Australia looks to roll out COVID-19 booster shots soon as curbs ease

Increase in bookings – Qantas and Jetstar schedule several flights

Qantas and Jetstar announced several new international flights on Friday, to start from November in light of increased bookings from Australians, and one of their most popular destinations was Fiji. The airline said it had experienced an increase of 200 per cent in bookings for its Jetstar flights following the Government’s announcement of the reopening...

New Zealand reports second-highest daily COVID-19 cases in pandemic

(Reuters) – New Zealand reported 109 new locally acquired coronavirus cases on Monday, the bulk of them in its largest city, Auckland, as the country saw its second-worst day of daily infections since the pandemic began. Once the poster child for stamping out COVID-19, New Zealand has been unable to beat an outbreak of Delta...

Fauci says vaccines for kids between 5-11 likely available in November

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Vaccines for kids between the ages of 5 and 11 will likely be available in the first half of November, top U.S. infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci said on Sunday, predicting a timetable that could see many kids getting fully vaccinated before the end of the year. “If all goes well, and...

Melbourne to ease more COVID curbs as 80% vaccination rate nears

MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Melbourne, the world’s most locked-down city that emerged from its latest spate of COVID-19 restrictions on Friday, will see more curbs eased next week when Victoria state reaches an 80% full vaccination rate, officials said on Sunday. Home to about five million people, Melbourne endured 262 days, or nearly nine months, of...

Prince Charles says “dangerously narrow window” to accelerate climate action

RIYADH (Reuters) – Britain’s Prince Charles, in recorded remarks at an environment event in Saudi Arabia on Saturday, said there was a “dangerously narrow window” to accelerate climate change action. Citing experts, he said the U.N Climate Change Conference COP26 due to start at the end of October must have nationally determined contributions (NDCs) with...

Russian, Chinese warships hold first joint patrols in the Pacific

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian and Chinese warships held their first joint patrols in the Western part of the Pacific ocean on October 17-23, Russia’s defence ministry said in a statement on Saturday. Moscow and Beijing, which staged naval cooperation drills in the Sea of Japan earlier in October, have cultivated closer military and diplomatic ties...

FDA says benefits outweigh risks for Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine in children

NEW YORK (Reuters) -Scientists at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said on Friday that the likely benefits of giving the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine to 5 to 11 year olds clearly outweigh the risks of rare cases of heart inflammation. Earlier on Friday, the vaccine makers said their shot showed 90.7% efficacy against the...

Australia’s Melbourne enjoys weekend of eased COVID curbs after long lockdown

MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Melbourne, Australia’s second-biggest city, began its first weekend out of the world’s longest string of COVID-19 lockdowns with spontaneous street parties, live music and packed pubs, bars and restaurants. Home to about five million people, Melbourne endured 262 days, or nearly nine months, of restrictions during six lockdowns since March 2020, longer...

Fiji and Australian universities launch school waste management campaign

The University of Fiji, in collaboration with the Australian National University and the Science Circus Pacific, launched the Secondary School Waste Management Campaign on Tuesday this week. The campaign was launched with the theme “Waste creators to waste managers”. Australian High Commissioner to Fiji John Feakes said the initiative provided an opportunity to better understand...

Rabuka lauds appointment of Fiji’s new head of State

Former prime minister and People’s Alliance Party leader Sitiveni Rabuka has lauded the appointment of the Tui Macuata as Fiji’s new President, saying the move was “a big turnaround from when Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama had told the Great Council of Chiefs to go drink homebrew under the mango tree”. He said the Government had...

Britain says investigating Delta subvariant as possibly more transmissible

LONDON (Reuters) – The UK Health Security Agency on Friday said it designated a Delta coronavirus subvariant called AY.4.2 as a “Variant Under Investigation”, saying there was some evidence that it could be more transmissible than Delta. “The designation was made on the basis that this sub-lineage has become increasingly common in the UK in...

Australia says EU has postponed free trade talks for second time

CANBERRA (Reuters) -The European Union has postponed the next round of free trade talks with Australia for a second time, the Australian trade minister said on Friday, amid simmering anger over Canberra’s decision to cancel a $40 billion contract with France. Dan Tehan said the 12th round of talks with the EU had been postponed...

UNICEF-US partnership to support Fiji’s and regional countries’ response to COVID-19

Fiji is among Pacific island neighbours that will benefit from a US$1.9million (approx. FJD$3.9m) partnership to support governments around the region with preparedness and response plans for COVID-19. This partnership between UNICEF and the United States government through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) was announced yesterday. Other countries that will benefit include...

New Zealand’s Ardern keeps going as earthquake disrupts live event

WELLINGTON (Reuters) – New Zealand’s Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern, paused briefly as an earthquake rattled the capital Wellington on Friday while she was addressing the nation in a coronavirus briefing, but then continued speaking. Wellington and nearby areas were shaken by a 5.9 magnitude earthquake with the epicentre 35 km (21.75 miles) south-west of Taumarunui...

Qantas to step up international flying amid ‘massive demand’ from Australians

SYDNEY (Reuters) -Qantas Airways Ltd said on Friday it would speed up plans to restart flights to many destinations and use some bigger planes amid “massive demand” for international flying as quarantine restrictions ease for Australian citizens. All 11,000 of the airline’s staff idled without pay, around half its workforce, will return to work by...

Melbourne reopens as world’s most locked-down city eases pandemic restrictions

MELBOURNE (Reuters) -Melbourne residents flocked to the city’s pubs, restaurants and hair salons in the early hours of Friday after the world’s most locked-down city emerged from its latest spate of restrictions designed to combat the spread of COVID-19. Australia’s second-largest city has so far endured 262 days, or nearly nine months, of restrictions during...

New Zealand sets 90% vaccine target for ending COVID-19 lockdown

WELLINGTON (Reuters) -New Zealand will end its strict coronavirus lockdown measures and restore more freedoms only when 90% of its eligible population is fully vaccinated, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Friday. Once the poster child for stamping out COVID-19, New Zealand has been unable to beat an outbreak of the highly infectious Delta variant...

Aurizon to buy One Rail Australia for $1.75 billion to cut coal exposure

(Reuters) -Aurizon Holdings Ltd said on Friday it would buy One Rail Australia (ORA) for A$2.35 billion ($1.75 billion) from Macquarie’s funds, as it looks to diversify from coal and add bulk capacity. Aurizon, Australia’s largest rail freight operator, said the deal gives it greater exposure to commodities that would support the transition to green...

Pacific women’s NGO granted a special consultative status by UN body

The PACIFICA organisation in Aotearoa has been granted a special consultative status by the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC). PACIFICA National President, the Reverend Alofa Lale, said this is a historic and monunmental achievement for the organisation and for Pasifika women and families in New Zealand. The PACIFICA application had been submitted 1...

Ten questions: Micronesia’s President David Panuelo fronts up

Geopolitical competition in the Pacific is not necessarily the heated knife fight that international media often make it out to be. That’s according to the president of the Federated States of Micronesia, a Pacific Islands country of significant geostrategic interest, who is taking an optimistic approach to the subject of regional security during a time...

Marshall Islands calls for global collaboration on twin crises

A low lying island country which has been a poster child for climate change impacts, the Marshalls remains one of the most vocal advocates for global moves to curb greenhouse gas emissions. And while the country has been largely free of Covid-19 cases, it has not escaped the pandemic’s economic impacts, the Marshalls’ Foreign Minister...

Australia’s COVID-19 cases remain subdued as vaccinations rise

SYDNEY (Reuters) -Australia’s COVID-19 cases remained subdued on Tuesday as its largest cities, Sydney and Melbourne, gradually move towards normality amid a surge in vaccinations, after being rocked by a third wave of infections from the Delta variant. Sydney and the national capital Canberra exited a months-long lockdown last week after racing through its inoculation...

New Zealand and Fiji’s partnership targets illicit trade

Fiji’s border protection will be further enhanced with the introduction of new trace detection device at our international borders, thanks to the New Zealand government. Fiji Revenue and Customs Service (FRCS) Board chairperson Mahmood Khan acknowledged the support of the NZ government saying the assistance was a timely boost for Fiji’s border security system as...

Westpac Fiji and SME Business Owners Network to launch new e-commerce package

Westpac Fiji and Fiji SME Business Owners Network are collaborating to launch a new e-commerce package that will enable more small businesses to access an online payment gateway and to make online payments possible. In a statement, Westpac Fiji chief executive Kip Hanna said they were pleased to partner with Fiji SME business owners and...

Earlier breast cancer screening would narrow mortality gap for Black women, U.S. study finds

(Reuters) – Racial disparities in breast cancer survival in the United States could be cut by more than half if Black women got mammograms every other year starting at age 40, according to findings from a model of simulated health outcomes published on Monday. Compared with white women in the United States, Black women are...

U.S. FDA to allow mixing and matching of COVID-19 boosters- NYT

(Reuters) -The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is planning to allow Americans to get a different booster shot of a COVID-19 vaccine than the one initially taken, the New York Times reported on Monday. The FDA in September authorized a booster dose of Pfizer Inc and partner BioNTech’s two-shot COVID-19 vaccine for those aged 65...

BlackRock backs expansion of corporate climate data project

LONDON (Reuters) – BlackRock Inc, the world’s biggest asset manager, has thrown its weight behind a plan to provide free in-depth data on how thousands of companies are adapting to the transition to a low-carbon economy. Ahead of the COP26 global climate talks in Glasgow, BlackRock said it backed a plan to scale up the...

New Zealand reports record daily cases as Delta spreads

WELLINGTON (Reuters) – New Zealand recorded on Tuesday the highest number of daily cases since the pandemic began last year, as the Delta variant of the coronavirus spreads in its biggest city Auckland. The South Pacific nation reported 94 new COVID-19 infections on Tuesday, of which 87 were in Auckland, taking the total number of...

‘Significant decline’ in two-way trade between Fiji and New Zealand

The pandemic has had a huge effect on trade between New Zealand and Fiji, as the $1.1 billion two-way trading relationship had dropped to around about $550 million in the year to June 2021. This was according to New Zealand Trade Commissioner to the Pacific David Dewar, who said a large part of that was...

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