The Australian Government has signed an agreement with the Papua New Guinea Assembly of Disabled Persons (PNGADP) that will ensure the mainstreaming of disability-inclusive approaches across the Australian funded Economic and Social Infrastructure Program (ESIP). ESIP implements infrastructure and energy projects across health, energy, education, markets, water sanitation and hygiene, rural development, and climate change. Under this agreement, relevant programs will benefit from disability inclusive infrastructure designed in collaboration with people with disabilities, the people who rely on these initiatives every day. In addition, organisations led by people with disability are encouraged to identify and advocate on issues and collaborate on the development of a national advocacy strategy for people with disability. PNG’s National Disability Policy 2015 – 2025 outlines the significant role organisations led by people with disabilities play in ensuring equitable and sustainable development for all people in PNG. As party to the 2007 UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the Australian Government is dedicated to supporting PNG to implement their policy and reduce barriers in PNG that prevent equitable access to opportunities for people with disability. PNGADP is led by people with disabilities, and works to advocate for rights, educate and train government, private sector and NGO representatives across PNG, and provide technical assistance to shape activities aimed at inclusive development. An Australian High Commission representative said: “Australia is proud to work with organisations like PNGADP through our development programs, and we recognise the crucial role organisations led by people with disabilities play in creating an equitable environment for everyone.” Representatives from the PNGADP and Australian High Commission signed the agreement on Tuesday 20 September in Port Moresby. The PNG-Australia Partnership is committed to advancing the rights of people with disabilities through equitable access to opportunities and is proud to work in partnership with PNGADP to ensure no one is left behind.

Prime Minister James Marape has arrived in the United States to attend the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) meetings in New York. Mr Marape and his wife Mrs Rachel Marape arrived at the JFK International airport at 3.15pm Wednesday 21st September 2022, New York time from London, UK where he attended the funeral of late Queen Elizabeth II. They were received by Mr Max Rai, Ambassador and PNGs Permanent Representative to the UN and Charge d’ Affaires of the Embassy of PNG to US in Washington, Mr Cephas Kayo. The theme for this year’s UNGA is “Solutions Through Solidarity, Sustainability and Science” which guides the work of the United Nations (UN) and its members. Prime Minister Marape will join world leaders in delivering national statements and participate in important discussions throughout the week at the UNGA debates. He will address the UN General Assembly when he delivers PNG’s country statement on Thursday, 22nd September at 2.30pm, New York time. This will be the first time in two years that the United Nations will convene fully in-person meetings, while the past two sessions of the UNGA were held virtually during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. The meetings are being held from the 19th to the 24th of September 2022. PM Marape’s UNGA delegation include Foreign Affairs Minister Justin Thatchenko, East New Britain Governor Michael Marum, Goilala MP Casmiro Aia, new Komo-Hulia electorate MP Daniel Tindipu and North Waghi MP Benjamin Mul.

Papua New Guinea has had 2 earthquakes in the past 24 hours according to earthquake track and both in the Morobe province. 11 hours ago a quake of 5.7 magnitude, 210 km depth that hit Lae, Morobe. This was followed by another quake 4 hours ago measuring 4.8 magnitude, 68 km depth hit Finschaffen, Morobe province. This was also confirmed by earthquake.usgs while attempts to get verification from local authorities were unsuccessful at this time. More updates will follow as more details of these earthquakes come in. Keep listening to the NAU FM News, Yumi FM News & Legend FM news for more on this story.

An underwater volcanic eruption has pushed an island up from beneath the waves to about 10 metres above sea level in Tonga. Scientists say the island has grown from one acre to about six acres in just five days following the eruption of the Home Reef Volcano. Authorities have issued a hazard alert and put in a place a restriction zone around the volcano. Volcano expert Professor Scott Bryan, from the Queensland University of Technology, said Home Reef's earlier eruptions only lasted a few months. But this time, things might be different. "This effuse eruption has produced lava, which is a hardened and more resistant rock, so this island may last a little bit longer than the previous islands," he said. "Over the next thousands I would expect that if Home Reef continues to erupt with this frequency that it will be able to make itself a permanent island." Source: ABC Pacific

US prosecutors have charged 47 people in the largest Covid relief fraud scheme alleged to date. The suspects are accused of stealing $250m (£220m) from a government aid programme that was supposed to feed children in need during the pandemic. They allegedly spent the spoils on properties, cars and luxury goods. A Minnesota non-profit organisation, Feeding Our Future, is accused of orchestrating the plot. Founder Aimee Bock denies any wrongdoing. A lawyer for Ms Bock told the BBC: "We have maintained our innocence from the first day." He said the indictment was "merely the beginning of the criminal process" and represented a "mere allegation". FBI Director Christopher Wray said this "egregious plot" was the largest of its kind uncovered so far. The suspects are alleged to have issued bills for meals they did not serve to children who did not exist, said the Department of Justice (DoJ) in a statement. They allegedly did so by exploiting a government initiative through which private restaurants could claim funding to distribute food under the sponsorship of non-profit organisations. The defendants are said to have bribed employees of Feeding Our Future to sponsor numerous sham distribution sites. These sites claimed to be serving meals to thousands of children a day within just days or weeks of being formed, according to the DoJ. But they were instead submitting false paperwork using bogus children's names, some of which were taken from a website, www.listofrandomnames.com. The group used the proceeds to buy luxury cars, as well as property in the US, Kenya and Turkey, and to fund international travel, the DoJ said. The alleged fraudsters face charges including wire fraud, money laundering and bribery. US Attorney General Merrick Garland said the DoJ would continue to crack down on those who had "exploited the pandemic for personal gain". In March, the DoJ said it had brought over 1,000 criminal cases involving losses of $1.1bn - and was involved in civil litigation alleging fraud in more than $6bn of loans. Source: BBC News

Former Australian Schoolboys captain Jock Madden will move from Wests Tigers to the Brisbane Broncos on a two-year deal. The 22-year-old playmaker, who skippered the 2018 Australian Schoolboys, played 14 NRL games for the Tigers in 2022. "Jock is a great signing for our NRL squad, he is a talented young player who has some NRL experience and knows what it takes to train and play at the top level," Broncos coach Kevin Walters said. “He’s a good developing half with plenty of skill and vision in his passing, running and kicking games and gives us some really nice depth in the halves." Broncos winger Corey Oates has re-signed with the club for another season to extend his career at Red Hill to an 11th year. The Broncos announced the retention of Oates on Tuesday after a strong return to form in 2022 with 20 tries. "Corey has had a great year and scored a heap of tries, made plenty of strong returns as well as catching the high balls really well, so it’s terrific to see him stay here at the Broncos," coach Kevin Walters said. Source: NRL.com

More forest fires have been recorded in the Brazilian Amazon so far this year than in all of 2021, data from INPE space agency shows. Brazil’s sprawling Amazon region has seen more forest fires so far this year than in all of 2021, official figures show, as environmental and Indigenous rights groups continue to plead for more protection of the critical rainforest. Satellite monitoring detected 75,592 fires from January 1 to September 18 this year, already higher than the 75,090 detected for all of last year, Brazil’s  National Institute for Space Research (INPE) said on Monday. Greenpeace Brazil spokesman Andre Freitas called the latest figures a “tragedy foretold“. “After four years of a clear and objective anti-environmental policy by the federal government, we are seeing that as this government’s term – one of the darkest periods ever for the Brazilian environment – comes to an end, land-grabbers and other illegal actors see it as the perfect opportunity to advance on the forest,” Freitas said in a statement. Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who is seeking re-election in deeply polarised elections set for next month, has faced international condemnation over the destruction of the Amazon. The world’s largest rainforest has continually set new records for deforestation under the watch of Bolsonaro, a far-right former army captain who has weakened environmental protections since he took office in 2019. Since then, average annual deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon has increased by 75 percent compared to the previous decade. Bolsonaro has rejected the criticism, insisting that Brazil “protects its forests much better than Europe”. But Indigenous rights advocates in Brazil have denounced the Bolsonaro government for the wave of destruction, as well as for increased threats across the Amazon region. A study from earlier this year showed that the demarcation of Indigenous territory in Brazil has acted as a barrier against deforestation over the past three decades – but rights groups say Bolsonaro’s administration has stalled the land protection process. The Indigenous Missionary Council, a group affiliated with the National Conference of Bishops of Brazil, recorded 305 cases of “possessory invasions, illegal exploitation of resources and damage to property” on Indigenous territories last year. That is up from 109 such incidents in 2018, the year before Bolsonaro took office – a 180 percent increase. Meanwhile, as Brazilians prepare to cast their ballots on October 2, concerns are mounting that Bolsonaro could refuse to accept the election results. For months, Bolsonaro has sought to sow distrust in Brazil’s electronic voting system, saying without evidence that it is vulnerable to fraud. That claim has been slammed by legal experts and critics, who accuse Bolsonaro of pushing false electoral fraud claims in order to reject the results, similarly to former United States President Donald Trump, who the Brazilian president has emulated. Most opinion polls have predicted that Bolsonaro will lose the election to his left-wing rival, former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. SOURCE: AL JAZEERA AND NEWS AGENCIES

A US judge has quashed a Baltimore man's murder conviction in a case that spawned hit true crime podcast Serial. Adnan Syed was 18 when he was sentenced to life in prison for the death of his ex-girlfriend, Hae Min Lee, whose body was found buried in the woods in 1999. Prosecutors last week asked the court to throw out his conviction, saying a year-long case review had turned up two alternative suspects. Mr Syed will be released into home detention. The 41-year-old's shackles were taken off in court on Monday after he spent nearly 23 years behind bars. Baltimore Circuit Judge Melissa Phinn said she was vacating his conviction "in the interest of fairness and justice", adding the state had failed to share evidence that could have helped his defence at trial. Adnan Syed and Serial: What you need to know The decision does not mean he is innocent. Judge Phinn has ordered a new trial. A jury found Mr Syed guilty in 2000 of premeditated murder, kidnapping, robbery and false imprisonment. Prosecutors argued he was a scorned lover who had strangled Ms Lee, his classmate at Woodlawn High School, and - with the help of a friend - hid her body in Baltimore's Leakin Park. They relied in part on mobile phone location data that has since been proven unreliable. Every appeal Mr Syed filed over the past two decades was denied, including his most recent attempt in 2019. It was the 2014 podcast Serial that focused worldwide attention on the case and cast doubt on Mr Syed's guilt. Episodes of the show have been downloaded more than 340 million times. The case has also spawned other works, including an HBO docuseries in 2019. The Baltimore State Attorney's Office, which studied the case over the past year alongside Mr Syed's latest defence attorney, said on Wednesday that he deserved a new trial. Prosecutors said they lacked "confidence in the integrity of the conviction" and had identified two new potential suspects who were known to police since the 1999 murder. Neither suspect has been named, but officials said both had documented records of violence towards women, including convictions that occurred after Mr Syed's trial. One suspect was cleared from the investigation into Ms Lee's death after failing a lie-detector test, a method no longer admissible in many US courts. "Our prosecutors have been sworn to not only aggressively advocate on behalf of victims of crime but when the evidence exists to exonerate those that have been falsely accused and convicted," lead prosecutor Marilyn Mosby said outside the court. She was interrupted by loud cheers as Mr Syed exited the building through a scrum of cameras and supporters. Before the ruling, the victim's brother told the court through tears that he was "not against the investigation", but had been blind-sided by prosecutors. "Every day when I think it's over... or it's ended, it always comes back. It's killing me," said Young Lee. "This is not a podcast for me. This is real life - a never-ending nightmare for 20-plus years." Steve Kelly, a victim's rights lawyer for the family, said the Lees had been "shut out of the legal process" and were "deeply disappointed" with the way they had been treated. "All they wanted was information," said Mr Kelly. "If the truth is that somebody else killed their daughter, they want to know that more than anyone." What triggered the latest case review? Serial Productions, which produced the podcast, has just released a new episode - the 13th - about the latest in the legal saga. It reports that last year Mr Syed's legal team applied for a review of his sentence under a new Maryland law which applies to those given more than 20 years in prison for crimes committed when they were under 18 (Mr Syed was 17 at the time of the murder). As part of this sentence review, an official in Baltimore city's state attorney's office examined the case files - and found two handwritten notes relating to information phoned in about a potential alternative suspect, the podcast reports. It was these notes that were not shared with the defence team in violation of legal protocol, it says. The impact of true crime podcasts Serial brought international attention to the murder of Hae Min Lee and was one of the first hit podcasts of the past decade's boom in audio content. It was followed by other shows which raised questions about existing murder convictions or drew attention to cold cases - attracting big audiences and also, possibly, having an impact on the course of justice. They include In the Dark, a US podcast focusing on the case of Curtis Flowers, a black Mississippi man tried six times for the same crime by the same white prosecutor. His conviction was subsequently quashed by the US Supreme Court over racial bias and he was released after 23 years in prison in 2019 The unsolved killing of Alistair Wilson, a father-of-two who was shot on his doorstep in the seaside town of Nairn in the Scottish Highlands in 2004, was the focus of the BBC's podcast The Doorstep Murder, which came out in 2018. His death remains unsolved but Police Scotland's major investigations team said earlier this year they believe a planning dispute was the likely motive A popular crime podcast about an Australian man who was found guilty of his wife's murder - 40 years after she went missing. Chris Dawson was charged with the murder of his wife Lynette in 2018 after the podcast, The Teacher's Pet, garnered global attention and prompted a renewed investigation. Mrs Dawson's body has never been found. Source: BBC News

Westpac PNG continues to upskill and empower PNG’s female entrepreneurs with money management skills, helping families to recover from the pandemic. Women in Gerehu, Boroko and Vadavada have in the past few weeks put up their hands to attend a session hosted by Westpac’s team, learning savings and budgeting tips to enhance their financial management and business skills, with the aim of preparing them for business growth. Cathy and Lian Akori are sisters who attended the training together with women in Boroko. They are actively involved in informal markets selling snacks, meri blouses and bilums under a gazebo along the streets near Bava Park. "This training has helped me to identify the needs and wants and be able to save what can be saved and not to use all money at once,” said Ms Akori. Westpac PNG Chief Executive Brett Hooker said the training aimed to bolster the micro small and medium business sector, which has the potential to boost family income and the economy overall. “We see many female entrepreneurs coming to the bank who right now operate with cash, but want to learn how to prepare for the commercial bank accounts and loans that will allow their businesses to grow from micro to small, small to medium size, and beyond,” said Mr Hooker. “With growth comes jobs and with jobs comes financial stability for families – so we want to do what we can to instill sound money management principles so women are supported right throughout their business journey.

The strong ties of familiarity that link the armed forces of Papua New Guinea, Australia and the United Kingdom are being strengthened further during Exercise Puk Puk 2022. Engineers from the PNGDF, Australian Army and British Army are working together to increase bonds, build wantok and develop trade skills whilst improving existing infrastructure at the Goldie River Training Depot (GRTD) near Port Moresby. Lieutenant Desmond Reuben from the PNGDF says site inductions dominated day one of major works. “We are here for the site induction, being inducted by the foreman of Milne Bay troop,” Lieutenant Reuben said. “Most of the works that are going to be happening here at the Field Engineer Wing is the construction of an additional classroom and an inert demolition training facility.” Over 100 soldiers from the PNGDF, Australian and British Armies are living and working together at GRTD to deliver Ex Puk Puk 2022. Lieutenant Reuben says all the troops have names of historic significance and include members from the PNGDF, ADF and British Army in them. “I have broken up my troops, so they are working together in partnership,” he said. “It’s good, they can learn more about the command and control of the ADF and UK Army.” Australian Army Captain Lara Perkovic from 3rd Combat Engineer Regiment says there is construction activity taking place at two main locations on GRTD. “Our main scope of work item is a classroom at Field Engineer Wing, with the second main scope of work item being a Guard Haus refurbishment,” Captain Perkovic said. “Our main focus on this exercise is the people-to-people relationships and building our wantok with the PNGDF and British Army.” The PNGDF have been amazing, especially those at Goldie River Training Depot, the Koiari community, members from Directorate of Engineers and the Engineer Battalion themselves.” Lieutenant Hannah Garside from the UK 26 Engineer Regiment is glad Ex Puk Puk has begun, after many weeks of preparation. “I think everyone is excited to get stuck in and practice their trade because being from a UK armoured unit we don’t get to practice our construction trade as much as we’d like,” Lieutenant Garside said. “We hope to demonstrate our support for the ADF and PNGDF and to also just build relationships and hope that potentially we can continue our contribution to Puk Puk for future years.” The Townsville based 3rd Brigade has strong ties to the PNGDF that are regularly reinforced through training, capability and people-to-people engagements as part of Australia’s Defence Cooperation Program. Captain Perkovic is already familiar with some members of the PNG workforce. “I have been really fortunate to go through training with a lot of PNGDF members and I have met a lot of them here as well that I consider Wantok,” she said. One of those sappers she is already familiar with, is Lieutenant Reuben who completed both PNGDF and ADF Engineer Regimental Officers Basic Course. “I have worked with the ADF before, including during Exercise Puk Puk in 2017. “We worked together, did the ROBC together, the ROBC helped my skills and knowledge.” Exercise Puk Puk has been an enduring commitment to PNG since the early 2000s.

Senior Legal Officer, Ms. Fiona Yandi from the Public Services Commission was among forty-four (44) other women from both the private and public sectors who graduated with certificates in Leadership & Management from the Business Coalition for Women Leadership. Ms. Yandi’s participation was made possible with financial assistance from the Australian Government through the Australian Awards which have also supported 28 other female Public Servants. The graduation saw the combination of Cohorts 15, 16, & 17 celebrate the achievement of 45 emerging female leaders who completed the Business Coalition for Women (BCFW) 6 months certificate course that aims to meet specific PNG industry needs and is designed to develop leadership and managerial skills of women in the workforce who have the potential to take up supervisory or managerial posts. [caption id="attachment_27030" align="alignnone" width="1366"] Image: Ms. Yandi (r) receiving her Certificate from the Director of the Australian Awards Ms. Rebecca Gitsham.[/caption] When initially taking up the course Ms. Yandi said given the fact that we are a Melanesian society people tend to think women lack the capabilities to take up managerial positions in organizations but if only we could break that barrier, we will see a lot more women moving up to top positions. Ms. Yandi is now equipped with good managerial and leadership skills and looks forward to implementing the skills and knowledge gained from this course in her line of duty. Since its inception in 2015, over 300 women from 70 organizations representing a diversity of industries have graduated from the Coalition’s Certificate IV in Leadership. ‘’The Coalition is the go-to resource for gender equality and our solutions, which are tailor-made for PNG’s corporate sector, and helps businesses understand the value that their female staff brings to the company. The Certificate IV Leadership & Management Course helps businesses develop and reap the benefits of having gender diversity in their leadership in team’’ explained Evonne Kennedy who is the BCFW Executive. The Public Services Commission continues to support the up-skilling of its officers to help them to perform their duties more effectively and efficiently and also allows officers to grow into managerial roles in the Commission offering equal opportunities for both men and women. Source: Public Services Commission FB Page

BSP Group General Manager for Retail Daniel Faunt said it was important such information be disseminated to update customers on the measures that BSP takes to ensure ATM’s operate efficiently, educate BSP customers and the public and at the same time highlight issues that contribute to ATMs operation downtime. "We have a total of 326 ATMs across the country. Over the long weekend, we had teams on standby attending to ATMs that were unavailable. At any given time, BSP maintains an uptime at 85 percent of ATMs in operation. We aim to achieve 90 percent ATM uptime but as always we strive to do better,” Mr Faunt said. "In addition to internally managed issues such as ATM monitoring adequacy, support staff resourcing and software upgrades, there are three main contributing factors to ATM outage or downtime - Power and telecommunication issues, quality of bank notes and card user care. ATM’s are complex, expensive devices and require considerable time effort and resources to manage across the entire BSP network which spans every province in PNG. “Customers are encouraged to adopt digital banking options and move away from using cash. If a customer require cash, they can also utilize BSPs more than 9000 EFTPOS terminals for cashback and over 300 Cash Agencies across PNG that assist with Withdrawals, Deposits and Funds Transfers, “Mr Faunt added. BSP Deputy Chief Operating Officer with Operations and IT- Guy Thomas said BSP has a team that monitors ATM processing 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Mr Thomas added that these teams constantly fix ATMs remotely by resetting them, or physically visit the sites when required for a mechanical issue with any of the hardware componentry. We refill cash every day at most machines, so the issue is usually mechanical, such as bank notes getting jammed and software failure rather than actually be empty from cash. We are also replacing all the ATMS over the next 18 months with new machines, 120 machines have just been delivered to us, and will be installed once the software testing is completed.”