PINA

Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape says the 2022 general election will cost Papua New Guineans about K500 million(US$142 million) with a huge portion going to the common roll update, pre-election planning and security operations. “This is why we have asked for the police and the Electoral Commission to submit a budget within the limit of the estimates,” he...

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Government of Vanuatu today signed a US$5 million grant to help fund the preparation of ADB-supported land, maritime, and aviation projects in Vanuatu. Vanuatu’s Minister of Finance and Economic Management Johnny Koanapo and ADB Pacific Department Director General Leah Gutierrez signed the agreement, which will fund assessments, planning, and capacity building for implementing...

Emerging opportunities and challenges in accessing climate finance to build resilience to climate change in the Pacific were identified during the second day of the 30th SPREP Meeting of Officials. According to a report released in 2017, titled ‘Climate Finance in the Pacific: An overview of flows to the region’s Small Island Developing States, a total of US$748 million in...

Illegal logging in Papua New Guinea represents a major money laundering threat as it generates very large illegal profits and it has a very high detrimental impact on the economy as well as the natural environment. This is according to a money laundering and financing of terrorism risk assessment published by the Bank of Papua New Guinea. The risk assessment says...

Efforts to effectively deal with mercury in the Pacific and a call for the development of a “Mercury Free Pacific Campaign” to phase out mercury containing products, was highlighted to Members attending the 30th SPREP Meeting of Officials, with the theme of “Accelerating actions for a resilient Blue Pacific”. The Minamata Convention on Mercury is the most recent global agreement...

Even with the emergence of the new Mu COVID-19 variant, the Delta strain remains the top concern globally, appearing to “outcompete” others, senior officials with the World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Tuesday. “I think the Delta variant for me is the one that's most concerning because of the increased transmissibility,” said Dr Maria Van Kerkhove, the agency’s Technical Lead...

In a world reeling from the spread of the COVID-19 delta variant, one of the strictest quarantine border controls has kept the Marshall Islands COVID-free. A four-week managed quarantine — two weeks in Honolulu and two in the Marshall Islands — is required for any inbound traveler. Only one case, in July 2020, was picked up in managed quarantine at...

There has been an increase in the trade and movement of guns along Papua New Guinea’s borders in preparation for the 2022 national election in the Highlands, a senior PNG police officer says. Border Divisional Commander Chief Superintendent Peter Philip said that the firearms were being traded for marijuana or the drugs were sold and the money used to buy...

Fiji has recorded 160 new cases of COVID-19 and five new deaths Tuesday, increasing the total number of cases in the island nation to 48,083 and 523 deaths since the outbreak in April. Fiji's Permanent secretary for Health, Dr James Fong said 88 cases are from the Western division and 72 cases are from the Central division in Vitilevu, Fiji's...

Victoria will get an extra 1,500 Pacific Islander workers to fill shortages on farms, but the farming federation has warned more quarantine facilities are urgently needed to meet the agriculture industry’s needs. The state government has faced criticism in recent weeks from the sector amid fears that demand for workers would overwhelm supply from next month. The Victorian Farmers Federation welcomed...