Lockdown

Pacific online banking activity increases during lockdowns and Tongan tsunami and eruption

ANZ has seen a 30-percent increase in Pacific internet banking customers, which comes after Samoa and Kiribiti's nationwide lockdown, and recent Tonga events.

Banking has been unaffected by recent riots in the Solomon Islands.

ANZ banks in the Pacific are operational, in-line with government requirements with banks in Samoa back open tomorrow.

ANZ Regional Executive for the Pacific, Tessa Price said people can still access money in Tonga from their bank online or via ATM.

Over 100 Samoan seasonal workers depart for New Zealand before lockdown

The Ministry of Commerce Industry and Labour released a notice informing the public of the details of the workers departure.

The workers were advised to be at the airport at 9am to prepare for the charter flight on Saturday.

The Samoa Airport Authority also issued a public notice highlighting that the airport was off limits on Saturday, 22 January 2022.

The notice added; “This follows the Government's state of emergency (S.O.E.) restrictions.”

Kiribati goes into first lockdown after Covid flight cases

Under the new measures, people have been told to stay at home and social gatherings are banned.

Some 36 people on the flight from Fiji have tested positive. Four people have caught the virus from community transmission.

Until last week, Kiribati had recorded just two Covid cases.

Kiribati is one of the most isolated islands in the world. It is some 4,800km (2,980 miles) from its nearest continent, Australia.

Samoa considering a lockdown

Chairman of the ruling FAST Party and Minister of Agriculture, La'auli Leuatea Schmidt, revealed the increase in positive cases on television last night.

He gave no details on the five new passengers that have tested positive but said instead that he expected the National Emergency Operations Committee to make an announcement soon.

The Samoa Observer has said it understands Cabinet will hold an urgent meeting todayon Saturday to discuss a possible lockdown for the country.

Chinese woman stuck in lockdown with blind date

A woman, only identified as Ms Wang, posted on Chinese social media platform WeChat last week that she had got locked down with her date after visiting his house for a meal.

In the post, she said that she had recently returned to the city of Zhengzhou from Guangzhou ahead of the Lunar New Year.

"I'm getting quite old, so my parents arranged more than 10 blind dates for me," she said in this post. She wrote that her fifth date had said "he was good at cooking, and invited me to his house so he could cook a meal".

Bougainville to go into lockdown

This follows a surge in Covid-19 infections in recent weeks.

Last weekend alone there were four deaths at the main hospital in Buka and nine cases detected on Monday and Tuesday.

During the lockdown, issued by the regional pandemic controller, Clement Totavun, all educational institutions are to continue to operate, but at new hours of 8am to 2pm.

The main town markets are to close, but road side markets can still trade.

Other businesses, and government offices, can remain open but must apply the safety protocols.

Celebrations as city exits sixth lockdown

More than five million people have spent more than 260 days under restrictions, with Melbourne dubbed the "world's most locked down city".

This most recent lockdown, which has been in place since August, came to an end after 70% of the city's population received both vaccine doses.

Images from the city's reopening show people celebrating in bars.

Some people on social media reported hearing fireworks and cheering in celebration.

Samoa businesses worried about lockdown for vaccination rollout

The Samoa Observer reports the Chamber's CEO Lemauga Hobart Va'ai concerned the two-day lockdown will affect the income of the country's businesses, and it should instead target the unvaccinated population.

Lemauga said Samoa's business community has gone to extensive efforts to ensure their workforce is fully vaccinated and Chamber of Commerce members report vaccination rates of 80 percent and above.

He said there's an overwhelming concern from businesses about the two-day lockdown and they await a response from government including guidelines about the roll out.

Samoa to go into 2-day lockdown for vaccination

The expiry date for its stock of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine is fast approaching and people are still dragging their feet on getting vaccinated.

The Ministry of Health is instructing people to stay home on Thursday and Friday as its roving teams vaccinate every eligible person in each household.

As of Friday, over 99,000 people or 84.4 per cent of the eligible population had received the first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine, while just over 50,000 had received both doses, according to Ministry of Health data.

Samoa to go into 2-day lockdown for vaccination

The expiry date for its stock of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine is fast approaching and people are still dragging their feet on getting vaccinated.

The Ministry of Health is instructing people to stay home on on Thursday and Friday as its roving teams vaccinate every eligible person in each household.

As of Friday, over 99,000 people or 84.4 per cent of the eligible population had received the first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine, while just over 50,000 had received both doses, according to Ministry of Health data.