sep 2026
Pacific needs Climate finance action, Not more talk: PCRIC
NEW YORK, 29 SEPTEMBER 2026 (PACNEWS/PCRIC)— The Pacific Catastrophe Risk Insurance Company (PCRIC) has called for faster access to climate finance and stronger financial protection for Pacific countries facing increasingly frequent climate-related disasters.
PCRIC made the call at the High-Level Solutions Dialogue on Climate Finance at the United Nations headquarters during the 81st UN General Assembly High-Level Week.
The dialogue was convened by the UN Secretary-General’s Climate Action Team and focused on practical solutions to improve access to climate finance and strengthen financial protection for vulnerable communities.
UN Assistant Secretary-General Selwin Hart, in his welcome remarks, highlighted the need to move towards practical solutions on climate finance and improve financial protection for communities most exposed to climate impacts.
PCRIC Chief Executive Officer Palu said Pacific countries had spent years highlighting the impacts of climate change, but continued to face high borrowing costs and limited access to finance.
He said climate action should focus on scaling mechanisms that are already operating and have demonstrated results rather than creating additional and overlapping financing systems.
“Climate action means building on solutions that already exist and are proven to work, not creating new, duplicative mechanisms,” Palu said.
He highlighted PCRIC’s disaster risk financing system, which provides pre-arranged funding that can be released quickly following a qualifying disaster.
PCRIC said it paid US$375,000 to the Federated States of Micronesia within 14 days of Cyclone Sinlaku, one of eight payouts made this year, totalling more than US$1 million.
Palu called for increased concessional capital, premium financing and simpler access to climate funds to expand pre-arranged disaster financing across the Pacific.
He also urged the UN and development partners to support PCRIC’s proposal to convene a pledging event at the 82nd UN General Assembly in 2027.
“The Pacific is on the frontline of climate impacts, but we are also on the frontline of solutions,” Palu said.
PCRIC said expanding access to pre-arranged finance would allow Pacific governments to respond more quickly after disasters and reduce reliance on emergency borrowing and delayed international assistance…..PACNEWS
PNG – PALM SCHEME: NBC PNG NEWS PACNEWS BIZ: Tue 29 Sep 2026
PNG PALM scheme workers driving economic growth and stronger communities
PORT MORESBY, 29 SEPTEMBER 2026 (NBC NEWS)—Papua New Guinea’s participation in the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility [PALM] scheme continues to deliver significant economic and social benefits for workers, their families, and communities across the country.
Thousands of Papua New Guineans are currently working in Australia through the PALM scheme, gaining valuable skills, earning an income, and creating opportunities that extend far beyond their time overseas.
As of July 2026, over 2,700 Papua New Guineans were employed in Australia under the scheme, reflecting rapid growth in participation and demand for PNG workers.
The impact of the scheme can be seen in the financial contributions workers are making to their families and communities back home. Estimates suggest PNG workers remitted approximately AUD$95.3 million(K236 million) between April 2022 and December 2025, providing critical support for housing, education, healthcare, businesses, and community development.
Australian High Commissioner to Papua New Guinea, Ewen McDonald, said the figures demonstrate the importance and value of labour mobility to Papua New Guinea’s economic development.
“These earnings are helping build brighter futures for families and communities across the country. The Australian Government remains committed to ensuring PNG workers and their families benefit from safe, fair and rewarding labour mobility opportunities that contribute to long-term economic resilience and shared prosperity,” he said.
William Baru from Hanuabada joined the PALM scheme in 2019 and worked at a poultry farm in regional Queensland. Through his earnings, he has renovated his parents’ home, opened a store, and supported his wife and two daughters.
His success has also created opportunities for others. Impressed by William’s work ethic, his employer recruited additional workers from his village through the PALM scheme, with many now using their earnings to build homes and establish businesses back home. William believes the program’s impact extends well beyond individual workers.
“My life has improved but it also brings a lot to my family and the community as well,” he said.
The scheme is also creating opportunities for PNG women to achieve their goals and support their families.
Ashley Kalagamini, from Central Province, has spent five seasons working on a citrus farm in Queensland.
Through her earnings she has purchased land to build a family home, supported relatives, and contributed to her nieces’ education. Ashley has also gained valuable skills, including a forklift licence and experience operating heavy machinery, while developing leadership, confidence, and financial independence.
Beyond remittances, the PALM scheme is creating a more skilled and experienced workforce. P
PNG workers are gaining experience across sectors including agriculture, horticulture, meat processing, aged care, hospitality, and early childhood education, with many intending to apply their skills and knowledge when they return home.
The PALM scheme continues to strengthen the partnership between Australia and Papua New Guinea by creating opportunities that benefit workers, employers, and communities in both countries.
It helps Australian businesses address critical workforce shortages while enabling Papua New Guineans to earn an income, build skills and contribute to the wellbeing and prosperity of their families and communities….PACNEWS
PAC – FISHERIES: SEAFOOD SOURCE PACNEWS BIZ: Tue 29 Sep 2026
WPRFMC to develop experimental fishing permit to collect information on commercial fishing in Papahānaumokuākea
HONOLULU, 29 SEPTEMBER 2026 (SEAFOOD SOURCE)—The Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council (WPRFMC) is developing an experimental fishing permit (EFP) for bottom fishing in Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument to gather information supporting sustainable fishing efforts in the region.
The move is the latest of the council’s efforts to enable commercial fishing in several Pacific national marine monuments and sanctuaries, as directed by U.S President Donald Trump. Since taking office for a second term in January 2025, Trump has pushed to reopen several large swaths of ocean that were closed to commercial fishing activity; in April 2025, he issued a proclamation to allow commercial fishing within Pacific Islands Heritage Marine National Monument.
“As a result of the prohibitions on commercial fishing, American fishing fleets have lost access to nearly half of the United States’ exclusive economic zone in the Pacific Islands,” the proclamation said.
“This has driven American fishermen to fish farther offshore in international waters to compete against poorly regulated and highly subsidized foreign fleets.”
In June 2025, WPRFMC called on Trump to also allow commercial fishing within Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument. The 582,578-square-mile monument includes the Northwest Hawaiian Islands, and the marine portions were designated as the nation’s 18th marine sanctuary by U.S President Joe Biden in his final days in office.
Roughly a year after the WPRFMC request, Trump issued a proclamation, “Restoring American Commercial Fishing in the Pacific.” The proclamation restored commercial fishing access within several Pacific marine national monuments, including areas seaward of 50 nautical miles within the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument.
“Restoring commercial fishing access to these vital areas reflects the continued commitment of this administration to American fisheries, which are built on the foundation of rigorous science, robust monitoring, strong enforcement, and the daily commitment of our dedicated fishermen,” NOAA Administrator Neil Jacobs said at the time.
“This historic action will lead to more U.S-caught fish on American tables.”
In March 2026, WPRFMC followed up Trump’s executive order by officially recommending commercial fishing in those marine monuments, and in July 2026 the Trump administration tasked the council with continuing to work on reopening monuments to commercial fishing.
“In the Western Pacific region, NOAA’s priorities are to enable commercial fishing, previously prohibited by punitive monument closures, and further consider additional management changes to improve access and flexibility, consistent with the Endangered Species Act,” NOAA Fisheries said in its announcement.
During the council’s September meeting, WPRFMC determined that an EFP was needed to gather information on bottomfishing within the monument, where commercial fishing has been banned since 2010.
“As the Council considers future changes to the NWHI bottomfish management regime, it recommended staff work with NMFS, Council advisors, and interested fishermen to develop an Experimental Fishing Permit (EFP) to collect fishery-dependent data to support sustainable management of bottomfish fisheries in the NWHI,” WPRFMC said in a release.
The council is currently accepting proposals for a contractor to develop the EFP. Proposals are due 10 October…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
Making loss and damage count in climate plans
NADI, 29 SEPTEMBER 2026 (SPC)—Loss and damage focal points joined NDC focal points at the Regional Pacific NDC Hub Focal Point Meeting in Nadi, Fiji, on 07–08 September 2026 to discuss how national climate plans can better reflect the impacts communities face.
For Pacific countries, loss and damage includes more than the cost of repairing a road or replacing a building. Climate impacts can also affect biodiversity, ancestral lands, traditional knowledge and the ties between people and place. National officials brought these concerns into discussions on climate planning at the Regional Pacific NDC Hub Focal Point Meeting in Nadi, Fiji, on 7–8 September 2026.
Loss and damage focal points joined the meeting for the first time, alongside officials responsible for nationally determined contributions (NDCs). Pacific NDCs already include 109 loss and damage targets. The discussion focused on how countries can reflect these priorities as they strengthen and implement their climate commitments.
Chris Teva, Chief Resilience Officer, Natural Solutions and Loss & Damage Focal Point for Solomon Islands, Climate Change Division, Ministry of Environment, Climate Change, Disaster Management and Meteorology said countries need to recognise losses that cannot be expressed only as financial costs.
“One of the key discussions was the importance of recognising that loss and damage is not only about infrastructure or economic costs. Climate change also affects our culture, traditional knowledge and community connections, and these realities should be reflected as countries continue to strengthen and implement their NDCs.”
The focal points discussed practical questions that sit behind national commitments: what evidence countries need, how institutions can prepare to respond and how they can access finance. They also shared experience of current loss and damage work across the region.
SPC presented examples of technical work available to inform national decisions. Andiswa Mlisa, Programme Manager for Digital Earth Pacific, showed how Earth observation data can be used to map inundation, mangrove and seagrass changes, track coastal risks and assess exposure to climate impacts. Dr Neeraj Shankar shared lessons learned from regional activities on loss and damage consultations, policies and funding proposals, including examples from the Republic of the Marshall Islands and Niue.
Keresi Tuimanono, Senior Adaptation Officer and Loss & Damage Focal Point for Fiji, Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, said national planning needs stronger links to the means of putting it into practice.
“As climate impacts continue to affect Pacific communities, it is increasingly important that national climate planning reflects the full range of challenges countries face. The discussions during the NDC Focal Point Meeting highlighted the value of strengthening connections between policy, implementation and support mechanisms so that countries are better equipped to respond to loss and damage.”
The meeting also gave countries a chance to learn from one another without assuming that the same approach will suit every national context. Focal points discussed readiness, institutional capacity and access to finance as countries develop responses to the risks their communities face.
Josephine So-onguku, Climate Change Adaptation Technical Officer and Loss & Damage Focal Point for Papua New Guinea, Climate Change and Development Authority, said regional experience can inform that national work.
“Countries are increasingly looking for practical ways to strengthen readiness, access finance and build institutional capacity to address loss and damage. For Papua New Guinea, the meeting provided a valuable opportunity to learn from approaches across the Pacific and consider how regional experiences can inform nationally appropriate responses to the diverse climate risks and vulnerabilities faced by our communities.”
Participation by national loss and damage focal points was supported by Denmark’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs through Denmark’s Support to the Pacific Community on Loss and Damage in Pacific Small Island Developing States. SPC is also supporting country-led loss and damage initiatives shaped by national priorities.
As Pacific countries prepare for Pre-COP31 in Fiji and COP31 in Türkiye, the work continues at home: documenting losses that figures alone cannot capture, setting national priorities and building the capacity to act on them…PACNEWS
For more information: Michelle DeFreese, Loss and Damage Funding Coordinator (Danish Funds), Climate Change and Sustainability Division, Pacific Community (SPC) michelled@spc.int
Alice Kerjouan, Implementation Support Assistant, Climate Change and Sustainability Division, Pacific Community (SPC) alicek@spc.int
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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 produces gender data, but too much remains difficult to access, new report shows
NOUMEA, 29 SEPTEMBER 2026 (SPC)—The Pacific is collecting important statistics on the differences in the lives of women and men, girls and boys.
A new regional assessment finds that the harder task is building the institutions, funding and public access needed to turn those numbers into lasting evidence for decision-making.
The Pacific Gender Data Outlook Index 2026, launched by the Pacific Community (SPC) and UN Women last week, provides the first systematic regional assessment of the capacity of Pacific gender data systems. Covering 11 Pacific Island countries and territories, it looks at the conditions supporting gender statistics, the production of data and how readily those data can be accessed.
The report was launched alongside the sixth Pacific Statistics Standing Committee meeting in Nadi, Fiji, placing its findings before the statistics leaders and development partners responsible for strengthening statistical systems across the region.
This launch follows that of the Pacific Gender Outlook in late 2025, which examined gender equality across the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. It found that around four in 10 data points needed to monitor gender-specific indicators remained unavailable. This Index now asks if national statistical systems are equipped to measure those inequalities and make the evidence available.
The missing links
On a scale from zero to one, the average Index score is 0.372 across the assessed countries and territories, meaning they have collectively achieved just over one-third of their potential gender data capacity. Gender data production is considerably stronger, with an average score of 0.701, than either the enabling environment for gender statistics, at 0.355, or data accessibility, at 0.274.
The result reveals an imbalance. Household surveys, censuses and administrative systems are producing gender data, but these efforts are not always supported by strong legislation, coordination, dedicated financing, open-data practices or effective dissemination platforms.
“Collecting gender data is a cornerstone of a strong statistical system, but stronger data production does not automatically translate into the evidence needed for decision-making,” said Dr Melissa Meinhart, an adviser in social statistics with SPC’s Statistics for Development Division.
“Countries and territories also need the institutional foundations that ensure gender statistics are accessible, relevant and used. This Index helps identify where those foundations are working and where more sustained attention is needed.”
Different strengths, different gaps
The Index draws on information from Fiji, French Polynesia, Kiribati, Naoero, New Caledonia, Niue, Samoa, Tokelau, Tonga, Vanuatu, and Wallis and Futuna. Because it covers 11 of the Pacific’s 22 island countries and territories, and excludes some of the most populous, it is a diagnostic assessment of those who took part, not a comprehensive measure of the region.
Results vary substantially and the report stresses that the Index should be used to identify system-level strengths and gaps. Samoa records the highest overall score, followed by Vanuatu, New Caledonia and Tonga. No assessed country or territory records balanced performance across all three dimensions.
Why predictable funding matters
One of the report’s clearest findings concerns financing. Countries and territories with regular funding for gender data score 0.518 on accessibility, compared with 0.172 among those relying on irregular funding and 0.106 among countries reporting no dedicated funding.
The difference is much smaller for data production, suggesting that short-term or project-based finance can support a survey but is less effective at maintaining the platforms, partnerships and institutional processes needed to keep statistics accessible.
Eunkoo Lee, a statistics specialist with UN Women, said the assessment was designed to guide practical action.
“The findings show that Pacific countries and territories have made important progress in producing gender data but sustaining this progress requires predictable financing,” he said.
“The Index provides a baseline for countries and territories and their development partners to target investment, support implementation of the Pacific Roadmap on Gender Statistics and track whether gender data systems become stronger over time.”
The Australian Government supported development of the report…. PACNEWS
Read the Pacific Gender Data Outlook Index 2026: https://data.unwomen.org/publications/pacific-gender-data-outlook-index-2026?
For more information on this story, please contact Ben Campion, Communications Adviser, Statistics for Development Division, Pacific Community (SPC).
