Nauru

As protests at the other Australian-run detention centre on Nauru enter day 56, those in the Manus Island centre have holding signs and chanting "Freedom, Freedom" and "This place is illegal".

The centre in PNG was ruled unconstitutional by the country's Supreme Court, prompting the Prime Minister, Peter O'Neill, to vow to close it.

However the Australian authorities said this might take some time and repeated that the refugees and asylum seekers would never go to Australia.

Following the opening prayer, President Baron Waqa delivered his address welcoming the new citizens into the Nauruan family.

“Each of you today will have something special to share with your families that is uniquely yours to add to the meaning of being a Nauruan.

“We hope, in turn, that the freedom, the peace, the diversity and tolerance that we are privileged to enjoy in Nauru will be actively embraced and advanced by you.

RNZI reports Canberra reached a confidential financial settlement with the charity after claims by the immigration department two years ago that ten employees had orchestrated protests and coached asylum seekers to self-harm at Australia's detention centre.

Mr Morrison, who has since become the treasurer, said he never made the accusation but only made public allegations, for which he wouldn't apologise.

For three years, hundreds of asylum seekers and refugees have been in Nauru where Australia sent them to process their asylum applications, some of which are yet to be done

RNZI reports one refugee killed himself last week and the minister, David Adeang, said the government and people of Nauru were saddened by the tragic incident.

This has been made possible with the ground breaking initiative by the Bank to merge its lending operation, the Asian Development Fund (ADF) and its Ordinary Capital Resources (OCR), boosting its total annual lending and grant to as high as US$20 billion.

The Director General of the ADB’s Pacific Department, Xianbin Yao told PACNEWS in Frankfurt the other Pacific Developing Member States (DMCs) are Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Palau and Tuvalu.

RNZI reports the ADB is giving a grant of US$2 million dollars and Australia US$1.8 million.

The Bank says it is aiming to support critical reforms for more efficient and sustainable public service delivery.

The program will help improve public financial management and boost the performance of the state-owned power company.

The team departed on Wednesday with team officials Jason Wharton and Langa Wharton.

The men have been working hard with training for the competition.

In a submission into an Australian senate inquiry into conditions in Australia's offshore detention centres, the department said precautions had been taken to protect detainees from contracting the virus.

According to RNZI, it said strong insect repellent had been supplied to detainees on both Nauru and Papua New Guinea's Manus Island.

Over the past days, children have been competing in field events as well as track events like the 1500 metres.

Other track events like the 200 metres, 400 metres and mixed relays will take place on Saturday.

A march and the main events of 100 metre sprint and 4x100 metre relays will be held on 17 May.

Part of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) since 2009, Nauru has applied to join the OECD's Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters, a body set up to clamp down on the practice of offshore tax evasion through the exchange of financial and tax related information.