PINA

The road to the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 for OFC hopefuls is now set after the completion of the preliminary competition draw held Tuesday at the Home of FIFA in Zurich, Switzerland. The OFC qualifiers will be played in a mini-tournament format featuring eight teams and consisting of a round-robin group stage, semi-finals and the final. Prior to this, a...

Papua New Guinea Police Commissioner David Manning says the country’s engagement in the Solomon Islands is critical with emphasis on protection of several Government properties, including the Henderson International Airport. Prime Minister James Marape said the deployment of a 37-member security team to the Solomons on Friday followed a request from his counterpart Manasseh Sogavare after recent protests, unruly behaviour...

The Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) 2021 meeting begins 29 November, as it faces the expiration of its Tropical Tuna Measure guiding fishing controls for bigeye, skipjack, and yellowfin tuna in its jurisdiction. The regional fisheries management organisation, which oversees the conservation and management of highly migratory fish stocks in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean, will meet...

Making sure the tuna fisheries of the Western and Central Pacific remain sustainable is one of the driving aims of Pacific Island Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA) members heading into WCPFC18 this week. “As FFA members have continued to highlight throughout this year, Pacific Island people are dependent on the tuna fishery, therefore management action to ensure the sustainability of our...

Royal New Zealand Navy ship HMNZS Wellington has rendezvoused with Republic of Fiji Navy Ship (RFNS) Savenaca to carry out coordinated patrols as part of the South Pacific maritime border patrol Operation Calypso. The two ships were also able to conduct exercises to improve interoperability as they sailed from the area around Kadavu Island out into the Fiji Exclusive Economic...

The leader of the Solomon Islands' most populous province says Australia's deployment of soldiers and police to the country following violent protests is unwelcome and being used to defend a “corrupt” government. Dozens of buildings were burnt down and shops looted in the capital's Chinatown as protests against Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare turned to rioting in which three people died. Many...

Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare has defended calling in Australian police and army troops for help, saying without them his government would be left “to the mercy of criminals and hooligans.” The deployment of officers from Australia, Papua New Guinea and Fiji to help quell violent protests that have rocked the capital of Honiara has proved controversial. Many of the...

The emergence of the threatening new Omicron variant shows how important it is for the world to end the current “cycle of panic and neglect” over the COVID-19 pandemic, said the head of the World Health Organisation (WHO) on Monday. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, was addressing the start of a special three-day meeting of the organisation’s governing body in Geneva on...

Fiji's Ministry of Health and Medical Services permanent secretary Dr James Fong says it is not yet clear whether the new COVID-19 variant Omicron is more transmissible compared to other variants, including Delta. He noted this in his COVID-19 update last night following the advice from the World Health Organisation (WHO). “There is some reported field evidence of increased transmissibility in...

Two extra women parliamentarians have been appointed by the Samoa Head of State and now make up six women members of parliament following last weekends by elections results. The warrant of appointment was issued Monday for the six constituencies that went to the polls last Friday, plus the two extra women members appointed under Article 44 of the constitution that...