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This may have been true in the past but the student writers of this Blog have been supported by Ms Vivian Yu the DFAT financial adviser to the Ministry of Health and Medical Services, who has attended the class to clarify understanding of the financial system, which undoubtedly has its problems but is being tightened up. Thank you Vivian.

This sums it all..Thank you Daniel Evans. Guess it takes people like you to paint the reality of things. Awesome Job.

Very informative piece on Solomon Islands politics and the matter of oil spill in Rennell Island. For sure all the elected leaders (MPs) and the PM are slumbering.

Hi professor, I am a current student studying your CRWF 8000. I have thought the question of democracy in China for a long time, but have less chance to dicuss in China because of its sensitivity. Now I am so happy to see lots of rational opinions and please to share my ideas. A large number of original Singaporean came from China, which means the cultures are quite similar between two countries, so it is a good reference to research feasibility of institution. But I want to present another case-democracy in The Republic of China (1912-1949). During this period, the president, Sun Yat-sen, bravely initiated democracy reform according his previous experiences in The United States. However, the result seems insignificant. The commons still called him-"my lord", and thought him is a new emperor; Many people did't even know why they vote or whom to vote. China is a huge country with a much long history, with the traditional culture deeply underpining Chinese. It only costs less than 50 years to become a modern country, while 50 years is far less to significantly affect Chinese culture which exists for up to 5000 years. What I want to say is that democracy is still distant for Chinese people based on their knowlege and cognitive level, at least in the near future. If we force to initiate democratic reform, we cannot imagine what chaos would happen in this country where there are enormous area, resources and population, regardless to say economic growth.

Thanks Daniel. Your article has done us justice.

Interesting Richard. Thanks for bringing to surface the challenges by the labour sending states in the Pacific. We are still optimistic given the Australian PM's recent visit to the Pacific and the commitment by our leaders towards the "vuvale" concept to be signed later in the year.

Thanks for this informative post Richard. It is a puzzle that the APTC, which in my view is a great concept, has not had the success envisioned by its architects in facilitating mobility of skilled workers between the islands on the one hand and Australia and New Zealand on the other. The contrast with the SWP is stark. While data is sparse, there is little evidence to suggest that the APTC facilitated much movement between the islands either. USP, in contrast, has facilitated movement of professional staff between the islands (Fiji particularly) and ANZ, and across the island region. This is something I am digging into now.

Spot on Daniel.The sad realities of Solomon politics

Prioritisation of needs props up (in this essay) as one of the major factors that inhibit the political stance on the environmental disaster unfolding in a state across our beloved ocean. Solomon Is needs to start discussing environmental safeguards as much as economic growth enablers (int'l corporations entry permits), concessional loans for nation building, corruption, VAW etc...and building this narrative requires stakeholders with much visibility (donors/intl NGOs/multinational corps) to empower and support citizens

Thanks Soph for your kind words. I came across this clip after I wrote the piece which is far better at painting a picture than I am: https://vimeo.com/260186730

Really good, critical and balanced piece! Well done, Daniel

Thanks Dan. Really enjoyed reading this. Of all the recent media articles, your article positioned it in a broader context. Thanks.