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by Charley Piringi “When a Prime Minister is simultaneously the regulator, the tax collector, and a timber merchant, state policy inevitably aligns with cartel profit margins.” Sir Francis Billy Hilly. Across the Pacific Islands, customary land ownership has long been seen as the ultimate constitutional shield for indigenous sovereignty. But…
𝘉𝘺 an Observer The Solomon Islands Government’s signing of the Ship Rider Agreement with the United States has ignited intense debate. The Leader of the Opposition has accused the government of “selling Solomon Islands sovereignty.” The Leader of the Independent Group has demanded that the Agreement be tabled in parliament.…
Following close on the heels of the visit by Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, I am very pleased to announce that the Solomon Islands-Australia Community Partnerships program is open for a second round of applications for 2026 (until 11:59pm on Monday 24 August 2026). Since my arrival in Solomon Islands…
Media were not deliberately excluded from Tuesday’s signing of the Solomon Islands-United States Shiprider Agreement, Office of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (OPMC) says. The media could not witness the signing event due to last-minute change in arrangements caused by poor weather and safety concerns, it added. OPMC was responding…
The United States has insisted its newly signed Shiprider Agreement with Solomon Islands is designed to strengthen, not undermine, the country’s sovereignty. And it says the arrangement leaves all law enforcement powers firmly in the hands of Solomon Islands authorities. Speaking after the agreement was signed in Honiara on Tuesday,…
The Australia-supported Solomon Islands Infrastructure Program is working with government and industry to strengthen the safety and resilience of infrastructure across Solomon Islands. Through targeted workshops with local construction contractors and government agencies, participants engaged in practical demonstrations of national social and environmental safeguard requirements, alongside best practice approaches to…
Australia and Keto Seaweed Farm, an indigenous business based in Isabel Province, have signed a new partnership to increase seaweed production on Keto Island in Isabel Province. Over the next 12 months, Keto Seaweed Farm will co-invest with Australia to build a new storage shed, procure additional seaweed farming equipment,…
Government and police are urged to urgently step in and address the growing problem of illegal mining at Gold Ridge mine in central Guadalcanal. Leader of the Independent Members of Parliament and Central Guadalcanal MP, Peter Shanel Agovaka, made the call in the wake of Monday’s disaster at the mine…
The eighth delivery of the Solomon Islands Senior Executive Women in Leadership Programme is underway in Honiara, with 18 senior women executives from across the private, public and state-owned enterprise sectors taking part in a four-day leadership development initiative. The programme concludes on Wednesday and Thursday this week and is…
by Noah Secomb of AAP in Canberra International funding and financing for the Pacific Islands has largely avoided the worst of aid cuts as Australia leads the way, according to a new report. As competition among the major powers for influence in the key region remains intense, the Lowy Institute’s…
