Page 14 of 819
From Wendy Flannery on When the ocean is sacred: Pacific theology and the governance of deep-sea mining
These important insights need to be included in the governance of the UN BBNJ treaty.
From Anna Naupa on Media freedom and the Pacific Islands
A very apt and timely reminder in an era of AI. These lines are so powerful: “We are free to speak the truth — we are not free to misinform, deceive or propagate falsehood. There is a huge difference between the freedom to speak truth and the freedom to speak lies.”
Malo ‘aupito Kalafi Moala.
From Ross H McKenzie on Putting aid effectiveness principles into practice
Thanks for this post and for all your efforts. There is much to celebrate. Well done. This partnership (along with your four principles for aid effectiveness) provides an important and much-needed model for other contexts and programs.
From Amna on The continuing ban on girls’ education in Afghanistan
The long shadow of excluding girls from education is not only educational but economic, social and intergenerational. The question is not only what girls lose, but what entire societies lose when half a generation is locked out. Helpful related read from Borgen: https://borgenproject.org/keeping-girls-in-school/
From Amna on Time to reprioritise girls’ education
A very important point and very well written. Reprioritising girls’ education also means recognising the daily frictions that make dropout rational in contexts of poverty: distance, care work, hunger and stigma. This Borgen article gives a concise overview for general readers: https://borgenproject.org/importance-of-girls-education/
From Robert Cannon on Putting aid effectiveness principles into practice
It is very encouraging to see the emphasis on aid effectiveness and the distillation of the four key factors in the blog from the UPNG experience. These factors align with the findings from research and experience elsewhere. I hope I am wrong but I fear aid effectiveness in education sector projects and support will decline in coming years as two factors come into play.
First, the dilution of attention away from improving and sustaining change in education towards other broader matters, as important as they may be, such as climate change. I believe the concept of focus, as stressed in the blog, is so very important.
Second, in Australia’s case in particular, the abandonment of a development policy focus on sustainability in the main aid ‘quality criteria' which are now limited to effectiveness, efficiency, gender equality and disability equity. I fail to see how development aid can be considered to be ‘effective’ in the broadest sense unless benefits from development interventions are sustained, and hopefully scaled and deepened as illustrated so well in this case study of ANU’s work at UPNG.
The reporting of the sustained success of work in the university sector is a powerful example of how universities can be assisted to achieve successful and sustained change. Universities have often responded poorly to development assistance compared to schools and the technical and vocational education sectors.
From Vailala on Bougainville’s home-grown independence constitution: Part 2
An analysis of the draft Bougainville constitution can be found here.
https://www.academia.edu/166254730/A_Note_on_the_Draft_Bougainville_Constitution_Part_I_Vailala_Analysis_of_the_2024_Draft_Constitution_of_Bougainville_Schmittian_Exception_and_the_Catholic_Katechon
From Stephen Charteris on When the price of fuel becomes the price of childhood: Pacific families in a crisis
Powerful piece and very true. Sadly there are unlikely to be any quick fixes beyond a sudden resolution to the Gulf crisis. But nonetheless the writing is on the wall. Too many geographically remote Pacific communities have become reliant upon imported fuel for electricity generation, transport and cooking and by association the services and imported goods they rely upon. The time to electrify was yesterday and this may yet be their best hope. There is an emerging supply of used solar equipment in Australia as ageing systems are replaced. Some of this equipment still has a useful life albeit at reduced levels of output. I see an opportunity to save the better stock from landfill, sort into community packages and re-install in locations in need of an alternative to increasingly expensive or unavailable fossil fuels. Understandably this is not a perfect fit for existing petrol, diesel or kerosene dependent systems but battery powered OBM and buggies are available to start replacing the fossil fuel dependant systems too many communities have come to rely upon. If efforts to address the causes of stunting, essential service delivery, empowerment of women and community scale economic activities are to be supported, repurposed solar equipment may help to alleviate the current shock and ongoing transition to more sustainable systems in challenging times.
From Patrick Kilby on PNG missing out on the Pacific remittances boom
An interesting a probably and unintended consequence is that from anecdotal evidence from Vanuatu is that boys are leaving school earlier than they might otherwise to join these schemes. The longer term development impact would be interesting. Also is there a ‘Dutch Disease’ effect in Tonga?
From Nicholas Coppel on Dhamma of accountability: the Myanmar New Year can’t wash away the truth
Well articulated!
From Anderson Anjo on PNG missing out on the Pacific remittances boom
The other way around could be true as well if studied. PNG should be sending more money to Australia than other Pacific Countries combined.
From GUWEN TAN on PNG passports quick, birth certificates slow