Oceania Vanuatu The new interest rate has been increased from 2,5% to 2,75%; the initiative of the Reserve Bank of Vanuatu aims to control inflation, with the economy expected to grow by 3,6% this year
Oceania Micronesia Nan Madol, a mysterious stone city built almost 1.000 years ago on the small South Pacific island of Temwen, has been named the 'Venice of the Pacific'
Oceania New Zealand The New Zealand government has been forced to defend its new tourism campaign aimed at attracting Australian tourists, called 'Everyone must go!", accused of being tone-deaf at a time when it is facing record emigration and unemployment rates
Oceania Australia Australian lawmakers and experts say there has been an increase in both anti-Semitic and Islamophobic incidents since the war between Israel and Hamas began on 7 October 2023, in what its leaders call a 'national crisis'
Oceania Samoa The Ministry of the Prime Minister and Cabinet condemned the views expressed in a forged e-mail supposedly from the Prime Minister, Fiame Naomi Mata'afa, addressed to members of the Fa'atuatua ile Atua Samoa ua Tasi party
Oceania Papua New Guinea The government might be forced to ban Facebook and TikTok completely if online attacks persisted, Prime Minister James Marape warned
Oceania Palau An innovative genetic study of ancient remains has revealed new insights into the ancestry and migration patterns of Palau's early inhabitants, distinguishing them from other Pacific island populations
Oceania Nauru The head of the Nauru Economic and Climate Resilience Citizenship Programme by Investment hopes the initiative will bring tens of millions of dollars to the island this year and has received the first two applications
Oceania Marshall Islands The end of January and the beginning of February saw the presence of several tuna transport ships in the Majuro lagoon, a sure sign of a resumption of transhipment activity
Oceania Fiji A recent cardiac screening conducted in the country, which examined over 8.000 children during awareness programmes, revealed that a disturbing 1,24% were diagnosed with congenital heart disease
Oceania Kiribati The newly crowned Miss Pacific Islands, Miss Samoa Litara Ieremia-Allan, has pledged to support Miss Kiribati, Kimberly Tokanang, in raising awareness and promoting climate change action in the Pacific region
Oceania Papua New Guinea The Central Cement and Limestone project took a step forward with the presentation of the initial draft of the community development agreement in Port Moresby with local landowners, the Mineral Resources Authority and Mayur Resources Limited
Oceania Samoa Samoa consolidated its place in the history of the Miss Pacific Islands pageant, emerging as the country with the most crowns since the regional competition began in 1987, as Miss Samoa Litara Ieremia-Allan won at 38th Miss Pacific Islands pageant