PINA

The Fiji Rugby Union (FRU), CEO John O’Connor today confirmed that he has received numerous queries regarding the status and involvement of Flying Fijians Head Coach Vern Cotter following the announcement Tuesday of the Flying Fijians 28-member squad, coaching panel and the management staff for the November tour. O’Connor reiterates that Coach Cotter remains the Head Coach of Flying Fijians...

The Fijian Drua, Super Rugby’s newest franchise, have today unveiled a distinct new brand identity, paying homage to the origins of the franchise name. The brand identity features the stylised version of the iconic drua, the renowned and powerful traditional Fijian sea vessel. The brandmark connects the franchise to its roots and symbolises the journey the Fijian Drua has embarked...

The Marshall Islands is urging collective global action over both the climate crisis and the pandemic. A low lying island country which has been a poster child for climate change impacts, the Marshalls remains one of the most vocal advocates for global moves to curb greenhouse gas emissions. And while the country has been largely free of Covid-19 cases, it has...

Cook Islands Prime Minister and COP 26 Pacific Political Champion for Climate Finance, Mark Brown, has welcomed New Zealand's recent announcement of $1.3bn (US$920 million) in grant-based climate financing between 2022 and 2025. The funding announcement ahead of the COP26 climate negotiations which begin next week, are a fourfold increase on New Zealand climate finance commitments towards the delivery of...

Fiji has recorded 146 new COVID-19 cases between 16 - 18 October. This, according to Permanent secretary for Health Dr James Fong. “Since the last update, we have recorded a total of 146 new cases, of which 85 new cases were recorded on 16/10/2021; 39 new cases on 17/10/2021, and 22 new cases in the last 24 hours ending at 8am...

The health impacts of COVID-19 are well known in places like Fiji and Papua New Guinea but even Pacific countries with no community transmission of the virus have been devastated by the economic fallout from the pandemic. A survey by aid organisation World Vision in PNG, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu and Timor Leste found that nearly 60 percent of households have...

While Fiji prepares to welcome Australian tourists back to its beaches for Christmas, other Pacific countries aren't rushing to follow suit. The announcement last week that Fiji would start accepting international visitors from December saw a flurry of holiday bookings to the tropical destination. Sydney resident Andrew Aston said planning a Christmas trip to Fiji with his partner Zac felt like...

Geopolitical competition in the Pacific is not necessarily the heated knife fight that international media often make it out to be. That's according to the president of the Federated States of Micronesia, a Pacific Islands country of significant geostrategic interest, who is taking an optimistic approach to the subject of regional security during a time of crisis. The FSM is an...

The loss of work and skyrocketing food prices, brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic, could lead to an increase in child stunting in the Pacific, experts have warned. A new report from World Vision, found that 60 percent of people in Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands and Timor-Leste having lost their job or main source of income due to...

By Nic Maclellan As France’s Overseas Minister Sébastien Lecornu visits Noumea, supporters and opponents of independence are debating whether the next New Caledonia referendum on self-determination should proceed in December. Key independence parties have long called for the referendum to be held in late 2022 and are pressing Lecornu to defer the poll. Anti-independence politicians believe that the vote should...