The Fiji Government, together with Pacific neighbours, on Thursday launched the Pacific Healthy Islands Transformation (PHIT) Project to tackle the region’s most pressing health crisis — non-communicable diseases (NCDs), which account for up to 66 percent of premature deaths among working-age Pacific Islanders.
The landmark US$239.5 million regional health initiative is supported by the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the OPEC Fund and the Pandemic Fund.
The PHIT Project unites Fiji, Kiribati, Tonga, and Tuvalu — with regional support extended through the Pacific Community (SPC) to Nauru, Samoa, Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu — under a single, coordinated platform formed to assist countries transform their health systems for a healthier and more resilient Pasifika.
Speaking at the launch, Prime Minister Sitiveni Ligamamada Rabuka, called the initiative a defining moment for Pacific health sovereignty.
“PHIT reflects a new level of ambition in regional collaboration. This approach strengthens regional health security, resource efficiency and our collective capacity to respond to crises – whether pandemics, climate related health risks, or system shocks.”
Across the region, the project is expected to generate approximately 11,000 jobs, and will train thousands of health workers, deploy telehealth systems across remote islands, and upgrade facilities in all four participating nations.
While bringing healthcare closer to people through empowered and equipped primary healthcare facilities, PHIT will also expand the region’s tertiary services, including the construction of the first unit of a new referral hospital, a Radiotherapy Centre that will allow Pacific cancer patients to receive world-class treatment at home for the first time.
“We’re proud to support this Pacific-led effort, working alongside partners such as ADB, the OPEC Fund, the Pandemic Fund, SPC, UNICEF and Australia, to help build healthier, more resilient communities across the region,” said Stefano Mocci, World Bank Group Country Manager for Fiji.
“This is our shared commitment to working together differently—to investing boldly, acting regionally, and transforming health systems locally so that Pacific people can live longer, healthier lives and thrive.”
PHIT also invests in the architecture of resilience: climate-proofed health facilities in a region where over half of hospitals face flooding risks, digital health systems providing real-time data for government decision-making, and a regional knowledge-sharing platform so no Pacific nation faces these challenges alone.
“This programme is a turning point for health in the Pacific. It will help countries prevent and tackle chronic diseases earlier, so fewer families face avoidable illness and hardship,” said Azusa Sato, Regional Director, Asian Development Bank.
“By investing in health workers, modern services and better facilities, we can deliver lasting improvements in everyday care—and a better future for Pacific people.”
The launch ceremony, as well as PHIT’s inaugural Regional Steering Committee held in Nadi, was presided over by Fiji Prime Minister as chief guest, bringing together ministers of health and finance, regional health leaders from 9 Pacific Island Countries, regional organisations, development partners, civil society and media partners from across the Pacific.
