Pacific

Australia's foreign minister has announced financial assistance to Pacific countries struggling with drought brought on by this year's severe El Niño.

Julie Bishop yesterday toured areas of Papua New Guinea's Highlands with foreign minister Rimbink Pato.

The PNG government estimates a million people in the Highlands are in a state of distress as a result of months of severe drought and frosts, which has killed crops and dried up water supplies.

The United Nation Secretary General’s Envoy on Youth is alarmed at the rate of unemployment in the Pacific region.

Ahamad Alhendawi told the High Level Dialogue on Youth at the Pacific Community (SPC) Conference in Alofi, Niue that 23 percent of young people in this region are unemployed.

“National youth unemployment rates in some countries of the region stand at 50 or 60%. 

A small but energetic team of agriculture and food production stakeholders and entrepreneurs from the Pacific are currently in the Caribbean region this week exchanging ideas with their Caribbean colleagues with the hope of bringing back home valuable ideas.                                                   

Australia has announced that it will support the Pacific in its quest to have a legally binding agreement at the United Nations Climate Change (COP21) talks in France later this month.

Minister for International Development and the Pacific Steven Ciobo, made the revelation while launching the Tide Gauge system in Niue Wednesday.

The announcement is good news for the region as pleas from Pacific Islands to Australia in the past to reduce its greenhouse emissions fell on deaf ears.

The United States says it is providing US$5 million dollars for a Pacific climate change strengthening project.
 
The US Ambassador to Fiji, Judith Cefkin, made the announcement during the Pacific Community Conference underway in Niue.
 

Kumar says there is a possibility that the country should expect to have Fiji cyclone season earlier instead of November, the usual month.

He said the official Tropical Cyclone season was from November to April, but records showed cyclones occurred outside the official tropical cyclone season.

“The current El Nino has a potential to change the distribution and frequency of tropical cyclones in the region. Please note that apart from August and September, tropical cyclones have occurred in all other months in the South Pacific,” Kumar said.

The Committee aims to provide a platform for Pacific Island countries to present their gap analysis and training needs assessment under the project, set out their work plans and identify possible development partners and donors for collaboration.  

This regional gathering serves as a follow up to the recently completed in country consultations held in each of the 15 countries in order to identify priority areas needing further educational development as well as identifying partners for possible collaboration.  

Surveys have been held this year and an application to add the sea shelf beyond the internationally recognised 200-mile Exclusive Economic Zone is expected to be submitted within two years.

This comes just days after France added a total of half a million square kilometres off New Caledonia and its territories in the Atlantic Ocean after a favourable recommendation by the United Nations' Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf.

The EU issued the 'yellow card' after a pirate tuna vessel was busted fishing in Papua New Guinea waters by the NGO three weeks ago.

This means Taiwan, which has the biggest fishing fleet in the Pacific, may face European sanctions and import bans if changes aren't made.

An oceans campaigner for Greenpeace, Karly Thomas, says Taiwan has too many boats flying its flag with too little control.