The Samoa Agreement will succeed the Cotonou Agreement. Photo: Government of Samoa
Pacific - Samoa agreement
Seventy-one countries have endorsed and signed the Samoa Agreement as the overarching framework for European Union (EU) alliances with the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries.
The partnership agreement will serve as the new legal framework for EU relations with 79 countries.
This includes 47 African, 16 Caribbean and 15 Pacific countries, and the Republic of Maldives.
The accord aims to strengthen the capacity of the EU and the A.C.P. countries to address global challenges together.
The Samoa Agreement will succeed the Cotonou Agreement and will be used as the legal framework for the next 20 years.
Pacific - lending
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has unveiled favourable lending terms for Small Island Developing States (SIDS) to boost investments in climate initiatives and other global public goods.
Bank President Masatsugu Asakawa announced this following his meeting with Fiji's Finance Minister Professor Biman Prasad.
The terms feature a one-per cent interest rate, a 10-year grace period, a 40-year maturity, and initial principal repayments of two per cent annually for the first decade post-grace period, escalating to four per cent thereafter.
Asakawa said this move will help mitigate SIDS' debt service obligations, intensified by pandemic fallout.
SIDS beneficiaries include Cook Islands, Fiji, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Timor-Leste and Vanuatu.
Solomon Islands and Vanuatu additionally qualify for ADB grants, aligning with the bank's commitment to supporting vulnerable developing nations.
Samoa - park
Samoa Fiafia Park at Tafa'igata, on the outskirts of Apia, has been forced to close permanently because of the high cost of maintenance.
The three year old amusement park was met by Covid-19 in its infancy and never really recovered despite many attempts by owner Tupa'i Bruno Loyale to keep it running.
He said all the rides have now been sold to a New Zealand company and will be dismantled after it closes on Sunday.
Tupa'i told Samoa Observer negotiations with a family business in Apia to keep it running didn't work out.
Despite the closure, Tupai said he is happy that a lot of children had the opportunity to ride the ferris wheel, the merry-go-round and others rides at the park.
Samoa - crash
Four people who died in a car crash in Victoria, Australia over the weekend have been identified as Samoan seasonal workers, who were on a work trip when the incident occurred.
The four men are believed to have been in a rental car that they were travelling in towards Mansfield that crashed and burst into flames.
The Victorian Assistant Police Commissioner Glenn Weir said the exact time of the collision is unknown.
Northern Marianas
A Superior Court judge has ruled to allow assistant attorney general James Kingman to prosecute the case against former governor Ralph Torres.
Arthur Barcinas denied Torres' motion to disqualify Mr Kingman for alleged unauthorized practice of law because he did not take the oath of admission for attorney's practising in the CNMI.
In response, the judge says he did not find this to be a strong argument that the oath is mandatory.
The Office of the Attorney General filed criminal charges against Torres in April 2022, alleging 12 counts of misconduct in public office, one count of theft, and one count of contempt based on a failure to appear for a legislative subpoena on 10 December 2021.