by Richard Butler | 19 Feb 2019 | News
Air Vanuatu is set to put down a VUV850 million vatu (USD7.46 million) deposit on four Airbus narrowbodies. According to The Daily Post, Minister of Finance and Economic Management, Gaetan Pikioune, and Air Vanuatu Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Derek Nice, signed the instrument on February 15.
According to Nice, the jets will be... Read more [...]
by Richard Butler | 16 Feb 2019 | News
Vanuatu is among states removed from the EU blacklist due to its intensive monitoring of financial market transactions. Others include Bosnia, Guyana, Laos, and Uganda.
The European Commission added Saudi Arabia, Panama, U.S. territories of American Samoa, Guam and Samoa to a blacklist of nations it considers a threat because of... Read more [...]
by Richard Butler | 15 Feb 2019 | News
Richard Butler | RNZ - Andrew Thomas | February 15th, 2019.
Analysts say Australia sees China's influence as a potential threat to sovereignty, independence, stability and even to peace.
To counter China's growing influence in the South Pacific, Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison says he wants to... Read more [...]
by Richard Butler | 09 Feb 2019 | News
Richard Butler | RNZ Graeme Dobel | February 10th, 2019
Part of a leader’s magic is to spin a few words into political gold, capturing the moment and proclaiming the future.
Think Franklin D. Roosevelt’s ‘new deal’, Winston Churchill’s ‘iron curtain’, or Ben Chifley’s ‘light on the hill’.
The golden phrase becomes a totem, defining the politician, driving policy and shifting government.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison has a long way to go to touch the hem of FDR or Read more [...]
by Richard Butler | 09 Feb 2019 | News
Richard Butler | RNZ | February 10, 2019
THE AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENT has congratulated Air Vanuatu on its decision to resume non-stop flights between Melbourne and Port Vila and looks forward to flights commencing on 17 June 2019.
Australians represent 65 per cent of Vanuatu's inbound tourism each year, accordingly to the Vanuatu Tourism Office (WTO). Melbourne, with 4.9 million inhabitants, is the second most populous city in Australia and Oceania, and represents one fifth of Australia’s Read more [...]
by Richard Butler | 07 Feb 2019 | News
Richard Butler | RNZ | February 7th, 2019
The Government’s Energy Access Program (VEAP) is on track for implementation by mid-2019.
The project, which will see distribution of grid extensions on Malekula and Santo has been made possible through a loan and grant funding arrangement between the Vanuatu Government, the Asian Development Bank and the Strategic Climate Fund (SCF) at a total project value of USD15.1 million, or approximately Vt1.5 billion.
ADB are funding VEAP through a loan Read more [...]
by Richard Butler | 30 Jan 2019 | News
Air Vanuatu will add a third Australian destination to its route network from June when it begins nonstop flights to Melbourne from its Port Vila hub. Read more [...]
by Richard Butler | 28 Jan 2019 | News
Richard Butler | from GP Fans | 28 Jan 2019
McLaren have all but confirmed that a papaya livery will remain in situ on the team's 2019 challenger – the MCL34. McLaren have teased elements of their 2019 livery more than any other team on the grid so far, with all suggestions pointing towards another papaya look.
The Woking squad switched to all-papaya last year, having moved from a blacked-out look in 2015 and 2016 to a mixture of colours in 2017.
Plenty has changed at McLaren ahead of Read more [...]
by Richard Butler | 24 Dec 2018 | News
Richard Butler | Egemen Qazaqstan | 24 Dec 2018
In the village of Cook’s Bay, on the remote side of the remote island of Erromango, in the remote South Pacific nation of Vanuatu, 1-month-old Joy Nowai was given shots for hepatitis and tuberculosis that were delivered by a drone.
It was the first vial of vaccine ever delivered that way in Vanuatu, which is the only country in the world to make its childhood vaccine program officially drone-dependent.
Vanuatu is an archipelago Read more [...]
by Richard Butler | 24 Dec 2018 | News
Richard Butler | RNZ News | 24 Dec 2018
Vanuatu have defended their Oceania Women's Beach Volleyball title, denying Tahiti a clean sweep of the podiums in Papeete.
Top seeds Miller Pata and Sherysyn Toko defeated Emere Maau-Boutry and Vaihere Fareura 21-17 21-17 in the final, having also beaten the hosts top pairing in the pool stages.
The President of Vanuatu Volleyball, Debbie Masauvakalo, said the result maintained their winning run in Oceania and was also a chance to keep blooding Read more [...]
