Press Release – Secretariat of The Pacific Community – SPC

Major threats to the Pacific region will be a part of discussions in a two-day Ministerial meeting to be held at the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) from November 7 and 8 at the Noumea headquarters of the regional organization. Read more »

Press Release – Secretariat of the Pacific Community

A new coconut processing manual published by the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) will assist community-based producers in the Pacific to improve the quality of their value-added coconut products to meet international market requirements. Read more »

Press Release – West Papua Media Alerts

The UN Commission to Combat Racial Discrimination and Protect the Rights of Indigenous People has sent a letter to the Indonesian ambassador to Geneva, Anwar Kemal, regarding several matters. Read more »

Press Release – SPREP

The Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) www.sprep.org All news on the UNCCD COP 10 is available at www.bionesian.blogspot.com Headlines • UNCCD a priority for Fiji • Science valuable to combating land degradation … Read more »

Article – BusinessDesk

Oct. 7 (BusinessDesk) – New Zealand shares ended the week on a high, joining a global rally on signs Europe is beginning to take steps to address its debt crisis. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index rallied more strongly and Australian companies … Read more »

Press Release – The Maori Party

MP for Te Tai Tonga, Rahui Katene is concerned at the latest findings from a report from the office of the Auditor-General which claims that regional councils are not doing enough to prevent the degrading of fresh water by dairy farms. Read more »

Press Release – Citizens’ Constitutional Forum

The plight of over 200,000 of our people continues to hang in the balance as the Fiji government has not taken any credible steps to convince the European Union to restore the $200 million in assistance which includes funds earmarked for the Sugar … Read more »

Press Release – Oxfam NZ

It’s been a long time coming and it’s about to happen – the world is coming to New Zealand. Rugby World Cup? Yes, but there is another event with even more importance to the lives of the Pacific’s people. This week Auckland is hosting the Pacific … Read more »

In favour: The team of Pacific students from the University of Auckland debate the positives of focusing government attention on urban development to support economic growth in in the Pacific. Photo: Chen Bei / PMC

Pacific Scoop:
Report – By Chen Bei

To urbanise, or not to, that is the question.

A quick poll on Facebook asked seven people from China, Germany, India, Japan, Russia, South Korea and the US: what kind of image comes to mind when talking about Pacific nations like Fiji, PNG, Tonga and Cook Islands?

“Coconut trees,” said Cathy Liu from China. “The serene ocean,” answered Diana Efimova from Russia. None of them failed to give a picture of a tranquil rural setting, where people are living an agricultural life teeming with fruit, fish and crops.

But is the rural landscape on the postcard unchanging? Read more »

Press Release – Pacific Cooperation Foundation

Demand for Pacific produced products is set to grow, with the launch of a major initiative today to strengthen export opportunities for Pacific Island producers. Read more »