From our archives: Bartering for Betterment

Barter for Better Fiji celebrates its one year anniversary today. The group has 193,300 members and is still hosting trades. In December 2020 we profiled Marlene Dutta as part of our 2020 People of the Year series.

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Opinion: Environmental protection and government’s failures

Last month the Suva Magistrates Court found the developers of a resort site on Fiji’s Malolo Islands guilty of undertaking development without an approved Environmental Impact Assessment Report. That development

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Opinion: Chinese overfishing in the South Pacific devastates some Islands’ livelihoods

Chinese fishing boats’ illegal overfishing in the South Pacific has been devastating some island economies. According to two former U.S. officials, “illegal, unregulated fishing by Chinese vessels has become common

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ANZ extends fee waiver for money transfers to Pacific

ANZ will extend its fee waiver until September 2021 for online foreign currency payments made from Australia and New Zealand into 10 Pacific countries.* Latest figures show the value and volume of transfers made by ANZ

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Farmers have their say

BUT ARE THEY BEING HEARD? By Samantha Magick Were you one of the many Pacific Islanders who spent the first few weeks of the coronavirus pandemic with soil under your nails? The introduction of lockdowns plus border

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Local produce, local menus

When 116 farmers in Fiji’s western division received ‘Cash for Cultivation’ from the government, Agriculture Minister Dr Mahendra Reddy told them: “We want the demand for vegetables, fresh produce,

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Protecting food security in the face of COVID-19

SPC Land Resources DivisionIn a move to help boost food security as the Pacific recovers from COVID-19, The Pacific Community’s (SPC) Land Resources Division (LRD) has established two rapid response projects: The

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Puna faces huge challenges as new Forum Secretary General

Pacific leaders have appointed Henry Puna, former Prime Minister of Cook Islands, as the new Secretary General for the Pacific Islands Forum. The decision came late at night at the Forum Special Leaders Retreat, after a

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Opinion: The road to a Pacific Island economic recovery requires regional solutions

A step up in engagement by the Australian and New Zealand governments, combined with regional and international economic support over the past year, has cushioned the initial blow of Covid-19.  Moving forward,

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2021: The diagnosis

After an incredibly challenging 2020, what will this year bring? We take a look at the economic and political prognosis and a few key sectors. Vaccinating for recovery Timely vaccination campaigns will be key to the

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ADB further downgrades Pacific growth expectations

Economic growth expectations for the Pacific have been downgraded to decline by 6.1% for 2020. The Asian Development Bank had originally forecast a 4.3% decline in July of this year. “Vaccine procurement and

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Pacific People 2020: Bartering for betterment

Marlene Dutta is the brains, and the heart, behind Barter for Better Fiji. She is also our Pacific Community Champion for 2020. Early this year, as borders closed in response to the pandemic and Fiji’s tourism

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