Senior officials from 22 Pacific Island countries and territories along with medical professionals have gathered in Suva for the Fifth Heads of Health meeting.
Organised by Pacific Community with support from Australia, New Zealand, World Bank and WHO, the annual meeting provides an important platform to review and contribute towards decisions that impact regional health policy.
SPC's Public Health Director Paula Vivili said the main objective of the three day meeting is to review, discuss and make recommendations to the biennial Pacific Health Ministers Meeting which will be held in the Cook Islands in August.
SPC Public Health Director Paula Vivili Photo: SPC
Last year's meeting tasked SPC and WHO to facilitate the development of a Healthy Islands Monitoring Framework and this meeting will review its progress.
Also high on the agenda are strategies against Non-Communicable Diseases, human resource issues and epidemic preparedness and responses.