PINA

Time is running out for media people and academics wanting to tell their innovative story or present research at the 2024 Pacific International Media Conference in July. Organisers say the deadline is fast approaching for registration in less than two weeks. Many major key challenges and core problems facing Pacific media are up for discussion at the conference in Suva, Fiji,...

Fijian 7s Coach Osea Kolinisau has named an impressive squad for the upcoming HSBC Hong Kong 7s tournament next week. One of the most notable additions is the return of Olympic gold medallist Vatemo Ravouvou, and the debut of promising newcomer Joji Nasova. Ravouvou’s comeback is expected to inject invaluable experience and motivation into the team, while Nasova’s debut adds a...

The Fijian Drua need to do better to close out games and maintain their intensity throughout 80 minutes of rugby. Coach Mick Byrne said the side played a perfect game in the first half against the Waratahs last week, leading 26-10 at halftime but were a shadow of themselves in the second spell, allowing the Australians to come back and...

The amendments to be made to the Constitution on 29 May 2024, particularly Articles 17A and 17B, in the national referendum will not stop political instability. As a matter of public interest, this was conveyed by Junior Joe Natuman, the Principal State Counsel in the State Law Office (SLO), on Friday during the National Referendum Communication team training programme held...

The newly appointed board of the climate finance world’s latest entry – the hard-won UN “loss and damage” fund – will likely hold its first meeting in late April after delays in agreeing members. But despite soaring needs for help, the fund itself isn’t expected to hand out any money until 2025 at the earliest, officials say. The World Bank –...

Vanuatu's Ambassador to Europe, George Maniuri, has submitted the national written statement regarding the obligations of states to climate change to the world's highest court, the International Court of Justice (ICJ). Submitted almost a year after the United Nations General Assembly's agreed for ICJ to give an Advisory Opinion (AO), the submission marks a significant moment for Vanuatu's international leadership...

The Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat with the support of the World Bank, will be hosting a high-level event on Correspondent Banking Relationships (CBR) from the 27th to the 28th March 2024 in Sydney, Australia. The event will bring together ministers of finance, central bank governors and other senior finance and banking officials from Forum member countries as well as the...

Graphic footage of a West Papuan man bound in a water-filled barrel and being beaten and cut with knives by Indonesian soldiers has drawn a rare apology from the commander of Indonesia’s military in the province. Major General Izak Pangemanan confirmed 13 military personnel had been detained and more than 40 questioned as part of an investigation into the torture...

The U.S Indo-Pacific Command will soon establish a new military command on Guam that will form the nucleus of defence operations in the surrounding islands in the region. The Department of Defence’s budget request for fiscal 2025 includes US$40 million to fund the creation of Joint Task Force Micronesia, which will integrate “posture plans, military construction projects, land use negotiations...

Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Defence Minister Judith Collins Monday announced New Zealand will provide logistics support for the upcoming Solomon Islands election. “We’re sending a team of New Zealand Defence Force personnel and two NH90 helicopters to provide logistics support for the election on 17 April, at the request of Solomon Islands’ Electoral Commission,” Collins says. “They will help transport...