PINA

Thousands of people are being impacted by drought in the Federated States of Micronesia. The four states - Yap, Chuuk, Pohnpei and Kosrae - have all been experiencing drier than normal weather since December last year with the U.S National Weather Service predicting things are likely to worsen under current El Nino conditions. According to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF),...

The United States President Joe Biden has signed into law the Compact of Free Association (COFA) agreements after about a five-month delay. The new COFA agreements include an additional 20 years of funding at higher levels for the freely associated states - Marshall Islands, Palau and the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM). The U.S Senate on Friday provided US$7.1 billion in...

No legal immunity will be granted to people found guilty of crimes related to the 18 February massacre in Enga, Papua New Guinea Police commissioner David Manning says. “People need to be held accountable. Our intent is to resolve and take serious actions and interventions towards ending the conflict,” Manning said. He was speaking in reference to a weekend-long roundtable discussions...

Today, 56 of the world’s largest countries and smallest islands, across six oceans, continue to stand united and celebrate shared values for Commonwealth Day. Commonwealth Day is traditionally celebrated on the second Monday in March. The theme for this year’s Commonwealth Day and the forthcoming Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), is ‘One Resilient Common Future: Transforming our Common Wealth’. More...

The co-chairs of the bipartisan House Pacific Islands Caucus are hailing U.S House passage of legislation that renews and funds the Compacts of Free Association or COFA. The Compacts are the foundation for U.S relations with the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of Palau for the next generation. “As a representative from among...

The recent restructuring of the Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary command throughout the country by Commissioner David Manning has irked a few provincial political heads. Autonomous Bougainville Government (ABG]) is one of them, putting claim that the decision of transferring Anthony Wagambie Jr to the Autonomous Region of Bougainville breaches the Peace Agreement. Wagambie Jr was Police Commander for NCD...

Millions of Commonwealth citizens will benefit from improved people-centred access to justice as law ministers concluded their meeting in Zanzibar today with a package of new measures and pledges. The package was shaped by four-day deliberations among ministers, with input from diverse stakeholders, including people with disabilities, civil society representatives and leading innovators in the legal sector. As part of this...

The U.S Congress has passed legislation that will fund key U.S agreements with Pacific Island nations, in an outcome that will spark relief across the Indo-Pacific after previous delays undermined efforts to counter China. The Senate on Friday provided US$7.1bn in funding over 20 years for the Compacts of Free Association (Cofa) — an agreement that provides the U.S with...

Tuvalu Prime Minister Feleti Teo has spoken for the first time since taking office with Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese, a Tuvalu official says, after the Pacific Island leader called for changes to a landmark bilateral treaty. Teo, announced as prime minister after a January election, has said he wants changes to some security provisions in the security and climate migration...

Samoa's electoral laws have been amended giving citizens the right to register to vote from overseas, despite the opposition raising concerns about the country being governed by “outsiders”. The amendments to Samoa's Electoral Amendment Bill 2024 was passed last Friday by Samoa's Parliament in Apia. There had been concerns the amendments would result in Samoa's diaspora influencing general elections, as the...