PINA

The Pacific Islands Forum Women Leaders meeting supports Fiji's proposal to host an extraordinary session of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) Committee in 2025, with funding and secretariat services provided by the Pacific Community (SPC). This proposal will now be presented to the CEDAW Secretariat and the UN High Commissioner for Human...

The Australian government has reduced the visa processing time for Fijians visiting Australia. Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs Penny Wong said this is a good start following the plea from the coalition government to have Fiji as one of the visa-free countries in Australia. Wong said the visa processing time is reduced to eight days compared to 36 days. “Australia doesn’t have...

Pacific Islands Forum Chair and Cook Islands Prime Minister, Mark Brown has sent his well wishes to the Pacific teams competing at this year's Rugby World Cup in France. Brown made the remarks at the Forum Foreign Ministers Meeting (FFMM) in Suva, Friday. “I know I speak for us all here when I send the full support and encouragement of the...

Pacific Islands Forum Chair and Cook Islands Prime Minister, Mark Brown has emphasised the importance of member states to ‘work together’ as Forum Foreign leaders meets in Suva Friday to prepare for the upcoming Forum Leaders Meeting in November. “It is important to remember that in order for Pacific regionalism to work, we must be willing to work together to...

Insufficient progress towards climate goals is slowing down the global fight against poverty, hunger and deadly diseases, according to a report released on Thursday by the UN World Meteorological Organisation (WMO). UN Secretary-General António Guterres echoed that message, warning that record temperatures and extreme weather were “causing havoc” around the world. The global response has fallen “far short”, Guterres insisted, just...

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Climate Ready project has mobilised US$562 million from Climate Finance Organisations to support Pacific Island countries meet their climate change adaptation goals and become more climate resilient. This amount includes 17 large projects to improve health, food and water security, marine ecosystems, biodiversity protection, conservation, and natural resource management. “Over the last seven...

Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown met with Samoan Prime Minister Fiame Naomi Mata’afa in Suva this week ahead of the upcoming Forum Foreign Ministers Meeting (FFMM)to be held today at the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat. Brown supported by Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Immigration Secretary Tepaeru Herrmann, met with PM Mata’afa at the Samoa High Commission in Suva. During their...

Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown met with his Nauru counterpart Russ Kun Thursday ahead of today’s Forum Foreign Ministers Meeting (FFMM) to be chaired by Prime Minister Brown at the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat. PM Brown supported by Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Immigration Secretary Tepaeru Herrmann and High Commissioner to Fiji, Jim Armistead met President Kun at the...

Fiji will be one of the eight Pacific Island countries to benefit from the Climate Finance Experts that will be funded by the Australian government. The visiting Australian Foreign Minister, Penny Wong, made the announcement in Suva Thursday. Wong said these experts will work with the eight countries to access climate finance through funds from the World Bank, the Asian Development...

New preliminary research findings highlight persistent and alarming rate of ongoing sea turtle harvesting, which directly contradicts the well-defined regulations prohibiting this practice. A troubling trend that warrants immediate attention. The findings identified major harvesting hotspots in the provinces of Lomaiviti, Macuata, Kadavu, and Bua. The turtle, also known as vonu or ika bula, holds significance within Fiji's customary rituals...