PAC - Pacific Islands Broadcasting Association articles from March 2009

PAC - Pacific Islands Broadcasting Association archives from March 2009

U.S deploys stealth bombers to Guam for the first time.
March 2, 2009... 02 MARCH 2009 ORLANDO (Pacnews) ---- The United States has begun operating two types of radar-evading aircraft, a bomber and a fighter, for the first time together in the Pacific, the head of U.S. air forces in the region said, reports Reuters....

Samoan PM isolated on Fiji views: Solomon Islands opposition leader.
March 2, 2009... 02 MARCH 2009 HONIARA (Pacnews) ---- Solomon Islands opposition leader has condemned the Samoan prime minister's criticism of Fiji's interim Prime Minister Commodore Frank Bainimarama, reports Radio Australia. Samoas Prime Minister...

Tough year for Pacific tourism.
March 2, 2009... 02 MARCH 2009 SUVA (Pacnews) ---- The body which represents the tourism industry throughout the Pacific is optimistic despite the global financial crisis, reports Radio Australia. South Pacific dot travel oversees the industrys interests in...

Solomon Islands Government terminate 105 USP students scholarship.
March 2, 2009... 02 MARCH 2009 HONIARA (Pacnews) ---- The Solomon Islands Government terminated the scholarship of 105 students studying at the University of the South Pacific (USP) because of poor performance, reports Solomon Star. This is the first time...

Warning over Pacific community job losses.
March 2, 2009... 02 MARCH 2009 WELLINGTON (Pacnews) --- A New Zealand Government adviser says he expects the Pacific Island community to suffer widespread job losses, because of the global economic downturn, reports Radio Australia. Taima Fagaloa is the...

Digicel to buy Telecom Cook Islands.
March 2, 2009... 02 MARCH 2009 RAROTONGA (Pacnews) --- Irish mobile telecommunications company Digicel has reached an agreement to buy Telecom Cook Islands, reports Cook Islands News. If all goes to plan, the deal will produce a handsome cash windfall for...

Options for Fijis economy.
March 2, 2009... 02 MARCH 2009 SUVA (Pacnews) --- Fijis business community has called on the interim Government to take heed of the suggestions given by the Reserve Bank of Fiji to improve the economy, reports Fiji Times. Fiji Employers Federation chief...

ADB, Marshall Islands host energy fair.
March 2, 2009... 02 MARCH 2009 MAJURO (Pacnews) ---- A fair promoting energy conservation at home and at work was held during the weekend in Marshall Islands capital Majuro. The outdoor event featured local non-government organizations and businesses...

US rights report on Fiji fair: Fiji Law Society President.
March 2, 2009... 02 MARCH 2009 SUVA (Pacnews) ---- The United States negative report on Fijis human rights standards has got the nod from the president of the Fiji Law Society (FLS), reports Fiji Live. Despite criticisms of the report by the interim...

PNGs health secretary vows to quit if nurses fail to get money.
March 2, 2009... 02 MARCH 2009 PORT MORESBY (Pacnews) ---- Papua New Guineas (PNG) health secretary Dr Clement Malau has vowed to resign from his post if nurses throughout the country are not paid their outstanding salary adjustments by 25 March, reports The...

NZ Foreign Minister would like Commonwealth to respect Forums position on Fiji.
March 2, 2009... 02 MARCH 2009 WELLINGTON (Pacnews) ---- Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) will meet in London this week to discuss the situation in Fiji, reports Radio New Zealand International. Fijis interim government is yet to set an election...

American Samoa and Niue to attend the 2009 Pacific Youth Festival.
March 2, 2009... 02 MARCH 2009 SUVA (Pacnews) ---- American Samoa and Niue have indicated their participation at the Pacific Youth Festival to be held in Fiji in July. Fijis acting director of Youth and Sports, Sakaraia Tuva Naivalu said the secretariat...

CNMI Governor Fitial says feds security concerns baseless.
March 2, 2009... 02 MARCH 2009 SAIPAN (Pacnews) --- CNMIs Governor Benigno R. Fitial says the U.S. Department of Homeland Securitys (DHS) conclusion that granting visa waiver to Chinese and Russian tourists who wish to visit Guam and Northern Marianas will pose...

Solomon Islands hospitality worker wins award for training.
March 2, 2009... 02 MARCH 2009 HONIARA (Pacnews) ---- Rarasu Restaurant in the Solomon Islands Malaita Provincial capital, Auki has been given an award under the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat, reports SIBC. The award will cover the costs of the owner of...

Strong Pacific NGO Contingent at UN Commission on the Status of Women.
March 2, 2009... 02 MARCH 2009 NEW YORK (Pacnews) ----- The 53rd Session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) opens today in New York and runs until Friday 13 March 2009 with the theme The equal sharing of responsibilities between women and men...

Guyana president says concerns over EPA still linger.
March 2, 2009... 02 MARCH 2009 GEORGETOWN (Pacnews) ---- As European Union (EU) and African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) parliamentarians gathered in Guyana last week for the their third joint parliamentary meeting to discuss the Economic Partnership Agreement...

Trans-Tasman travel deal within a year: PM Rudd.
March 2, 2009... 02 MARCH 2009 CANBERRA (Pacnews) --- Australian prime minister, Kevin Rudd, says Australia and New Zealand will try to get an agreement within a year to make travel easier across the Tasman, reports Radio Australia. Mr Rudd has met his New...

Major conference on climate change in PNG.
March 2, 2009... 02 MARCH 2009 PORT MORESBY (Pacnews) ---- A major conference on the impact of climate change will be held next month in Port Moresby where 18 papers covering all aspects of the subject will be presented by engineers, scientists and academics,...

Australia promises tough talk at whaling meeting.
March 2, 2009... 02 MARCH 2009 CANBERRA (Pacnews) --- Australia's Environment Minister Peter Garrett has defended the government's efforts to try to stop commercial whaling, reports Radio Australia. Japan is set to resume imports of whale meat from Norway...

Fijis interim attorney general defends economic record, no help for Fiji sugar.
March 2, 2009... 02 MARCH 2009 SUVA (Pacnews) ---- Fiji's interim attorney-general, Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum, has rejected accusations that the 2006 military coup is responsible for a deterioration in Fiji's economy, reports Radio Australia. He was responding...

Papua New Guinea creates its first naturalpreserve.
March 3, 2009... 03 MARCH 2009 PORT MORESBY (Pacnews) ---- Papua New Guinea (PNG) has created a nearly 190,000-acre preserve to protect tree kangaroos and other endangered species, after years of criticism for turning a blind eye to environmental issues, a...

Water plan helps sinking Kiribati stay afloat.
March 3, 2009... 03 MARCH 2009 CANBERRA (Pacnews) ---- A group of Australian scientists is helping to save a tiny central Pacific island nation from a dangerous byproduct of rising sea levels. Kiribati is slowly being swamped by salt water, shrinking the...

More female MPs 'likely' in PNG.
March 3, 2009... 03 MARCH 2009 PORT MORESBY (Pacnews) ---- The only female MP in Papua New Guinea (PNG) says she is hopeful that she will see three more women serving in government by the next session of parliament, reports Radio Australia. Dame Carol Kidu...

Torres region calls for police station.
March 3, 2009... 03 MARCH 2009 TORRES STRAIT(Pacnews) ----- Torres Strait authorities are demanding a police station to protect their communities, citing rising crime and delays of up to three days for police to respond to triple-0 calls, reports The West . ...

CNMI, American Samoa want industry committees to set wage hikes.
March 3, 2009... 03 MARCH 2009 WASHINGTON (Pacnews) ----- Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) Governor Benigno Fitial, American Samoa Governor Togiola Tulafono, and American Samoa Delegate Eni Faleomavaega have joined together to urge Congress and...

How your business can support Earth hour.
March 3, 2009... 03 MARCH 2009 SUVA (Pacnews) ---- With more than 681 cities in 76 countries already signed up to turn their lights out on March 28, Earth Hour 2009 is shaping up as one of the greatest voluntary actions the world has ever seen. In the...

UN must revitalise commitment to unfinished decolonisation efforts Ban.
March 3, 2009... 03 MARCH 2009 NEW YORK (Pacnews) ----With 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories still remaining, the United Nations (UN) must step up its decolonisation efforts, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said, calling for greater cooperation between these...

Massive gas find in PNG.
March 3, 2009... 03 MARCH 2009 PORT MORESBY (Pacnews) ---- The discovery of a large reservoir of top quality natural gas in Papua New Guinea (PNG) has placed the Pacific nation among the top producers of liquefied natural gas at world markets, Prime Minister...

US congressman wants resolution to nuclear test legacy.
March 3, 2009... 03 MARCH 2009 MAJURO (Pacnews) ---- An American congressman in the Marshall Islands to mark the 55th anniversary of the most powerful U.S. hydrogen bomb ever exploded said Sunday he hopes that President Obama will pay more attention to Americas...

Australian parliamentary secretary for Pacific Island affairs to visit Bougainville.
March 3, 2009... 03 MARCH 2009 PORT MORESBY (Pacnews) ---- Australias aid programme in Bougainville and its assistance in the fight against HIV and AIDS in Papua New Guinea (PNG) are the focus of discussions for Australian parliamentary secretary for Pacific...

EU fails to pledge climate aid to poor nations.
March 3, 2009... 03 MARCH 2009 BRUSSELS (AFP) EU environment ministers on Monday failed to agree on how to support poorer nations to fund the fight against climate change, and kicked the problem upstairs to the heads of state and government, reports AFP. ...

Australian PM Rudd and New Zealand PM Key announce Pacific study on financial crisis.
March 3, 2009... 03 MARCH 2009 SYDNEY (Pacnews) ---- Australias Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and his New Zealand counterpart, John Key, have announced a joint study on the implications of the global economic downturn on the Pacific Islands. The announcement...

Fiji trade deficit widens, remittances down, cost of living eases.
March 3, 2009... 03 MARCH 2009 SUVA (Pacnews) ---- Fiji continues to buy more than it sells, adding to a deteriorating trade balance that has worsened by 30 per cent to $1.9 billion (US$1 billion) by November last year, the Reserve Bank of Fiji has revealed,...

Out-of-work Kiwis may replace migrants as seasonal labour.
March 3, 2009... 03 MARCH 2009 WELLINGTON (Pacnews) ---- Farming leaders in New Zealand are looking to redundant domestic workers to fill seasonal labour gaps, potentially replacing short-term migrant workers from the Pacific, reports NZ Herald . Fonterra...

UN report warns fishing industry on climate change.
March 3, 2009... 03 MARCH 2009 ROME (Pacnews) The fishing industry must do more to confront the effects of climate change as well as get a grip on the perennial problem of overfishing, said a UN report published Monday, reports AFP. The State of World...

PNG climate office seeks big role at EU meet.
March 3, 2009... 03 MARCH 2009 PORT MORESBY (Pacnews) ---- The Papua New Guinea (PNG) Government is determined to be more than a mere observer at the Denmark climate change meeting scheduled for December, reports The National. It wants to be a major player...

Pacific NGO voices strong opposition to shipping nuclear fuel through the region.
March 3, 2009... 03 MARCH 2009 SUVA (Pacnews) ---- The Pacific Concerns Resource Centre (PCR) says its strongly opposed to plans for France to ship nearly two tonnes of recycled nuclear fuel to Japan, reports Radio New Zealand International . The French...

PNG deputy police commissioner i suspended.
March 3, 2009... 03 MARCH 2009 PORT MORESBY (Pacnews) --- Papua New Guineas (PNG) deputy Police Commissioner and chief of operations Geoffrey Vaki has been suspended from duties for 21 days, reports The National. According to police reports, Mr Vaki...

China firm signs F$70m Fiji contract.
March 3, 2009... 03 MARCH 2009 SUVA (Pacnews) ---- China Railway First Company Ltd has signed a contract with Fijis Housing Authority (HA) and Public Rental Board (PRB) for the construction of low cost housing in three Suva suburbs. The signing of the...

WTO director urges trade instead ofprotectionism.
March 3, 2009... 03 MARCH 2009 SYDNEY (Pacnews) --- The head of the World Trade Organization praised Brazil for its open-minded trade decisions and cautiously welcomed the U.S. stimulus package, saying countries battling the global economic crisis must resist...

Tonga petroglyphs hint at Isle link.
March 3, 2009... Reports from the Honolulu Advertiser. 03 MARCH 2009 HONOLULU (Pacnews) ----- Beach erosion on a remote island in Tonga has revealed a trove of petroglyphs that archaeologists say are similar to those found in Hawai'i, hinting at the...

28 charged over East Timor President assignation bid.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 DILI (Pacnews) ---- Authorities in Dili have charged 28 people, including Timorese-born Australian Angelita Pires, over last years attacks on East Timor's top two political leaders. Prosecutors say they will ask a Dili court...

Report on Solomon Islands party integrity bill ready for parliament.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 HONIARA (Pacnews) ---- Solomon Islands Parliament will debate the report on the proposed Political Parties Integrity Bill in the coming sitting which starts this Thursday, reports Solomon Star. The report contains the...

Major PNG Hospital faces closure.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 PORT MORESBY (Pacnews) ----- The Port Moresby General Hospital in Papua New Guinea (PNG) faces closure as the nurses strike drags on, Post Courier reports. The nurses are on strike over unpaid 2006 award and salary...

Air Pacific half-full flights spark concern.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 SUVA (Pacnews) --- Fijis national carrier Air Pacific fears that the overall tourist arrival rate could be well down this year with the airline seeing flights off the ground half-full, reports Fiji Times. Chief executive John...

Negative outlook for Fiji's credit rating.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 SYDNEY (Pacnews) --- The outlook on Fijis long-term sovereign credit rating has been revised down from stable to negative by the international rating agency Standard and Poors, reports Radio Australia. The sovereign credit...

Cook Islands Chamber supports Telecom Cook Islands sale.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 SUVA (Pacnews) ---- Cook Islands chamber of commerce is heralding news of the Digicel takeover of Telecom Cook Islands as good news, reports Cook Islands News . The Cook Islands community and businesses in particular have long...

APTC continues its success in the Pacific.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 SUVA (Pacnews) --- The Australian Pacific Technical College (APTC) continues its success in the South Pacific with the recent graduation of 17 students in Fiji from the APTC School of Tourism & Hospitality in Nadi. APTC is an...

Four years on, Fiji hope for hat-trick.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 DUBAI (Pacnews) -----Dubai is staging the fifth Rugby World Cup Sevens, and if the previous four are anything to go by, the tournament will be an absolute cracker. Scotland played host to the very first edition of the Melrose...

PNG landslide kills seven.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 PORT MORESBY (Pacnews) ---- Seven Papua New Guineans (PNG) have been killed by a landslide that has cut off the Highlands regions highway, locals report. Four primary school girls on their way to school were reportedly buried...

Research vital in war against HIV/AIDS: Kerr.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 PORT MORESBY (Pacnews) ----- HIV/AIDS interventions must be based on knowledge and be done rationally and in a scientifically sensible way, reports The National. Because of that, building a research base is very important....

Convicted Fiji Navy chief returns to work after jail.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 SUVA (Pacnews) ---- Fijis naval commander, Francis Kean has resumed duties. Mr Kean was convicted of manslaughter last year, but has been resinstated by Fijis military commander Commodore Frank Bainimarama. Military and...

Tuna firms start mission to Palau.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 GENERAL SANTOS CITY (Pacnews) ---- A 17-man delegation from the local tuna industry starts an investment mission in Palau today in a bid to address obstacles to operating in the island-states rich fishing grounds through joint...

New Caledonia boasts new reef transportation projects.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 NOUMEA (Pacnews) ----- Two reef transplantation projects in New Caledonia have been established to help protect valuable ecosystems from industrial pollution, reports Radio Australia. The projects are being funded by two of...

PNG Lihir Gold to raise $325 million to fund mine expansion.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 SYDNEY (Pacnews) --- Australian-listed gold miner Lihir Gold Ltd (LGL.AX) will raise US$325 million by selling new shares to fund expansion at its Lihir mine in Papua New Guinea (PNG) to benefit from strong bullion prices, it said...

Niue Government reinstates Tourist Authority.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 ALOFI (Pacnews) ---- The Niue Government has reinstated the Tourist Authority which was formed by legislation in 1992 and went into recess about five years ago, reports Radio New Zealand International . The new chair is Hima...

Fears over planned fee hike for foreign workers in Guam.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 HAGATNA (Pacnews) ----- Guam business leaders have expressed concern about a proposed increase in the hire fee for foreign workers, reports Radio Australia. Employers currently pay $US 1,000 to hire temporary overseas...

New Zealand foreign minister McCully out of order on foreign aid.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 (Pacnews) ----- Editorial from NZ Herald. New Zealand foreign minister Murray McCully appears to have no qualms about New Zealand's half-billion-dollar foreign aid programme being used as a tool of its diplomatic policy. The...

Ignore IBA report, Fiji Human Rights Commission tells interim government.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 SUVA (Pacnews) ---- Fiji Human Rights Commission (FHRC) has called on the interim Government to ignore the report compiled by the International Bar Associations Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI) on the rule of law in the country....

Bainimarama hopeful for a positive CMAG outcome.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 SUVA (Pacnews) ---- Fijis interim Prime Minister Commodore Frank Bainimarama says he hopes the outcome of Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) meeting, will not jeopardise the progress Fiji has made so far. CMAG will...

Political will needed to fight corruption in Solomon Islands.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 HONIARA (Pacnews) ---- Solomon Islands Government must take the lead in creating a legislative environment hostile to corruption if it is to fight this scourge, reports Solomon Star. Minister of Education and Human Resources...

RAMSI cop awaits trial in Australia.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 PORT MORESBY (Pacnews) ----- A Papua New Guinean (PNG) policeman in the RAMSI unit in Solomon Islands is awaiting a court trial in Canberra for indecent exposure which was allegedly committed last year in a hotel room, reports...

U.S. firm looks at American Samoas proposed call centres.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 PAGOPAGO (Pacnews) ---- A U.S. firm that trains and re-employs wounded American soldiers is looking at American Samoas proposed call centres as employment opportunity for returning injured service members, reports Radio New...

Outlook for Fiji rating downgraded to negative.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 SYDNEY (Pacnews) ----- International ratings agency Standard and Poors has revised the outlook on Fiji's long-term credit rating downwards, from stable to negative. The action follows a similar move by the other big...

Presidents Political Dialogue Forum can restore investor confidence in Fiji.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 SUVA (Pacnews) --- There is hope that the upcoming Presidents Political Dialogue Forum will boost investor confidence in Fiji, says University of the South Pacific (USP) academic Dr Biman Prasad, reports Fiji Live. And he...

Body to tackle border development issues in PNG.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 PORT MORESBY (Pacnews) ----- Papua New Guinea (PNG) Government expects economic development and security concerns on the border areas to be given top priority by the creation of the Border Development Authority (BDA), reports Post...

Telecom Vanuatu Limited cuts 19 staff.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 PORT VILA (Pacnews) ---- Telecom Vanuatu Limited has announced that it has released 19 of its staff. Vanuatu Daily Post reports the move comes as no surprise in the wake of a tough environment in the Vanuatu telecommunication...

British assistance towards UNIFEMs Pacific regional Facility Fund.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 SUVA (Pacnews) --- The British Government is donating 30,000 (US$42,000) towards UNIFEM's Pacific Regional Facility Fund in support of organisations and actions to eliminate violence against women. The establishment of the...

Champions Fiji ready to defend crown.
March 4, 2009... 04 MARCH 2009 DUBAI (Pacnews) ----Reigning champions Fiji are in confident moodgoing into Thursdays opening round of matches in the men's competition as theytry to become the first nation to win back-to-back Rugby World Cup Sevens titles. ...

Six months reprieve for Fiji a rare move, says New Zealand Foreign Minister.
March 5, 2009... 05 MARCH 2009 LONDON (Pacnews) --- Fiji has been given a six months reprieve by the Commonwealth before full suspension from the 53 member group. And it has until September this year to convince the Commonwealth that will hold elections,...

Millions of condoms left to rot in AIDS-ravaged Papua New Guinea.
March 5, 2009... 05 MARCH 2009 PORT MORESBY (Pacnews) ---- More than two million condoms paid for with Australian aid money have been left to expire in AIDS-ravaged Papua New Guinea (PNG), reports The Australian. The PNG Government's National AIDS Council...

Australia commit aid to Bougainville.
March 5, 2009... 05 MARCH 2009 BUKA (Pacnews) --- Australia has reiterated its commitment to helping Papua New Guinea's autonomous Bougainville region following the discovery of more than 2 million expired condoms, paid for with Australian aid money, reports...

107 convicted of crimes in November 16 riots.
March 5, 2009... 05 MARCH 2009 NUKUALOFA (Pacnews) ---- A total of 107 people have been convicted of offences relating to the Tongan riots of November 16, 2006, reports Matangi Tonga. Tongan acting Solicitor General, 'Aminiasi Kefu made the revelation at...

Former French Polynesia President dies of heart attack.
March 5, 2009... 05 MARCH 2009 PAPEETE (Pacnews) --- A former President of French Polynesia in the late 1980s, Alexandre Lontieff, has died aged 61 as a result of a heart attack, reports Oceania Flash. Mr Lontieff was president of French Polynesia twice, in...

Pacific will not escape global downturn warns ANZ CEO.
March 5, 2009... 05 MARCH 2009 APIA (Pacnews) ---- The Pacific despite its isolation from major international markets will not escape the impacts of the global financial downturn, reports Talamua online. Chief Executive Officer of ANZ Bank Worldwide, Mike...

Solomon Islands Airlines lower fuel surcharge.
March 5, 2009... 05 MARCH 2009 HONIARA (Pacnews) ---- Solomon Airlines says it will decrease its fuel surcharge on the Australian route from Brisbane to Honiara and return, with immediate effect, reports SIBC. The last International fuel surcharge increase...

Enhancing economic opportunities in the Pacific.
March 5, 2009... By Simon Crean, Australian Minister for Trade. 05 MARCH 2009 (Pacnews) -- I am an enthusiastic supporter of the PACER Plus regional economic initiative, which seeks to build on the existing Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations (PACER)...

Suspend Fiji now, no elections still: Fijis interim PM Bainimarama.
March 5, 2009... 05 MARCH 2009 SUVA (Pacnews) ---- Fijis interim Prime Minister and military commander Commodore Frank Bainimarama says the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) can go ahead and kick Fiji out now if it intends to do so in December. ...

Fijis ousted PM denies corruption charges.
March 5, 2009... 05 MARCH 2009 SUVA (Pacnews) --- Fijis ousted Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase denied charges of abuse of office in the High Court in Suva today, reports Fiji Live. Mr Qarase is charged with three counts of abuse of office and other related...

PNG Police Minister grilled over deals.
March 5, 2009... 05 MARCH 2009 PORT MORESBY (Pacnews) ---- Papua New Guineas (PNG) Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare was yesterday pressured to investigate allegations that millions of kina from the Police Department were pumped into a car rental company owned...

Solomon Islands PM told diplomatic missions expensive.
March 5, 2009... 05 MARCH 2009 HONIARA (Pacnews) ---- Solomon Islands Prime Minister, Dr Derek Sikua has been told that having diplomatic missions overseas is a very expensive exercise. Deputy foreign secretary Senda Fifii said id missions locations are...

Korean fuel supplier keen to provide fuel for Solomon Islands.
March 5, 2009... 05 MARCH 2009 HONIARA (Pacnews) ---- A Korean fuel supplier has expressed interest to supply fuel for Solomon Islands, reports Solomon Star. This means the country may soon import refined fuel commodity such as diesel, petrol and kerosene...

Bank interest rates go down in Cook Islands.
March 5, 2009... 05 MARCH 2009 RAROTONGA (Pacnews) ----- Its good news for home owners and businesses in Cook Islands with all three banks having lowered interest rates from the start of this week, reports Cook Islands News. Westpac has reduced rates by...

Credit rating firm puts New Zealand on notice.
March 5, 2009... 05 MARCH 2009 WELLINGTON (Pacnews) --- The credit ratings firm, Standard and Poor's, has warned New Zealand its sovereign 'double-A-plus' rating is at risk of a downgrade, if fiscal imbalances are not addressed, reports Radio Australia. ...