“You don’t need my pain or tears to know that we’re in a crisis”: Fruen
The COP26 climate conference is underway in Glasgow. Here are highlights from the opening day. Young Samoan climate change activist Brianna Fruen made a powerful statement on the opening day of the COP26 climate
Pacific states to benefit from new IRIS initiative
Small island states of the Pacific were very much in the forefront when the leaders of India, Britain and Australia launched IRIS, a new initiative aimed at providing infrastructure support to reinforce the resilience
Tonga facing lockdown
Tonga is expected to go into lockdown later today after the kingdom reported its first COVID-19 case. Preparations are underway with churches being mobilised to support medical authorities. Tonga had been COVID-free
Telstra seals Digicel Pacific deal
Australian telco, Telstra has partnered with the Australian government to buy Digicel’s South Pacific businesses for $US1.6 billion, finalising negotiations that have been underway for some months. Telstra will
Port Moresby General hospital on the verge of collapse
PNG COVID update: Papua New Guinea’s Port Moresby General Hospital(PMGH) says it is reaching a crisis point, with services teetering on collapse unless they are immediately given more support. “We urgently need
Protect the Poor when fighting money laundering in the Pacific
The risk of “de-risking” – the process of international banks disassociating from financial partners, such as small remittance providers and local banks – is that it could push people out of the
To vote or not to vote? Debating a New Caledonia referendum delay
As France’s Overseas Minister Sébastien Lecornu visits Noumea, supporters and opponents of independence are debating whether the next New Caledonia referendum on self-determination should proceed in December. Key
Southwest Pacific Tropical Cyclone outlook
Weather authorities anticipate 9-12 named Tropical Cyclones (TC) could occur in the Southwest Pacific basin between November 2021 and April 2022. The seasonal outlook is for normal to slightly above normal activity in
Transformation of a Port Moresby settlement
Joyce Bay settlement, formerly known as Horse Camp, is a notorious settlement in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea (PNG). It has been known for criminal activity, and as a place where many criminals live. The settlement is
Spain, Toulouse added to 2022 HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series circuit
As part of its new look, three European cities have been added to the 2022 HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series. Starting with the traditional curtain-raising event in Dubai at the end of November followed by an additional
AUKUS disrupts “a very peaceful part of planet earth”
With anti-nuclear sentiment on the rise across the islands, the Morrison government’s nuclear submarine ambitions have undercut the prime minister’s claim to be part of the Pacific family. “The sense of a regional
International stats agencies concerned over Naiqama dismissal
Two international statistics organisations have written to Fiji’s Prime Minister to express their concern over the dismissal of the Fiji statistician, Kemueli Naiqama, as CEO of the Fiji Bureau of Statistics from
Fiji domestic tourists return to resorts
This past weekend, a number of resorts on Viti Levu opened to domestic tourists for the first time since the second wave of COVID-19 hit Fiji. It was a trial run before international borders reopen, with a small number
Fiji ready to welcome international tourists
Fiji tourism operators are deep in preparations to welcome international visitors back to the tourism-dependent nation. Fiji has announced the opening of borders to Australia, New Zealand, United States of America,
Countdown to COP26: Pacific Notes
“We face the most difficult questions — which islands to preserve, what happens when our people are forced to move against their will, how will we preserve our culture?” Marshall Islands President David Kabua
How satellite technologies can aid Fiji & other Pacific Island nations to access finance & build climate resilience?
#Countdown to COP26 Sepesa Curuki and his community are coming to terms with the prospect of climate change-related relocation from Cogea village on Fiji’s second largest island of Vanua Levu. Their village, which
Offshore processing of PNG asylum seekers to end
The Australian federal government is ending offshore processing in Papua New Guinea for asylum seekers detained after trying to reach Australia by boat. The arrangement was set up in 2013 under the then-Labour
American Samoa, Fiji, Guam, Palau, Samoa, Vanuatu remain on EU tax blacklist
Six Pacific Islands are on the EU tax blacklist, remaining listed an “non-cooperative”. They are American Samoa, Fiji, Guam, Palau, Samoa and Vanuatu. The European Union blacklist was set up in 2017 to
COVID-19 cases in Papua New Guinea: the silent dead
Although only 65,000 suspect COVID-19 cases have been reported in Papua New Guinea over the last year, PNG’s own administrative health data show 2.6 million cases of flu- and pneumonia-like symptoms over the same
Milestone book features the Marshall Islands fishing story
How the Marshall Islands went from being a bystander in commercial fishing in the Pacific to operating the world’s busiest tuna transshipment port, two fish processing facilities, a purse seine vessel net repair
Tokelau gets high-speed internet access, as security concerns edge China edged out of laying undersea cables throughout Asia Pacific
Tokelau, whose nearest neighbour is 500 kilometres away, has become that much closer to the rest of the world, after a new submarine cable landed on its shores, bringing high-speed reliable internet access. The
Opinion: Does disallowing diversity data create an equitable Fiji?
The release of Fiji poverty data desegregated by ethnicity and religion by the Fiji Bureau of Statistics in its 2019-20 Household Income and Expenditure Survey (HIES), resulted in the firing of its CEO last week.
Pacific island leaders at the UN General Assembly call for solidarity on COVID-19 and climate change
Pacific Island leaders at the UN General Assembly on Saturday underlined the need for global solidarity, commitment and action to tackle COVID-19 and climate change, two crises which threaten sustainable development.
COVID behind Fiji economy’s ‘severe recession’, but ratings agency predicts economy to start recovering next year
COVID-related restrictions and a relatively large fiscal deficit has prompted S&P Global to lower its rating of the Fiji economy from BB-minus to B+, although it expects the Fiji economy to recover next year.
