Results for Pacific Islands

Australia will donate up to $500k to combat the Zika virus as part of an aid package to Pacific island countries to stop it from spreading and the initial focus of fighting the virus would be in Tonga, after it was confirmed five people contracted the virus and 259 suspected last week in Tonga.

Ways to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing in Tonga’s waters to protect tuna resources were discussed at a three day workshop held by Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA) officials in Tonga from 25-29 January 2016, when a new monitoring strategy was implemented.

Pacific Island nations and territories will continue to receive help to strengthen development needs thanks to New Zealand’s largest volunteer agency, Volunteer Service Abroad (VSA), for signing a three year Memorandum of Understanding with the Pacific Community (SPC).

Tonga is one of four Pacific island countries chosen by the Commonwealth Secretariat in London for a study of small island states that looks at governance and levels of vulnerability and resilience to external shocks. Visiting Nuku’alofa this week a team of three researchers were building up a profile of Tonga’s strengths and weaknesses in its ability to govern itself and respond to challenges.

Tonga and the rest of the Pacific Islands could tap into an online market to create thousands of jobs in IT-related industries according to a World Bank study released in December.

Dr Audrey Aumua has been appointed as the new Deputy Director-General of the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC), and a representative of the Director-General of the SPC, Dr Colin Tukuitonga to Suva, Fiji.

The leadership of Tuvalu's Prime Minister Enele Sopoaga at the COP21 negotiations has been praised by the new head of the Pacific’s environmental agency, Kosi Latu.

Five days of exhaustive talks at the annual meeting for the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission (WCPFC) have yielded mixed results for Pacific Island states, in Bali this week. Among the major successes, members were able to agree on a target reference point for skipjack tuna - the Pacific’s most valuable stock. However, other important and fragile fish stocks like albacore tuna will have to wait another year for development of harvest strategies

Development remains at the centre of a PACER Plus negotiation that is currently on the way in Nadi, Fiji this week, 7-9 December between trade officials from Pacific Island Countries (PICs) and their counterparts from Australia and New Zealand.