World Bank wants bigger solution to move faster on Pacific Islands health crisis

By Kirsty Needham

SUVA (Reuters) - The Pacific Islands, with the highest death rates globally from non-communicable diseases, could better tackle its health crisis with region-wide services, World Bank President Ajay Banga said in Fiji on Thursday.

Diabetes is the top cause of death in Fiji, where an amputation is performed every 8.5 hours according to the chief surgeon.

Pacific leaders last week elevated the health impact of non-communicable disease as a priority for the Pacific Islands Forum, whose 18-member states range from remote atolls to regional hub Fiji.

Speaking in Fiji on Thursday, Banga said a key to boosting health services was to build greater scale.

"Because the Pacific Islands are small in population, I think having larger communities capable of providing mutual infrastructure is one of the solutions," he said, after visiting a health clinic in Nuffield in Suva experiencing staff shortages.  

"The Pacific Islands as a community has to do this together."

The World Bank has committed to reach 1.5 billion people by 2030 with better primary health care facilities, expanding its remit from maternal and child health to the rise in non-communicable diseases throughout the adult population. 

"One of the things we want to do in this region is prioritise healthcare," he said.

Banga later met with leaders of five Pacific Islands countries, saying he wanted to enlist their voices to argue that wealthy nations must lift contributions to the global lender's fund for poverty alleviation.

Donors including the United States, Japan, China, Germany, Australia and Britain will meet in December to replenish the World Bank's International Development Association (IDA) with new funding pledges.

"We need to fight that case hard and prosecute it hard... Between now and then, your voice will count," he said in the meeting with a dozen Pacific Island countries that are IDA recipients.

The World Bank has cut its average approval time for projects from 19 months to 16 months, but wants to move faster, he said.

To speed up its work, the bank will look for bigger scale projects.

"If we do small projects, and many of them, it takes longer. If we do larger projects and focus, it is much quicker," he said in the meeting.

Tonga Prime Minister Siaosi Sovaleni said island leaders wanted to see more focus on "building resilience with the education and health sectors, in terms of labour and capacity, technology, innovation and climate-proofing infrastructure".

"This is why we support your efforts to replenish the [International Development Association] as this will provide us with financial support required by our region," he said.

(Reporting by Kirsty Needham in Suva; Editing by Sharon Singleton)