Islands Business partners

25/02/2025

Palau Community College - PCC is hiring! Details ⬇️

16/02/2025

Port Moresby, NCD – Steamships Trading Company (Steamships) and Laba Holdings Limited (Laba) are pleased to announce the formal establishment of Hebamo Transport Limited (HTL), a dedicated landside logistics company specialising in project cargo and heavy transport.

This milestone follows 14 months of collaboration since the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the two partners at the 2023 Sydney Investment Conference, culminating in the ex*****on of the Shareholders Agreement. The joint venture, structured as a 51%-49% partnership with Laba holding the majority stake, is now operational and positioned to play a key role in the downstream construction phase of the Papua LNG Project.

Read more: https://t.ly/x2VUT

03/02/2025

Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea – Steamships Hospitality and Coral Sea Hotels are proud to acknowledge the Grand Papua Hotel and Gateway Hotel and Apartments who both have achieved the SafeHotels Certification, the world’s leading safety and security certification.

SafeHotels is the first independent, global Hotel Safety and Security Certification providing certification standards based on best practice, safety, security and hygiene globally.

Undertaking the immense task of SafeHotels certification illustrates Steamships Hospitality and Coral Sea Hotels’ unwavering commitment to comfort, hygiene, safety and security of both our colleagues and guests. SafeHotels is about a passion for hotels and a passion for the highest standards of safety, security and hygiene when staying in a hotel. Standards are independently set through a world leading Certification program including on-site assessments by experts with years of knowledge and understanding of hotels across the globe.

The Grand Papua is the first hotel to be certified, let alone achieving Premium status, in all of Australasia and the Pacific Islands. Gateway Hotel and Apartments have also received certification. Steamships Hospitality is now embarking on certification across all properties across Papua New Guinea.

Learn more: https://t.ly/Gg69k

02/02/2025

02/02/2025

The Pacific’s commitment to nurturing the potential of its youngest learners took centre stage in December 2024 as Early Childhood Education and Care (ECCE) educators, ministry officials, and specialists gathered in Nadi, Fiji, for the School Readiness Reflection Gathering Workshop.

Held from December 3rd to 6th, the workshop marked the culmination of the pilot phase of the School Readiness Project, an initiative led by the Pacific Community’s (SPC) Educational Quality and Assessment Programme (EQAP) in partnership with the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER), regional governments, and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

Funded by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), this project aligns with the broader goals of the Pacific Regional Education Framework (PacREF) by preparing the region’s youngest learners for formal education and improving literacy and numeracy outcomes across all levels.

Over the course of four days, workshop participants including ECCE educators from eight Pacific Island countries reviewed the outcomes of the project’s pilot phase, which focussed on understanding how students transition into the first years of primary school and identifying ways to support this transition effectively.

The School Readiness Tool, adapted from the World Bank’s early Human Capability Index (eCHI) tool, has been contextualised to meet the unique needs of diverse Pacific communities. This workshop provided an opportunity to reflect on the implementation of this tool, share lessons learnt, and plan the way forward for scaling and sustaining the initiative.

To learn more, visit https://t.ly/xTpN4

30/01/2025

From Palau to the Pacific: Building Sustainable Energy Solutions Across Island Nations

In 2022, British electrical engineering company Utilligence secured a contract to install domestic solar systems in Palau through an Asian Development Bank partnership initiative. The project offers government-backed low-interest loans for household solar installations, enabling residents to reduce energy bills while managing affordable loan repayments.

Palau Solar operates as a locally managed venture in Koror, with a local workforce fully trained in renewable engineering. This approach provides cost-effective services with local employment and skills development. The Palau Solar team handles site surveys, system design, installation and maintenance, with support from Utilligence’s engineering expertise. To date, over 400 solar installations have been completed, making Palau Solar a leading installer in the Pacific region.

Read more @ https://t.ly/mEl_N

27/01/2025

Good news for SMEs exporting from the Pacific Islands!🫶
BLP Partner Quality Solutions is hosting a webinar on the 29th of January at 11:00 a.m. New Zealand Time

The free webinar will cover the following topics:

1. Case studies of Pacific Islands exporters reaping the benefits
2. How to get certified to increase access to formal markets
3. Business Link Pacific Subsidies

Register here: https://tinyurl.com/QSPIExport

Contact Quality Solutions using the BLP Portal👇

https://businesslinkpacific.com/search?term=Quality%20solutions&page=1

New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade DT Global Cook Islands Chamber of Commerce Tonga Chamber New Zealand High Commission, Rarotonga, Cook Islands New Zealand High Commission, Nuku'alofa, Tonga

27/01/2025

Life is often coloured by trials and achievements that reflect one’s strength, faith and perseverance. At just 18 years old, Joy Livia Susan Tinairaniunawa has faced some of life’s harshest challenges that have brought grief and loss.

While still in primary school, Tinairaniunawa’s life took a dramatic turn when she lost her mother in 2016. She found solace and a safe place to grieve in the home of her maternal grandparents, who took on the role of raising Tinairaniunawa and her two brothers.

“As you can imagine, it was hard losing my mum and I felt very helpless and afraid,” she shared.

“I am thankful that my grandparents took on the role of nurturing us. My grandfather became my biggest role model and a pillar of inspiration.

“He would always tell me to chase my dreams and pursue something that I was passionate about – instead of following the expectations of others.”

As an introvert, Tinairaniunawa credited her grandfather as the person who helped build her confidence and self-esteem.

Learn more about her journey of loss and perseverance @ https://t.ly/RPp-H

24/01/2025

📢 MEDIA RELEASE 📢

SPX and PNGX Group Sign MOU to Explore Technology Sharing Opportunities and Strengthen Strategic Collaboration

Fiji’s South Pacific Stock Exchange Pte Limited (“SPX”) and Papua New Guinea’s PNGX Group Limited (“PNGX Group”) have reaffirmed the commitment to fostering innovation and enhancing sustainability in the capital markets of Fiji, Papua New Guinea and the wider South Pacific region by entering into a Memorandum of Understanding (“MOU”) to explore technology sharing opportunities.

The MOU sets the foundation for deepening cooperation to advance shared objectives, including developing and deploying innovative market infrastructure that supports the growth and sustainability of capital markets in the region. This renewed partnership builds on the MOU signed by SPX and PNGX Markets Limited in December 2019.

More: https://t.ly/NuIHa

24/01/2025

Tahun Kava Exports, a client of Quality Solutions, has become the first female-owned kava exporter in Santo to achieve HACCP certification. With support from PACER Plus, the Vanuatu Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and local consultants at Quality Solutions, it successfully prepared for an independent audit conducted by Bureau Veritas from Australia. This certification not only creates formal and commercial market opportunities but also benefits the numerous kava growers who supply Tahun Kava Exports.

23/01/2025

17/01/2025

Maria Linibi’s work supporting more than 20,000 women farmers across Papua New Guinea has been recognised through a significant global award in 2024.

Linibi is the recipient of the 2024 Women’s International Network for Disaster Risk Reduction (WIN DRR) Excellence Award, recognised for her exceptional professional success in disaster risk reduction and represent the expertise and experiences that are needed to find solutions to understanding, preventing, and reducing the increasing disaster risk in the most disaster-prone region of the world.

Linibi hails from PNG’s Highlands region,and is the daughter of a coffee farmer; as a young child, she used to help him with the crop. Now as the head of the Papua New Guinea Women in Agriculture Development Foundation (WiADF), Linibi is a champion of climate-resilient farming systems. She works across a wide spectrum of stakeholders, from traditional leaders to research institutions, to promote indigenous crops and low-cost irrigation and agroforestry systems that mitigate the impacts of drought.

And she has done this by putting the needs and solutions of women first, and working in one of the most linguistically and culturally diverse nations on the globe.

While living in Morobe Province, Linibi came to farming relatively late, at 38 years of age, after being retrenched from her government job. Her specific achievements are too numerous to list but include securing funding for the installation of solar rice mills for women farmers and the installation of solar water pumps, which provide irrigation and potable water while relieving the burden on women who previously carried 20-litre containers of water up to 20 kilometers.

Learn more @ https://t.ly/wql5N

10/01/2025

In a historic occasion for the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) to amplify the Pacific’s call for climate justice, the sub-regional bloc’s Secretariat had the rare privilege of joining Vanuatu, to open the momentous International Court of Justice (ICJ) Advisory Opinion on Climate Change proceedings on 2 December, 2024.

Following months of preparation of legal submission, the ICJ oral hearing commenced just a week after developing nations denounced a deal at COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, saying that the provision of US$300 billion a year in climate finance by 2035 was insufficient and a far cry from the suggested US$1 trillion a year.

During their joint opening submission, MSG and Vanuatu argued that countries with major greenhouse gas emissions should be held liable and recompense for the damages of climate change on countries most affected, in particular the Pacific region, home of the largest sub-region.

Melanesia boasts almost 50% of the EEZ, the largest population (86%), land mass (98%), GDP (91%) and by some accounts, close to 90% of the natural resources per se within the Pacific Islands Forum area.

MSG’s submission to the ICJ focused on climate change and its nefarious impact on customs and traditions, biodiversity, and youth and children, threatening the very livelihood of our people. Additionally, it was aligned to add value to the national submissions by MSG members, representing the collective interests of the Melanesian sub-region.

The event also marked the culmination of months of collecting harrowing testimonies from across communities in Melanesia—stories of struggle and sacrifice—in a desperate bid to survive against the harsh realities of climate change. From extreme weather events, disruption of the food system, and coastal inundation due to storm surges, abnormally high tides, and sea level rise, to the relocation of entire villages, among others, it is clear that for Melanesia and the Pacific, it is entirely a matter of survival.

Read more @ https://t.ly/3sPny

08/01/2025

Many of the region’s leaders, past and present, rose from very humble beginnings. In that respect, Catastrophe Risk Insurance Company (PCRIC) CEO, Aholotu Palu, is no different. He attributes his modest upbringing in Tonga and his family’s firsthand experience with the dramatic impact of cyclones and other natural disasters in his home country as having a profound influence on the path he has pursued in later life. Looking back, it’s not hard to understand the determination he shows today in endeavouring to ensure the island nations of the Pacific have every opportunity to build and sustain their resilience to the financial and social impacts of devastating natural and climate-induced disasters.

Educated in economics, public administration, and international development, Palu found fertile ground for developing a deep understanding of the many challenges faced by government through roles held in Tonga’s Ministry of Finance and the Prime Minister’s Office over the course of almost 20 years. Directly engaged in the complexity of some of the most pressing domestic and regional issues of the day, he leveraged the wisdom and experience of others to develop essential skills in influence and diplomacy, and learned the true value of adopting a patient, strategic approach to achieving high-conviction objectives. Little did he know at the time just how well this would augur for the position he holds today.

With formidable expertise in public policy analysis, banking and investment, public sector finance, and sovereign loan negotiations, Palu was eventually drawn to opportunities beyond Tonga. He filled positions with the World Bank Group and the German development agency GIZ before taking up a role in the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat (PIFS). As the premier institution of advocacy on behalf of the Pacific Islands region, the time with PIFS did much to consolidate Palu’s policy and technical knowledge and connections with decision-makers throughout the region. It enabled him to develop an astute understanding of the specific context of each member nation’s needs and priorities, whilst at the same time crystallising the common threats and challenges faced. Among these, the escalating social and financial impact of increasingly frequent weather and seismic disasters resonated deeply.

Learn more @ https://t.ly/ZXghX