Fiji, the World Bank and debt
When Fiji’s Minister for Economy delivers his budget address this evening many eyes will be on figures around the country’s debt-to GDP ratios. This week, Pacific Islands Forum Economic Ministers were preoccupied
How to manage a $1.6 billion debt and other challenges
Pacific finance and trade leaders will have critical meetings this week to discuss how they can rebuild the region’s economies following the economic devastation wrought by COVID-19. Managing increasing debt burdens
Ocean storytelling and ocean action
Celebrating World Ocean Day “This expedition gave me the opportunity to see depths from the shallows, all the way down to the deep and just showed me that everything is connected, even from the mountaintops. What we
“If it is safe, dump it in Tokyo”
Japan’s Yoshihide Suga has announced a new “Pacific bonds” policy to strengthen cooperation between Japan and Forum Island Countries, as Pacific leaders joined the Japanese Prime Minister on Friday for an online
BUSTING the MYTHS around STROKE
A Pacific language video series by the Auckland University of Technology (AUT) is highlighting key facts around stroke, in an attempt to bust the myths around this neurological disease. Stroke is a disease of the brain
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
USP Council Ethics committee to look at leadership allegations
The University of the South Pacific Council has agreed that allegations levelled against Pro-Chancellor Winston Thompson and the Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee, Mahmood Khan, be referred to an Ethics Committee.
The new diplomacy: Vaccines and soft power
Despite efforts to coordinate coronavirus vaccine delivery on a regional and global basis, Pacific Island governments are increasingly meeting their vaccine needs through bilateral arrangements, a situation which is
Summits on the road to Glasgow
By Nic Maclellan As countries prepare for the next round of global climate negotiations in Glasgow, major powers are organising a series of summits and initiatives to ramp up ambition towards the targets set by
How two unis are responding to COVID
When Islands Business met with leaders from the University of the South Pacific recently, they were just hours away from making the decision to cancel the year’s graduation ceremonies in Fiji. It was the start of the
ADB predicts modest growth for Pacific economies this year
The Asian Development Bank expects Pacific Island economies to return to positive growth this year, although at different rates, and with a great deal riding on successful vaccine roll-outs. Pacific economies contracted
