A weekly round up of news, commentary and analysis from and about the Pacific island region:
- In Fiji, the People's Democratic Party is the first to release its manifesto ahead of the September elections. It includes a commitment to review the constitution and take Fiji back into the Pacific Islands Forum.
- Will increased tourism be enough to reverse the population decline of Niue? If so, the New Zealand Defence Force is not helping (h/t @mjfield).
- In a significant step forward for transparency, the government of Solomon Islands has published a report of actual income and expenditure against the 2013 budget.
- Tuisugaletua Sofara Aveau is Minister of Information, Communication & Technology in Samoa. He has collaborated with his wife to write a theme song for the forthcoming UN Small Islands Developing States conference.
- Kalafi Moala provides historical context to a longstanding geopolitical conflict between Fiji and Tonga.
- Whilst members of the Melanesian Spearhead Group are meeting to discuss cooperation on aviation and tourism, Fiji and Solomon Islands have withdrawn landing rights for each other's airlines.
- Matthew Dornan and I have been thinking about why it is so hard to deliver services on a regional basis in the Pacific.
- Karl Claxton & Natalie Sambhi take another look at the influence of Indonesia in the Pacific regional order.
- A recent Praxis panel looked at opportunities and challenges for women's economic empowerment in the region: