The delayed disbursement of grants under the Compacts of Free Association has stalled the implementation of U.S.-funded projects in Palau, the Marshall Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia, according to the Government Accountability Office.

By Pacific Island Times News Staff Rising fuel and shipping costs, supply chain disruption and renewed global volatility put fresh pressure on Pacific economies, which are facing slow growth at 2.8 percent this year, according to the World Bank Group. The World Bank’s new Pacific Economic Update finds that repeated external shocks are becoming the region’s “new normal,” while reliable water systems are increasingly critical to jobs, business growth and long-term resilience. P