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In the past two months, a raft of reports relating to Vanuatu’s economy have been released: the national government’s Half Year Economic and Fiscal Update, the International Monetary Fund’s Article IV report, the Asian Development Bank’s Pacific Economic Monitor plus government tourism and trade statistics. When these are read together it is hard to avoid […]
High levels of tax evasion are considered one of the main reasons Indonesia only collects just over 10% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in taxes, around half of the regional average. However, to date, it has been challenging to accurately estimate the pervasiveness of tax evasion and identify the types of taxpayers more likely to […]
While there is uncertainty about PNG’s population count, there is no doubt that since the arrival of the first missionaries in 1847, Christianity has become an integral part of life for the majority of Papua New Guineans. There is also no doubt about the important role of the churches in delivering health services across PNG. […]
In Papua New Guinea (PNG), rural communities play a crucial role in shaping the country’s agricultural landscape and food security. To better understand these dynamics, the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) conducted a Rural Household Survey between May and December 2023 which aimed to gain a clearer picture of rural livelihood structures, food security […]
“[After arriving in Jordan] life became very difficult. Living as a refugee without long-term support or the same rights as citizens meant that we did not have access to the basics to support our family. I had lost hope for the future.” These words from a Syrian refugee illustrate how people who are displaced can […]
Women’s leadership in PNG is often described as tough, difficult or challenging. The contributing factors range from political and economic to social and cultural. For example, the PNG National Research Institute Gender Program Report 2020 showed that women political candidates faced gendered challenges, such as stereotypical attitudes that women are not capable, and therefore lack […]
In a new policy brief published by the Evacuations Research Hub at the University of New South Wales, Regina Jefferies and I call on the Australian government to create an emergency framework for a more streamlined, equitable, predictable and effective response to humanitarian crises abroad — including a new emergency visa. Australia’s protection response to […]
Discussions about decentralisation have been a central feature of PNG politics since before independence. The highly centralised nature of Australian colonial governance led to the creation of PNG’s provinces. This effort was spearheaded by Bougainville’s leaders who had many longstanding reservations about being a part of PNG, even before the development of the Panguna mine. […]
Australian aid PNG’s Minister for National Planning Ano Pala called for improved impact, coherence and value from Australia’s aid at the launch of the new bilateral development strategy in Port Moresby, criticising “funds being switched, withheld in Canberra and absorbed by Australian management contractors and consultants…”. Pala also called for an urgent review of the […]
In the first week of August, as Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina left Bangladesh ending her 15 years in power, we had just completed a draft report on the state of civil society, ready to submit to a funding partner. Our interviews and discussions painted a bleak picture. Against the backdrop of the demise of democratic […]