Papua New Guinea’s 2022 national elections have been referred to as the worst in history. Transparency International PNG Executive Director Arianne Kassman told me, “The media was not allowed into counting centres. Mobile phones were confiscated at one stage. The media was not able to cover...
Category - Pacific and PNG
Scaling up access to assistive technology in the Pacific
Having worked in the assistive technology (AT) space in the Pacific for many decades, it was a relief for us to hear AT being highlighted as an important requirement for disability equity and inclusion at the recent ANU Development Policy Forum. AT is a broad term, including assistive products and...
Jack Golson and the long history of agriculture in PNG
Jack Golson, an Australian archaeologist who conducted important research in PNG, died in early September, just a few weeks before his 97th birthday. Jack’s great gift to Papua New Guinea was establishing that Papua New Guineans’ ancestors were among the earliest agriculturalists on earth...
Keeping it together, together: 2023 Pacific Urban Forum
Across 5-7 September, delegates gathered at the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat (PIFS) in Suva for the 6th Pacific Urban Forum (PUF). The PUF is a four-yearly event aimed at elevating urban issues in policy, with the most recent looking to “revitalise the Pacific New Urban Agenda” (formed at PUF4...
Tuvalu Constitution updated: culture, climate change and...
On 5 September 2023, I (Kofe) announced the unanimous passage by Tuvalu’s parliament of the...
A question for the Tongan courts
After an epic two-day sitting to hear a motion for a vote of no confidence (VONC) in Prime Minister...
How Kalsakau’s government fell
In November 2022 I wrote a blog predicting that Alatoi Ishmael Kalsakau’s reign was not guaranteed...
The Honiara Seminar: a proposal
Far-flung in the Pacific, Solomon Islands might seem isolated and insignificant on the global stage...
BPNG changes tack, but will it follow through?
Less than two years ago, the Bank of Papua New Guinea (BPNG) was insisting – in its September...
Beyond a seat at the table: towards disability equity in Asia...
While there has been some progress in our region for people with disabilities in the last decade...