Melanesia’s new single market economy
THE Melanesian countries in the Pacific dominate the economic landscape in the region and with that vantage point; they are on the verge of formalising a new free trade agreement to operate in a single market economy
Kava ban
Suspect exports under scrutiny as Fiji prepares to stop two-day kava FIJI will soon ban the importation of the suspect two-day kava variety from Vanuatu to safeguard the quality of its kava exports to the global
Bad kava ‘not good for sex’
Uproar over kava-drinking women WOMEN’s advocates have lashed out at criticism against kava-drinking women who beat men at their own past-time. The Deputy Secretary of iTaukei Affairs Board, Saimoni Waibuta, was
Tuvalu steps up climate action
TUVALU Prime Minister Enele Sosene Sopoaga has not rested. Barely settled at home after the 22nd session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 22) in Morocco in November, Sopoaga plunged straight into laying the
Women to the fore
Bank governor calls for greater effort FIJI’s central bank wants to see more women on the boards of companies listed on the South Pacific Stock Exchange. Reserve Bank of Fiji Governor, Barry Whiteside, said there
Papy John – a life well lived
THE Pacific lost one of its greats on Christmas Day 2016, with the death in Tahiti of John Taroanui Doom, at age 80. From across the political spectrum, Tahitians mourned the loss of the scholar, religious leader and
Donald’s Trump card Time will tell
HAS the new US President played his “trump card” too early in his presidency? Only time will tell. In late January, President Donald Trump signed an executive order which suspended all refugee admissions
Entrepreneur defies the odds to survive
SIX years ago, a physically challenged woman in a wheelchair ventured out into the streets to sell her home-made meals and pastries. At the time, she met with disapproval from people she knew. The local authorities
Movers & Shakers
KIRIBATI’S partially state-owned fisheries company Kiribati Fish Ltd, which is controlled by Shanghai Fisheries General Corporation (Group), announced late last year it will supply fish certified as sustainable by
India deal for Fiji hospital
THEFIJIANS could expect an upgrade to their medical health services, in light of the new private hospital partnership between the MIOT International arm, one of India’s top hospitals and the BSP Life. Under this
Slip, slipping away-Indon losing Melanesia
LAST month, New Zealand-based analyst Jose Sousa-Santos commented on Twitter that “Indonesia’s attempt at buying support from the Pacific region seems to have little to no impact on Melanesia’s stance
Strengthen the borders
IT has taken an Iranian asylum seeker to show just how porous the region’s international borders are. Loghman Sawari broke out of Papua New Guinea and into Fiji, crossing at least five border checks in the process. In
Islands Business January 2017 edition
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Walk the talk
THIS year Fiji will chair the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention on Climate Change – COP 23 in Bonn, Germany. It is an event which is currently being touted as a major achievement for
Whispers
Telecom expansion TAKING over the ocean of the Pacific seems to be the goal of Fiji’s mega telecommunication company with reports that it has got Vanuatu under the radar, after taking over telecom business in
Lamb to the slaughter
FijI TV discards CEO WHEN Fiji Television Limited CEO, Geoffrey Smith, finally steps down this month, he will put to rest one of the media industry’s worst-kept secrets. Appointed to replace Tevita Gonelevu in
The clock ticks
Indonesia fails media test in West Papua JUST five months before Indonesia is set to host UNESCO’s 2017 celebration of World Press Freedom Day, its government still has not met a regional human rights
Skies fill with new birds
Air deals to boost Tonga, Samoa arrivals POLYNESIAN neighbours Tonga and Samoa hope to boost visitor numbers to their islands with increased flights between the destinations this year. Real Tonga has announced planned
Death of a warrior
Pacific loses anti-nuclear advocate FOR decades John Taaroa Nui Doom stood against the French Republic in a defiant bid to end nuclear testing in his home – Maohi. Often a lone voice at regional and international
Fiji deports land reform critic
Land sold for US$10 as retrospective law takes effect OUR ‘Paradise Lost’ story last month about controversial land sale law changes was just hitting the streets in Fiji when news broke of the deportation of
Tuvalu demonstrates against top charge
Former PM seeks re-election PROTESTS in Funafuti, capital of Tuvalu, against Tuvalu’s newly appointed Chief Justice saw the deferment to March of a bi-election in the island’s parliament. Strongly tipped to
Samoan boxer
JOSEPH Parker became the Pacific’s first world boxing champion after beat – ing Mexico’s Andy Ruiz in Auckland, New Zealand for the vacant WBO title. Now honoured as a matai, the New Zealand-born
‘Wild-catch’ tuna tonnage may double
GROWING global market demand for MSC-certified tuna and fishing industry interest is expected to see “wild catch” tuna tonnage double from the waters of the Parties to the Nauru Agreement in 2017. The
