Ending violence against women and girls
Sponsored content Gender based violence is a scourge of the Pacific. It can take the form of physical or sexual violence at the hands of partners, non-partner sexual assault, sexual exploitation and trafficking, and can
Women’s economic empowerment: Fundamental for development
Sponsored content “Women's economic empowerment is a development game changer. The more women participate in a formal or informal economy, the more prosperous families, communities, and countries become,” said Dr
Putting women at the centre of climate change responses
Sponsored content “We know that people who are the most affected by the impacts of climate change are the ones who depend on natural resources for their livelihoods, live in hardship, do not have financial security,
Drue: The Fijian village caught between a rock and a hard place
By Ruben Vulawalu. Photos: Ethan Gabriel. In the Fijian village of Drue in Kadavu, locals face a life-changing decision: to remain at the mercy of the rising ocean, or move their entire community to higher ground.
Fast-tracking PICTA
By Ambassador Kaliopate Tavola The Pacific Island Countries Trade Agreement (PICTA), having acquired ratification by signatory Pacific Island Countries (PICs), came into force in 2003. However, some 18 years later, the
The Properties of Perpetual Light
By Maureen Penjueli I was invited to write a review of my dear friend Julian Augon’s book ‘The Properties of Perpetual Light’. The task was a little daunting given his book has received the highest praise from the
Pacific artist soars to the top of the world
Justin Wellington By Rowena Singh Spend a bit of time on TikTok and the chances are you will pretty quickly come across someone dancing to the iconic track “Iko Iko” performed by Pacific music star Justin
View from the West
Here, in what some call the “burning West”, a pub with no beer is to some parched human throats what a dry river is to a herd of thirsty cattle. Due to COVID lockdowns, Fijians walked for close to two months in the
We Say: COVID awareness needs to speak our languages
When I suggested to a friend on Facebook that we should host a live session on the social media platform about COVID-19 and vaccinations, I absolutely had no idea what we were getting into. Seven days later and three
Now is the time for an independent Pacific foreign policy and security think tank
Good foreign policy, diplomacy and sound national security in the Pacific Islands doesn’t just require solid ideas and good plans. It needs robust evidence of what works and a level of informed public debate on what
“We have been lagging behind quite poorly”
In 2020 as shops and markets all over the world were forced to close due to the coronavirus, people shopped from home, with e-commerce seeing exponential growth in many markets. And the trend will continue. Online
E-Commerce trailblazer: Banz Kofi
Banz Kofi’s online business was transformed when owner Patrick Killoran negotiated a significant reduction in freight rates. Last year during COVID, while regular sales out of the company’s Mount Hagen coffee
“How did my husband die?”
The Parties to the Nauru Agreement ( PNA) has described them as the “eyes of the sea,” who help provide critical data to ensure the sustainability of tuna stocks. But while fisheries observers are considered
Can electronic monitoring improve observer safety and security?
While collectively, Pacific fishing nations do not appear to be in a rush to send fisheries observers back to sea unless their environment is safe, some national programs have continued to deploy observers on fishing
The Forum after Dame Meg
As Henry Puna takes the reins at the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat, Dame Meg Taylor has ended her term as Secretary General after more than six years in the job. In an interview with Islands Business (subscribers
PNG: Coping with COVID
By early June, Papua New Guinea’s COVID-19 cases stood at 15,938 and 15,088 of that number have recovered. There have been 162 deaths, and at the time of reporting, there were 688 active cases. So how is the PNG
Little light on power sale
With Fiji caught in the darkness of a descending cloud of COVID-19, its government has pushed through the sale of a large portion of the national energy company to a Japanese consortium. In its initial announcement, the
Behind the story
Ruben Vulawalu returned to his village of Drue, Kadavu after 20 years for his story, Between a rock and a hard place. He writes about the experience of seeing the devastation caused by Keni and Cyclone Harold. It was
Between a rock and a hard place
In the Fijian village of Drue in Kadavu, locals face a life-changing decision: to remain at the mercy of the rising ocean, or move their entire community to higher ground. Sixty-three-year-old stroke survivor
Fast-tracking PICTA
The Pacific Island Countries Trade Agreement (PICTA), having acquired ratification by signatory Pacific Island Countries (PICs), came into force in 2003. However, some 18 years later, the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) is
Julian Aguon’s ‘The Properties of Perpetual Light’
I was invited to write a review of my dear friend Julian Aguon’s book ‘The Properties of Perpetual Light’. The task was a little daunting given his book has received the highest praise from the likes of Alice
Pacific artist soars to the top of the world
Spend a bit of time on TikTok and the chances are you will pretty quickly come across someone dancing to the iconic track “Iko Iko” performed by Pacific music star Justin Wellington, aka ‘JW’. While Pacific
