Four (4) PNG Power Limited (PPL) engineers graduated last Thursday, October 27, with Certificates in Remote Drone Pilot at a small ceremony at the Lamana Hotel in Port Moresby. The four who work under the Asset Management and Transmission and Distributions Business Units are the first in the company to be certified as drone pilots. They are trained and certified to competently operate PPL’s own drones to carry out aerial inspections and condition monitoring for the transmission and distribution assets using the drone technology. The use of drones as part of PPL’s operations will substantially reduce risks to inspection and maintenance teams, and reduce associated maintenance costs and represents a milestone achievement for PPL. The four certified drone pilots are Esrom Passingan, Benjamín Pupu, Billy Ambotane and Albert Laliana. The training included nine (9) online module courses provided by Infra Vision, an Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority certified company that specializes in aerial construction and maintenance. The drone pilots were certified after completing three (3) weeks of online training and one (1) week practical flight training. CEO Mr. Obed Batia said “PPL are always looking for ways to improve our operations through the adoption of innovations and new technology”. “This represents an investment for the company as the drones will drastically cut the costs of powerline inspections. More importantly, it reduces the risk to our hardworking field crews responsible for transmission and distribution line inspection and maintenance,” said Mr. Batia. Regular aerial inspection will assist in improving the supply of power and reducing the likelihood of unscheduled outages. PPL will continue to invest in sustainable programs, technology to improve on its operations across the nation. The drone technology can also assist engineers in the process of designing the electricity supply infrastructure. PPL has acquired two drones: a commercial MTK 210 Drone and a Mavic 3 Drone, which will be utlised across PPL’s major grid networks. Source: PNG Power Ltd

A pair of impressive finishes from fullback Martha Molowia either side of half-time helped propel Papua New Guinea to a 34-12 victory over Canada, marking their first ever Women's World Cup win. Molowia smashed her way through would-be tacklers on a run down the sideline for her first just before break to give PNG a 8-6 lead, before carving through for another just a minute into the second half. Through the opening 20 minutes it was Canada who dominated proceedings, and they enjoyed plenty of scoring opportunities throughout the match, but too often the last pass was missing when space presented on the edges. After Papua New Guinea opened the scoring on 24 minutes, the Ravens led momentarily thanks to a converted try, but from the 37th minute onward the Orchids controlled the match. Five second-half tries, three of which were converted, was enough to see Papua New Guinea to a comfortable victory, despite Canada hitting back with one of their own on the hour mark. Source: NRL.com

Unilever recently announced a voluntary recall of 19 popular dry shampoo aerosol products sold in the United States due to concerns about benzene, a chemical known to cause cancer. Exposure to benzene, which is classified as a human carcinogen, can occur through inhalation, ingestion, or through skin contact and can result in cancers including leukemia and blood cancers, according to the U.S Department of health and human services. Humans are exposed to benzene daily through things like tobacco smoke and detergents, but exposure can be considered dangerous depending on the dose and duration of contact, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Unilever said that it is pulling the products "out of an abundance of caution" and that the company has not yet received any reports of adverse event relating to the recall to date. The recalled products were produced before October 2021 and retailers have been notified to pull the affected products from shelves. A complete list of the affected products and consumer codes can be found here. No other products from Unilever or its brands are impacted by this recall, the company stated in a press release. The list of affected products include: Dove  Dove Dry Shampoo Volume and Fullness  Dove Dry Shampoo Fresh Coconut  Dove Dry Shampoo Fresh and Floral  Dove Dry Shampoo Ultra Clean  Dove Dry Shampoo Invisible  Dove Dry Shampoo Detox and Purify  Dove Dry Shampoo Clarifying Charcoal  Dove Dry Shampoo Go Active   Nexxus  Nexxus Dry Shampoo Refreshing Mist   Nexxus Inergy Foam Shampoo   Suave Suave Dry Shampoo Hair Refresher Suave Professionals Dry Shampoo Refresh and Revive TRESemmé TRESemmé Dry Shampoo Volumizing TRESemmé Dry Shampoo Fresh and Clean  TRESemmé Pro Pure Dry Shampoo Bed Head Bed Head Oh Bee Hive Dry Shampoo Bed Head Oh Bee Hive Volumizing Dry Shampoo Bed Head Dirty Secret Dry Shampoo Rockaholic Bed Head Rockaholic Dirty Secret Dry Shampoo The recall is being conducted with the knowledge of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Unilever urged consumers to stop using the affected aerosol dry shampoo products immediately and visit the company website for eligible product reimbursements. Source: ABC7News

Taylor Swift is breaking yet another record thanks to the release of her most recent album “Midnights.” The entertainer, who already became Spotify’s most-streamed artist over a 24-hour period upon the release of the record earlier this month, now claims all top ten slots of the Billboard Hot 100 at the same time, according to the music charting website on Monday. Swift is the first artist to ever accomplish the feat in Billboard’s 64-year history. She beat Drake, who in September 2021 claimed nine of the Hot 100’s top 10 spots for a week. According to Billboard, the Hot 100 list “blends all-genre U.S. streaming (official audio and official video), radio airplay and sales data.” At the top of the list this week is “Anti-Hero,” the lead single off of “Midnights,” which is Swift’s tenth studio album. The other nine slots are also claimed by songs from the new album, including the tracks “Lavender Haze” and “Karma.” The accomplishment gives Swifties yet another reason to rejoice, adding yet another bauble to their beloved artist’s “bejeweled” crown. Source: CNN

A Thai business tycoon and transgender activist has purchased the Miss Universe Organisation for $US20 million ($31 million), her company has announced. Chakrapong "Anne" Chakrajutathib controls JKN Global Group Public Co. Ltd and is a celebrity in Thailand who has starred in reality shows. JKN said it acquired the rights to the Miss Universe pageant from IMG Worldwide LLC, a sports, talent and events marketing company which has held the Miss Universe Organization since 2015. Former US president Donald Trump was part owner of the pageant rights from 1996 until IMG's purchase. In a statement on Wednesday, Ms. Chakrajutathib described the purchase as "a strong, strategic addition to our portfolio". JKN, which is involved in content distribution, beverages, food supplements, beauty and consumer products, said the Miss Universe name will be used to promote its consumer products. Ms. Chakrajutathib also said she wants to use the beauty pageant to inspire women like her. "It's a universal platform… I can become the aspiration for so many people, in particular women, LGBTQ, so they can transform," she said. Ms. Chakrajutathib has been outspoken about her experience as a transgender woman and also set up the Life Inspired For Thailand Foundation to advocate for the rights to dignity and opportunities for transgender people. A profile of Ms Chakrapong in the Bangkok Post newspaper earlier this year said in her youth, she studied at an all-male school where she was harassed for identifying as female. After attaining financial success, she spent 40 million baht ($1.6 million) on sex reassignment surgery and other procedures, the newspaper reported. Thailand enjoys a positive international reputation when it comes to the rights and lifestyles of LGBTQ communities. Despite this, the absence of a procedure for transgender people to change their legal gender, coupled with insufficient legal protections and social stigma, limits transgender people's access to services and exposes them to daily indignities, New York-based Human Rights Watch said in a report last year.   Source: ABC News

If you’re in the United Kingdom, you’ll soon see a new face in your pocket. The first coins featuring King Charles III are now being minted. The new 50-pence coins are set to hit general circulation by Christmas, alongside a commemorative five-pound coin with a portrait of the late Queen Elizabeth II. The king’s portrait will be displayed facing the left side of the coin, a stark change to the previous 50-pence coins with the queen’s portrait facing the right side.     Source: CNN

New figures show foreign aid to the Pacific surged to record highs as the COVID-19 pandemic wreaked havoc on regional economies, while Chinese development assistance fell to a new low. The findings are contained in the latest iteration of the Lowy Institute's Pacific Aid Map, which analyses the flow of overseas development assistance into the region in 2020. The main author of the map, the Lowy Institute's Alexandre Dayant, told the ABC several donors – particularly multilateral institutions – moved swiftly to help prop up Pacific economies left reeling by the pandemic and the shutdown of international travel. "It's very impressive and it shows that the international community responded very swiftly in the face of the dire consequences of COVID in the Pacific," he said. ADB outspends Australia The Institute says donors ploughed almost $6.2 billion into the region in 2020, substantially more than the $4.5 billion they provided in 2019. Australia remained by far the largest donor country in the Pacific. The Aid Map estimates Australia spent more than $1.4 billion on assistance to the Pacific in 2020, around 29 per cent of the total foreign aid provided. However for the first time since Lowy's records begin, Australia was narrowly eclipsed as the largest donor entity in the Pacific, with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) providing $1.65 billion in assistance – around 34 per cent of the total. Mr Dayant said the ADB effectively tripled its development budget in the region in response to COVID-19, offering loans to several Pacific Island countries to help them stay afloat. [caption id="" align="alignnone" width="906"] Chinese development assistance to the Pacific has been decreasing since 2016.(ABC News: Kurt Johnson)[/caption]   "This is a huge increase in loans and huge budget support in the Pacific," he said. "There was a decrease in non-COVID projects, because many development partners couldn't implement projects on the ground due to travel bans and health measures," he said. "This meant that direct budget support was one of the best and quickest ways to provide finance and the resources that Pacific Island countries needed at the time." The largest donors after Australia and the ABD were Japan, the United States and New Zealand, which spent $477 million, $375 million and $350 million respectively in 2020. China spent just $273 million in 2020, the lowest annual figure recorded in the data captured by the Pacific Aid Map, which tracks foreign aid since 2008. China's supply and demand issues Mr Dayant said Chinese development assistance to the Pacific had been decreasing since 2016. "It's both on the demand and supply side," he said. "On the supply side, China's economy has been slowing down so perhaps it's less appealing for the Chinese government to make these loans or to help other countries around the world. "And on the demand side, perhaps Pacific nations have woken up to the fact that the quality of the Chinese loans and some infrastructure projects might be a bit questionable. "So this might have had an impact on the Pacific's appetite for these projects." Mr Dayant said Chinese loans for infrastructure were also comparatively expensive, and several other countries were now offering infrastructure financing to Pacific Island nations. "In 2020 the landscape for infrastructure financing has changed, it's more crowded, with many more players – including Australia," he said. "So I think basically it's becoming harder and harder for China to compete." However, Beijing still spent around $50 million on projects in both Solomon Islands and Kiribati, the two Pacific Island countries which switched recognition to China from Taiwan the year before. Mr Dayant said while the broader surge in development assistance was crucial during COVID-19, several Pacific nations were now dealing with very high debt levels, and donors had to make sure they weren't overloaded. "Because the fiscal space and the debt situation in the Pacific is getting worse it is important for development partners to act with care in the Pacific," he said. "Budget support is a great tool for development partners to help the region, especially now as we see economic recovery in the region. So the money you invest can generate more. "But still, extra care will need to be taken for those who want to lend." Source: ABC Pacific

In what is believed to be a world first, China's commercial capital of Shanghai last week introduced a new type of COVID-19 vaccine that is inhaled rather than administered via injection. Chinese regulators approved the vaccine, produced by Chinese pharmaceutical firm CanSino Biologics (6185.HK), for use as a booster in September. And now the first people are starting to receive the vaccine, which is inhaled via the mouth from a vessel that looks like a take-out coffee cup with a short mouthpiece. "Our body’s first line of defense is the mucus membrane of our respiratory system, we want that to be directly stimulated to improve immunity and using the inhaled vaccine does that," Dr Zhao Hui, chief medical officer at Shanghai United Family Hospital Pudong, told Reuters. His hospital is among those administering the new vaccine, which will be used as well as regular injected shots. Commenting on what he said was a first use of the technology, Erwin Loh, chief medical officer at St Vincents Health Australia, said the advent of inhaled vaccines was important not only because of their potential to guard against infection, but also because they could lessen vaccine hesitancy. "There is a large proportion of people who are resistant to take the vaccine because they have a needle phobia. They may not articulate it, but that's what in their mind," he said. Increasing the uptake in vaccinations is vital for China, which remains a global outlier as it sticks to its "zero-COVID" policy, aiming to eliminate community outbreaks of the virus. Shanghai, which reported no new domestically transmitted symptomatic coronavirus cases for Oct. 27 and 11 local asymptomatic cases, is still subject to targeted lockdowns impacting residential buildings and businesses in the city. The Shanghai government's WeChat account, in announcing the inhalable vaccine rollout this week, said that 23 million of the city's 26 million residents had been fully vaccinated against COVID, and more than 12 million had received booster shots. According to official Chinese government data, more than 90% of its population has been vaccinated. The country has relied on domestically produced, inactivated shots and has yet to import, or introduce its own version, of an mRNA vaccine. The inhable vaccine is an aerosol version of an inactive shot. Loh is hopeful that results from Shanghai's foray into inhaled vaccines will encourage other countries to follow suit. "I think inhaled vaccines for respiratory illness like COVID-19 will be the future," he said. Source: Reuters

BSP Financial Group Limited (BSP) understands that Family Sexual Violence (FSV) is the most prevalent form of gender inequality that affects households and communities, and spans across workplace and generations. Recently, BSP launched its inaugural awareness campaign on “Financial Abuse” which most often is present in homes where family and sexual violence (FSV) exists. BSP’s journey in actively assisting survivors of FSV started in 2013, from funding facility upgrade to a safe house in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, leading to being one of the founders and subscriber of Bel isi PNG programme since 2018. In May 2019, BSP launched its Group Family Sexual Violence (FSV) Policy. Since then active awareness has been on-going on Gender Based Violence (GBV) and FSV focusing on impact of such forms of violence on an individual, and family members at home and in the workplace and offering various support services.   At the end of 2020, BSP as part of institutionalizing the policy, officially included black as the colour to wear every Thursday as part of the corporate uniform. This was a result of a year-long awareness campaign called #BlackThursdays driving awareness on family and sexual violence (FSV) and standing in solidarity with survivors of family and sexual violence. A campaign on #ChallengingAttitudes saw BSP joining a Global 16 Days of Activism to end violence against women and girls in 2021, by launching its own 16 Days of activism themed “I am a feminist”, led by BSP’s Group CEO, Robin Fleming. Moreover, this led to the 2022 campaign #Empowermenttogether – promoting gender equality to eliminate violence. It has become evident from survivors supported through BSP’s Group Family & Sexual Violence Policy, that financial abuse is a barrier to exiting a life of violence. Control of finances stems from coercive control practiced by many abusers which is a systematic pattern of power to keep a partner in line. Financial security will enable survivors to exit an abusive relationship and find a way to financial self-sufficiency. Survivors may also lack the tools or financial literacy to recover quickly. The Group CEO, Robin Fleming believes BSP has a moral obligation to drive financial abuse awareness to assist those who are abused through the banking sector. “Under the leadership of Group CEO, Robin Fleming, BSP as an organization recognizes the devastating effects of family and sexual violence on individuals, families and communities and has become an advocate against FSV, an advocate for FSV intervention and a financial empowerment organization, which is well placed to help survivors attain financial self-sufficiency through its awareness campaign”.

Having extra cash set aside for the festive season helps you avoid debt and ensures you have enough to share with your loved ones, spend on gifts, decorations, entertainment, and travel without calling on your regular savings. NCSL’s Christmas Savings Account serves this purpose and members with saving under this account are eligible to transfer funds from their Christmas account into their Poro Accounts when the account opens for withdrawals commencing 01st of November. NCSL’s newly appointed Manager Member Services and Branch Support, Noel Keyala said having a Christmas account ensures there is savings set aside to celebrate the festive season. The account allows members to save for an extended period of time before accessing their savings to celebrate Christmas and welcome the New Year. “Christmas savings eases the burden of paying using your December pay packet and the burden of being in debt from borrowing. “It helps with your monthly budget when you contribute each month and it accumulates overtime,” he said. Interested members can deposit a minimum of K15.00 each fortnight and these contributions or deposits can be done through salary deduction, mobile and internet banking or depositing monies via the commercial banks. This interest-bearing account is accessible from 1st November each year through to 31st January the following year.

After three years of being neglected by the offices that they knocked on, the couple who owns the Nikhen Cotton Farm at Aroma Coast in the Central Province were so thankful when the Minister for International Trade and Investment, Richard Maru made time to see them on Friday, October 28, 2022. Helen Imana and Nama Imana started planting cotton seeds in 2017. They started with just two seeds that they had brought from Alotau to their Pelegai village in Aroma. “We planted those cotton trees in our yard because we loved their flowers,” said Helen. “After the flowers dried and the cottons came out, we had an interest to take those cottons and make pillows from them. Seeing the pillows that we had made from the cottons that we had grown gave us the impression that we could plant more cotton trees and make a living from it,” she said. Helen and Nama planted 76 more cotton trees in their garden from the seeds of their first two trees. Then they reached out to Department of Agriculture and Livestock (DAL) for assistance and a team from DAL Southern Region visited the farm in 2018 and published a report in 2019. “The DAL team advised us that they would communicate with the Central Governor our local MP to see how they could support us, but we had not had any correspondence from them,” said Hellen. DAL Southern Region tasked Helen and Nama to plant the cotton trees on a hectare of land. The couple did not have the funds to have that task done so they reached out to SME Corporation who assisted them with K3, 000. After they completed the task, they received no further response or support from anyone to date. Despite, being neglected for three years now, the couple continue to keep their cotton farm alive which has about 4, 000 cotton trees that are currently growing in the bushes because of lack of support. “We are now preparing a hectare of land and nursing the cotton plants so we can start replanting next month,” said Helen. With thousands of hectares of land available, Helen and Nama are eager to have this industry go large-scale. Minister Maru was impressed with the couple’s effort and was also saddened to note that their efforts were not recognized and supported. “This (cotton) is a very important industry. We are currently importing: why are we not giving this a priority? I am very grateful to Nikhen Cotton Farm for the effort that they are putting through and we need to help them,” he said. Minister Maru made a commitment to Helen and Nama that the Government, through the Ministry of International Trade and Investment would have a look at the project and see how they could support. He said that if the Government was to be involved, then experts needed to be engaged to carry out a study and give advice before any Government resources were to be committed. “I want someone who has the knowledge in this industry to come and visit the farm to see the land there, the weather, the soil type, whether the variety of the cotton tree that is being grow there is the right type, how to do a big nursery, who the buyers will be, how much can be made per hectare, whether the cottons can be processed in the country, and how it can change the lives of the people there, ” said Minister Maru. As part of his commitment to support them, Minister Maru sent a team from his Ministry to visit the farm and to provide a report to him on the way forward to develop the industry if the potential was there. Source: International Trade and Investment of Papua New Guinea 

The 10 nations who will compete to be crowned Oceania’s best U-17 team have learned their group stage opponents following today’s draw for the OFC U-17 Championship 2023. The latest edition of the tournament will be hosted in Fiji from January 11-28, 2023.   Not only will teams be hunting for regional glory but also global recognition with the two finalists qualifying for the FIFA U-17 World Cup™ in Peru next year.   It is the first time the tournament is being played since 2018 due to the COVID-19 pandemic with fixtures taking place at the Ba Academy in Ba and Suva’s HFC Bank Stadium.   Four teams will contest; Group A, host nation Fiji, Samoa, Papua New Guinea and Tonga.   Group B consists of reigning champions New Zealand, New Caledonia, and American Samoa.   In Group C, Tahiti, Vanuatu, and the Cook Islands will battle for a place in the quarter-finals.  Each team will play each other once in their respective groups. T he winners, runners-up and the two highest-ranked 3rd placed teams from each group will advance to the quarter-finals on January 21 and 22.   The semi-finals will take place on January 25 with the tournament final set for HFC Bank Stadium on January 28.   The opening game of the OFC U-17 Championship 2023 will be New Zealand v New Caledonia on January 11 from the Ba Academy, Ba with a full match schedule available soon on the OFC website.  Source: Oceania Football. Com