When the Mamas and Papas sang ‘The darkest hour is just before dawn’, they referenced an age-old belief that dire events appear bleakest just before they improve. Certainly, the rise in Covid-19 deaths and cases …
The Strategist on: "Island states in the Covid-19 era"
The tiny island state of Seychelles is rethinking its future in the light of the Covid-19 pandemic and the first democratic change in its ruling party in 43 years. Charting a new way forward for the …
For several years, Japan has been investing heavily in its diplomatic engagement with Indian Ocean island states and may now need to consider how to better extend that engagement to environmental security challenges. A recent …
Is the Covid-19 pandemic about to tear Solomon Islands apart? The sensible answer is, probably not. But the consequences of the pandemic, including jostling among China, Taiwan and even the US, certainly have the potential …
In 2019, only a few months before Covid-19 hit, Samoa suffered a disastrous measles epidemic. The lessons from that epidemic have shaped Samoa’s hardline response to Covid-19 and offer important insights about maintaining public trust …
As the Covid-19 crisis wears on, the challenges facing Taiwan and its partners in assisting Pacific island countries are more complex than in usual times. In the early stage of the pandemic, the immediate focus …
Unprecedented events such as pandemics and natural disasters frequently provoke national introspection, leading to innovative plans and policies that adapt to new circumstances and update capacities. In Fiji, the Covid-19 pandemic has exposed the unpreparedness, …
The United States is in the midst of a major shift in focus to the Indo-Pacific as it competes with China for global influence. This contest will affect key US priorities and require comprehensive policy engagement …
The World Bank predicts that the Maldives will be the South Asian nation hardest hit by the Covid-19 pandemic. That’s not surprising given that 70% of the country’s GDP flows from tourism. The cancellation of …
After the outbreak of Covid-19 earlier this year, some predicted that the pandemic’s economic reverberations in Sri Lanka would lead China to increase its already considerable funding to the island state. Indeed, as early as …
Social media is a factor, for better or worse, in dealing with any crisis today. Facebook’s crisis-response hub, for example, relaunched in 2017, has become an important information medium for disaster-struck populations. Unfortunately, social media …
Australia’s political leaders have spoken strongly about assisting our Pacific ‘family’ through the Covid-19 crisis. But the needs of the island nations go far beyond medical supplies and expertise. The Royal Australian Navy could play …