PINA

Invasive species are a threat to Pacific communities, they are destructive to native biodiversity and the natural environment and have major socio-economic impacts on communities and national development. Considered “the most significant driver of population declines and species extinctions in island ecosystems worldwide”, invasive species cause extensive economic loss and compromise human health. To curb the devastating impact of invasive...

Defending champions South Africa scored seven tries and moved a step closer to the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals with a bruising 49-18 victory over impressive Tonga in their Pool B clash on Sunday. Many of the 60,387 in the crowd were rooting for the Pacific Islanders, but while Tonga put on a brave showing, South Africa fed off their errors...

Anxious and error-prone Fiji fought back to beat fading Georgia 17-12 on Saturday and remain on course for the World Cup quarter-finals, pushing Australia to the brink of elimination. Fiji scored two second-half tries as they rebounded from a nine-point half-time deficit to tighten their grip on second place in Group C, but their failure to collect a bonus point...

The Marshall Islands is expected to soon enter into a renewed economic and security cooperation agreement with the U.S, a boon for American efforts to counter growing Chinese influence in the Pacific. The U.S provides economic and security assistance to the Marshall Islands, Micronesia and Palau under a series of agreements called the Compacts of Free Association. The U.S and...

By Dame Meg Taylor, Non-Resident Distinguished fellow for the Blue Pacific, Asia Society Policy Institute Today’s geopolitical circumstance, defined by the rivalry between the United States and China, has redefined the dynamics of regional and global orders. This reality is palpable in the Pacific region, where the strategic interests of major powers and their allies intersect and undermine our own aspirations...

Geopolitical expert Geoffrey Miller has warned Cook Islands will need to be wary of the potential to be ‘star-struck’ by the attention being bestowed upon it by the world’s superpowers. Miller made the comment as Prime Minister Mark Brown met with United States President Joe Biden in Washington this week and confirmed closer ties between the nations through formal diplomatic...

In a historic milestone for Melanesian communities in Fiji, the “First-ever consultation on the formalisation of Melanesian settlements in Fiji” took place Thursday, sparking deep emotions and gratitude. Descendants of Melanesians brought to Fiji in the 1800s via the blackbirding system expressed their long-felt sense of neglect despite their vital contributions to Fiji's development. An emotional Paterisio Nunu couldn’t hold back...

A rollcall of Pacific Island nations have very different views on the release of treated radioactive wastewater. By Derek Grossman Japan’s decision last month to begin discharging treated radioactive wastewater into the Pacific Ocean from its destroyed Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant is fairly unpopular in Oceania, potentially damaging Tokyo’s reputation in this increasingly strategic region. Nuclear fallout is a particularly sensitive...

Pacific Island countries attending the 2023 Asia Pacific Social Protection conference in Manila this week – used the final day of the meeting to collectively commit to implementing social protection programmes amidst other competing national priorities. Eight out of the 14 Pacific Developing Members Countries (PDMCs) of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) were represented at the conference – that amongst...

Pacific countries used to struggle to collect data needed for the social protection indicator (SPI) survey that the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has been publishing since 2005. But, David Abbott, an ADB consultant with extensive data analysis experience in the Pacific, has noticed a big increase in the last decade of Pacific countries collecting data for the SPI report. The Social...