News stories by Catherine Wilson, page 7

GOROKA, Eastern Highlands Province, Papua New Guinea, Nov 13 (IPS) - An estimated one-third of the population of Papua New Guinea, the most populous Pacific Island state, is now suffering in from the country's worst drought this century and experts predict El Nino's influence will carry on through March 2016.

, Aug 14 (IPS) - The charred foundations are all that is left of the homes that made up Kenemote village in the mountainous Eastern Highlands Province of Papua New Guinea in the southwest Pacific Islands.

GOROKA, Papua New Guinea, Aug 11 (IPS) - It has only been six months since Iveti, 37, lost her husband of 18 years, but already she is facing hardship and worry about the future.

MADANG, Papua New Guinea, Jul 20 (IPS) - Zibie Wari, a former teacher and founder of the Tropical Gems grassroots youth group in the town of Madang on the north coast of Papua New Guinea, has seen the hopes of many young people for a decent future quashed by the impacts of corruption and unfulfilled promises of development.

CANBERRA, Australia, Jun 24 (IPS) - A referendum on independence within the next five years dominated campaigning in the recent general election held in Bougainville, an autonomous region of 300,000 people in the east of Papua New Guinea (PNG), which emerged from a decade-long civil war 15 years ago.

CANBERRA, Australia, Jun 03 (IPS) - Fourteen Pacific Island Forum countries are currently locked in negotiations with their two largest economic neighbours, Australia and New Zealand, to forge a new regional free trade agreement called ‘PACER Plus', which supporters believe will boost economic growth in the region.

, May 22 (IPS) - From Arawa, once the capital city of Bougainville, an autonomous region in eastern Papua New Guinea in the southwest Pacific Ocean, a long, winding road leads high up into the Crown Prince Ranges in the centre of the island through impenetrable rainforest.

CANBERRA, Australia, May 06 (IPS) - The recent dramatic fall in world oil prices, with Brent crude plummeting from a high of 115 dollars per barrel in June last year to around 47 dollars in January 2015, is beginning to benefit Pacific Islanders who are seeing lower prices for fuel and energy.

CANBERRA, Australia, Apr 13 (IPS) - Severe Tropical Cyclone Pam, which swept through the South Pacific Island state of Vanuatu in mid-March, has deepened hardships faced by people living in the informal settlements of the capital, Port Vila. Winds of up to 340 kph and torrential rain shattered precarious homes, cut off fragile public services and flooded communities with unsealed roads, poor drainage and sanitation.

, Mar 24 (IPS) - As Pacific Islanders contemplate the scale of devastation wrought by Cyclone Pam this month across four Pacific Island states, including Vanuatu, leaders in the region are calling with renewed urgency for global action on climate finance, which they say is vital for building climate resilience and arresting development losses.