IN Solomon Islands, I have noticed a concerning trend: many Members of Parliament (MPs) focus heavily on the Constituency Development Fund (CDF), while neglecting their broader responsibilities, especially those related to creating real opportunities for economic empowerment and development. The CDF, designed as a financial tool to support grassroots development, has unfortunately become a magnet for…
THERE is something deeply unsettling about the recent appointments to the Solomon Islands Water Authority (SIWA) Board. While Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Mines, Energy, and Rural Electrification, Honorable Bradley Tovosia may have exercised his legal powers under the Solomon Islands Water Authority Act, I can’t help but feel that this process reeks of…
STAFF of the Ministry of the Provincial Government and Institutional Strengthening (MPGIS) attended an awareness on the Solomon Islands National Disability Inclusive Development Policy (SINDIDP) 2022-2031 and expressed their appreciation for attending the important familiarisation session. The awareness session was conducted by Officers of the National Physiotherapy Rehabilitation Division (NPRD) in the Ministry of Health…
A SI woman returned home after neglected by her logging husband in Malaysia AT a very young age, Ira (not her real name) was excited to marry a foreigner because of the financial gains that comes with the new relationship. Ira, who is part Malaita and Western province, was 19-years-old, when she met and married…
A total of 652 students have graduated on Thursday at the King George (KG) Sixth National Secondary annual graduation and prize giving day ceremony held at the Maranatha Hall in East Honiara. This year’s graduation and prize giving ceremony is celebrated with the theme “Reshaping Scholars and Leaders for the future.” Speaking at his keynote…
TAR-SEALING of the Auki road project in Malaita Province will commence soon. This comes after Minister of Infrastructure Development (MID), Manasseh Maelanga and Cai Weiming, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) to Solomon Islands signed the agreement on Thursday 10th October. The brief signing ceremony took place inside the Cabinet room…
Solomon Island Council of Trade Union, (SICTU) has welcomed the announcement made by the Chair of the Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on the controversial COVID-19 $309 million Economic Stimulus Package (ESP) PAC Chair, Gordon Darcy Lilo agreed to initiate hearings into the recently released Audit Report on ESP after he met with the Auditor…
A FORMER police officer who was found guilty of obtaining $40.000 under false pretence from a man in 2019, will be sentenced after the issue about the delay on her case is sorted. The defendant Pauline Sipi was found guilty of four counts of false pretence charge after a trial. Her matter came before the…
Eleven planning and policy officials from government and Honiara City Council (HCC) recently visited Australia to study how to better plan, finance, deliver and maintain infrastructure projects in Solomon Islands. The three-day training program organised in the past week was facilitated by Australia’s Solomon Islands Infrastructure Program, is being delivered by the University of Sydney. Australian…
A resident of the Shortland Islands, Derrick Pako, has joined the Luapel House of Chiefs in Malaita province, in urging the government to lift the ban on the harvesting and trading of beche-de-mer. Pako expressed his support for Luapel Chief Hugo Kivans, stressing that lifting the ban would provide much-needed income for people in his…