Page 7 - Islands Business January 2021

Briefs Briefs

years. Prior to the pandemic, Nauru Airlines operated pas- and publishing data from its findings but there’s interest from
senger services from Brisbane to Nauru and then onto Tarawa, other miners.
Majuro and Nadi. Now all passenger services except for a fort-
nightly Brisbane-Nauru service have been suspended, however
Bowmaker says its cargo business has been operating well. Tonga
Tonga’s deputy Prime Minister, Sione Vuna Fa’otusia, has re-
signed after signing a motion of no confidence in the country’s
Niue prime minister. The no confidence motion failed in early Janu-
An extended and stronger Sir Robert’s wharf in Niue has been ary. Its backers claim Prime Minister Pohiva Tu’i’onetoa has
officially opened by Premier Dalton Tagelagi. The wharf, a engaged in inappropriate government spending.
critical part of Niue’s infrastructure, needed major structural
work after damage from successive cyclones. The work was Approximately 20 tonnes of Tongan watermelons were air
completed by New Zealand company Bays Underwater. freighted to New Zealand at the end of December. It was the
first consignment since suspension of watermelon exports
from the Kingdom to NZ after the discovery of live fruit fly
larvae in an earlier shipment.
Papua New Guinea
15 people have died by a landslide at an alluvial mining site in
Goilala. During a visit to the site, Prime Minister James Mar-
ape said no one should be blamed for the accident, as it was a Tuvalu
natural disaster. Central Governor, Robert Agorobe said while Tuvalu’s Government has announced its plans to become the
there was no village at the location, the alluvial gold mining world’s first paperless society using Bitcoin Satoshi Vision
camp “brought people from all over Goilala with the prospect (BSV) and its digital public ledger. Tuvalu intends to work with
of making it rich from mining gold in a very traditional way.” blockchain technology company nChain, the Bitcoin consultan-
cy Elas Digital, and the community-tech consultancy Faiā. The
PNG’s acting chief migration officer, Robert Kennedy, has plan to move the country’s national register to the blockchain
been charged with official corruption for allegedly improperly will be followed by an exploration into digital currency.
hiring vehicies. But Kennedy says similar charges against him
were dismissed by the courts last month, and the charges
come as the National Executive Council deliberates on his Vanuatu
substantive appointment. The United Nations has endorsed Vanuatu’s graduation from
Least Developed Country (LDC) status, with deferment of all
International Support Measures for five years. Prime Minister
Bob Loughman says this deferment will “give ample time for
Samoa Vanuatu to implement its smooth transition strategy and fully
Flooding just before Christmas has caused US$3.9 million in recover from the impacts of COVID-19 and TC Harold.”
damage to infrastructure says the Samoa Water Authority.
Damage was caused by heavy overflow and contaminated Former prime minister Charlot Salwai has been acquitted
water entering the system and damage to pipes and plants. of bribery and corruption charges. Justice G.A. Wiltens said
Salwai was not acting in self-interest, nor that of his family,
The iconic Sinalei Reef Resort and Spa in Samoa is closing when he appointed Jerome Ludvaune as minister of health
down, another victim of the coronavirus pandemic and border and Tom Kerr as parliamentary secretary in November 2013.
closures. Manager Sose Annandale has told the Samoa Ob- Ludvaune, Kerr and former agriculture minister Matai Ser-
server the closure is “heart-breaking” but that “we probably emaiah were also cleared of charges.
should have closed our doors sooner than this to be honest.”
It may re-open once borders open.

Solomon Islands Region
The Solomon Islands government has revoked a license award- Negotiators have agreed on a new, 20-year treaty that
ed to Winning Resources to prospect for bauxite on Rennell will broadly define relations between the EU’s 27 member
Island. The World Heritage protected site was the location of countries and 79 nations that belong to the Organisation of
a major oil spill in 2019. Indonesian miner Bintan is already African, Caribbean and Pacific States. Replacing the Coto-
extracting bauxite from the site. Director of Mines, Nicholas nou Agreement, the new accord must still be finalised and
Biliki says Winning Resources failed to meet any of the condi- ratified, but once complete, will set a framework for ties
tions of its licence such as making a commercial discovery between countries with a total population of more than 1.5
billion.

Islands Business, January 2021 7