PINA

By Stephen Wright and Stefan Armbruster Fiji’s ranking in a global press freedom index has jumped into the top tier of countries with free or mostly free media after its government last year repealed a draconian law that threatened journalists with prison for doing their jobs. Fiji’s improvement in the annual Reporters Without Borders index was in contrast to the global...

Three countries have been awarded Olympic berths following the reallocation of quota places. Hong Kong and Papua New Guinea clinched them in the men's -68kg category, while Fiji have confirmed another in the women's -67kg category. In the -68kg category, Alireza Abbasi of the Refugee Team won an Olympic berth at the Asian Qualifiers. He was later ruled ineligible to represent...

Tuvalu’s Climate Change and Home Affairs Minister, Dr Maina Talia, has called on church leaders in the Pacific not to turn a blind eye to the geopolitical tensions in the region. Dr Talia opened the Pacific Churches for Ecological Stewardship & Climate Justice 2024 conference in Suva Monday, where church leaders are discussing climate change issues. The Tuvaluan Minister said climate...

The board of the loss and damage fund is set to pick its host nation in July as it speeds up the process to ensure hard-hit countries can directly access money to help them recover from the unavoidable effects of climate change. As the 26-member board held its first three-day meeting in Abu Dhabi last week, discussions centred on the...

Tuvalu and other Pacific countries can expect a higher concessional grant from the Asian Development Finance (ADF) – with the new USD$50 billion pledge from 36 donors announced last week. The grant pledge is the biggest so far in the history of the ADF replenishment cycle and coincides with its 50th anniversary this year. The Asian Development Fund (ADF) provides grants to...

The move by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to promote itself as climate bank for Asia Pacific region has been welcomed by its 14 Pacific Developing Member States (PMDCs). And the Pacific DMCs have collectively challenged the ADB to ensure that ‘practical fit for purpose policies are in place for small island developing states (SIDS).’ Speaking on behalf of all the...

Pacific countries have sought the help of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to secure correspondent banking partners to increase investment and raise opportunities for local businesses. The 14 Pacific Developing Member States (PMDCs) raised their concerns over the loss of three correspondent banking relations (CBRs) and de-risking of remittance service providers as a serious threat to the region’s financial viability...

The United States, one of the donors of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has raised the issue of procurement as a critical issue for the bank to address. U.S Governor representative to the ADB, Alexia Latortue said her government has played a pivotal role in driving ADB’s procurement reforms since 2017. This was the first step in shifting from a rigid,...

Japan, the largest donor to the Asian Development Bank (ADF) has asked that particular emphasis is placed on Small Island Developing States (SIDS) in the disbursement of Asian Development Fund (ADF14) funds. The call was made by Shunichi Suzuki, the ADB Governor for Japan, in his statement to the Annual Governors meeting in Tbilisi, Georgia Sunday. “A particular emphasis should be...

Australia has welcomed the Asian Development Bank’s responsiveness to concerns of its developing member countries in the Pacific on the complex issues surrounding quality procurement and infrastructure. However, more sustained effort will be needed to effectively address these concerns. This was one of the key messages from Australia’s Treasurer, Dr Jim Chalmers to ADB Governors meeting in the Georgian capital, Tbilisi...