$US239.5m project targets NCD crisis in Fiji, Pacific

A US$239.5 million regional health financing platform has been launched to strengthen health systems and address non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in Fiji and across the Pacific.

The Pacific Healthy Islands Transformation (PHIT) project aims to improve access to quality health services, with a strong focus on tackling the region’s growing burden of NCDs.

PHIT supports Fiji, Tonga, Kiribati and Tuvalu, and, through the Pacific Community (SPC), extends to Nauru, Samoa, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu.

The project is financed by the World Bank, Asian Development Bank (ADB), OPEC Fund and the Pandemic Fund.

Approved in the 2026 financial year, PHIT represents a shift away from fragmented, country-by-country interventions toward a coordinated regional model that promotes shared learning and pooled capacity. It also allows for the inclusion of additional Pacific countries and development partners over time.

The initiative responds to common regional challenges, including limited tertiary care capacity, heavy reliance on costly overseas medical referrals, shortages of trained health workers, fragmented service delivery across dispersed island geographies, and climate-related shocks that strain health systems.

Pacific health leaders have identified several strategic priorities under the programme, including strengthening primary health care and universal health coverage, embedding climate and environmental resilience into health systems, advancing digital and AI-enabled health transformation, and recognising health as a driver of economic development.

Other priorities include strengthening the health workforce and revitalising traditional knowledge alongside research aligned with national priorities.

PHIT is described as a long-term investment in Pacific health resilience, combining regional collaboration, national reforms, and modern digital and clinical systems to better respond to future shocks.

Funding allocations include US$181.94 million for Fiji, US$19.60 million for Kiribati, US$13.65 million for Tonga, US$16.35 million for Tuvalu, and US$8 million for SPC.

The PHIT launch will be officiated today by Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka at the Crowne Plaza Fiji Nadi Bay Resort & Spa.

Executives from regional organisations, the World Bank and ADB, along with Pacific health ministers, are expected to attend.