The people of Kiribati celebrated the 45th anniversary of independence from the United Kingdom on 12 July 1979; the government planned a three-week programme with sporting events, singing and beauty contests

Two new 30-seater buses are set to improve student transportation after Rainbow Company Limited and Lu's Marine Services donated the vehicles to the Ministry of Education in a show of growing private sector support for education

34 new nurses, including eight future outer island doctors, are ready to begin their service in clinics across Kiribati after graduating from the classrooms of Bikenibeu

A blue alert for rotavirus remains in effect, especially in Betio, accounting for the most cases, as well as a blue alert for DENV-1 and DENV-2, with most cases counted in South Tarawa but a transmission rate still contained

NEC's East Micronesia Cable System EMCS now connects Kiribati with FSM and Nauru; the submarine fiber-optic cable has been handed out to state-owned telecommunications company Bwebweriki Net Limited BNL for local operations