The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has deployed specialist advisers to Fiji to undertake contingency planning and provide clinical response support in the event of an outbreak of COVID-19 in the Pacific region.
The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Senator Marise Payne said Australia would work in partnership with its Pacific neighbours to keep the region safe from COVID-19.
“We have responded quickly to a range of early requests for assistance from our Pacific partners for laboratory diagnosis, personal protective equipment for healthcare workers, risk communication strategies, and national response planning and budgeting,” Senator Payne said.
“We are providing personal protective equipment and medical supplies for healthcare workers in Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste and Fiji.”
She said DFAT staff would also assist the Solomon Islands, Kiribati, Palau, Tonga, the Federated States of Micronesia and Fiji with planning, surveillance, risk communication and case management.
She said the deployment by the Indo-Pacific Centre for Health Security within DFAT would see staff work with the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Pacific Community in Suva.
“They are also working with the health ministries of Kiribati, Papua New Guinea, Samoa and Tuvalu, and are undertaking contingency planning to provide a surge clinical response capacity in the event of an outbreak,” Senator Payne said.
She said Australia and New Zealand were jointly funding the WHO’s Pacific region response plan, with Australia’s contribution to help Pacific island countries to access medical supplies from the WHO’s global and regional stockpiles and provide technical advice in areas such as infection prevention and control, and clinical management.
