PINA

Although COVID-19 deaths continue to decline, vaccine inequity persists, the head of the World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Wednesday, again calling for greater support for developing countries. Agency chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus reported that the death toll from the disease is now at its lowest level in almost a year. “But it’s still an unacceptably high level – almost 50,000...

Fiji is likely to be hit by one to three tropical cyclones from November 2021 to April 2022, one of which will be a severe system, stated the Fiji Meteorological Service in its 2021/22 Tropical Cyclone outlook released this week. And the Western Division will face an “elevated risk”. “Average tropical cyclone activity for Fiji is likely this season, with one...

Tuvalu, a small atoll island nation in the Central Pacific Ocean, is one of few countries in the world to have so far evaded the pandemic. But, while it has achieved a milestone with no recorded cases of COVID-19, its population of about 11,931 continues to battle food uncertainties and poor nutrition. These challenges, present long before the pandemic...

By Ronald Toito'ona The dual impacts of over-fishing and climate change appear to have resulted in the depletion of fish stocks on various common fishing grounds used by local fishermen from Titiana village, in the Western province of Solomon Islands. Titiana is a coastal community of Micronesian decent, situated at the southern shore about 2 miles west of Gizo, the...

The Small Island Developing States (SIDS)are on a mission to demand more ambitious actions from major emitters and the restoration of the health of the global ocean and more importantly, an increase in climate financing for those affected by climate change. With about three weeks away from the 26th Session of the United Nations Climate Change Conference scheduled to be...

Two international statistics organisations have written to Fiji’s Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama to express their concern over the dismissal of the Fiji statistician, Kemueli Naiqama, as CEO of the Fiji Bureau of Statistics from office. Naiqama’s contract was terminated over the release of data desegregated by ethnicity and religious belief in the Fiji Household and Income Survey (HIES) last month. At...

The office of the President of Vanuatu has welcomed the decision of the Supreme Court on the Constitutional application of Ombudsman, Hamlison Bulu, over President Obed Moses Tallis’ recent pardoning of three former Prime Ministers. Principal Private Secretary of the State Office, Peter Bong, said they applauded the court decision which dismissed the application at the conference level. This, he...

The Office of the Electoral Commissioner(OEC) has announced Friday 12 November as the official polling day for Samoa’s seven pending by-elections. In a public statement the OEC confirmed Speaker Papalii Li’o Oloipola Ta’eu Masipa’u has issued the official warrant instructing the Electoral Commissioner to proceed with issuing of the Writs for the seven by-elections to return the seats of electoral...

UN Climate Change will cover the extra accommodation costs of developing country delegates who test positive for Covid-19 during the Cop26 climate talks and need to self-isolate. COP26 president designate Alok Sharma announced the latest solidarity measures in a speech in Paris on Tuesday, setting out his priorities and expectations for COP26. “It will be an extraordinary Cop in extraordinary times....

COVID-19 cannot be removed completely from society. Local and international health experts say discipline is needed to ensure people’s safety. Fiji Medical Association President, Dr Basharat Munshi said the Covid-19 is here to stay and vaccination will guarantee high levels of immunity. “This disease will be downgraded to like a common cold or flu. It will no longer be as deadly as...