PINA

Vanuatu voters will head into a snap election within the next 60 days after President Nikenike Vurobaravu dissolved parliament, earlier this week. It's the fifth change in government since 2022, and widespread public disappointment has been reported as dissolutions and petitions of no confidence continue to disrupt the running of the country. Early this year, Vanuatu voted for a referendum to...

Tonga’s Internal Affairs Minister Lord Vaea has delivered a clear and urgent message on behalf of the Pacific Islands Forum at the UN ESCAP Asia-Pacific Ministerial meeting, highlighting both the progress and the challenges faced in advancing gender equality in the Pacific region. Lord Vaea emphasised the collective commitment of the 18-member regional bloc to a future where peace, security,...

As the clock ticks towards the end of COP29 in Baku Azerbaijan, Vanuatu has expressed deep concerns about the lack of progress made on some key ticket items, including the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) on climate finance, the Mitigation Work Program (MWP) and Global Goal on Adaptation (GGA). Speaking during the resumed High Level session at the Nizami plenary...

Pulaalii Nikolao Pula and Pulu Ae Ae Jr are the winners of Tuesday’s gubernatorial run-off election in American Samoa. They polled 5,846 votes or 59.8 percent of the 9,771 votes cast while incumbents, Governor Lemanu Peleti Mauga and Lt Governor Laapui Talauega Eleasalo Ale received 3,925 votes or 40.2 percent. The results are unofficial until after 7 days. Pula and Pulu topped...

Pacific Islands Forum Secretary General, Baron Waqa has issued a stark warning Wednesday to global leaders at COP29, declaring climate change the greatest existential threat to Pacific nations and urging swift action on climate finance and emissions reduction. “For our Pacific Island nations, climate change poses the single greatest existential threat to our survival. The rising sea levels in our...

The Solomon Islands has welcomed the focus of COP29 on climate finance. However, the COP Presidency and parties have been reminded not to lose sight of the need to keep global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. “Our survival and the health of our planet to be able to sustain life depends on limiting global temperature rise,” Trevor Manemahaga, Minister of Environment...

Thirty nine small island and low-lying nations have urged world leaders to ensure the so-called ‘climate finance COP’ in Azerbaijan offers a beacon of hope for the “unheard voices” who deserve “climate justice.” Pacific Islands, Caribbean, African, Indian and South China Seas States, who are members of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS), have also called for COP29 to...

The Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) has taken direct aim at the fossil fuel industry, calling them out for continuing to enjoy record profits at the peril of communities whose ‘lived reality’ is that of devastating climate crisis impacts. Raising his voice on the world’s biggest climate change stage at COP29 in Baku Azerbaijan on Wednesday, Permanent Representative of the...

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the governments of Solomon Islands and Tonga have signed grant and loan agreements for energy projects on the sidelines of COP29. The ADB-supported projects will help the Pacific countries to transition from dependency on diesel fuel imports to renewable energy. Solomon Islands Minister for the Environment, Climate Change, Disaster Management and Meteorology Trevor Mahaga and...

As the dangers posed by climate change become increasingly evident worldwide, the need for reliable and accurate information on the impact of the environmental crisis is more crucial than ever. To address this, the United Nations, together with the Organisation’s education and science agency, UNESCO and the Brazilian government, launched the Global Initiative for Information Integrity on Climate Change on...