Pacific Islands World Health Innovation Summit 2025 – Online

🌏 Pacific Islands World Health Innovation Summit 2025 – Online Highlights

Date: Friday, 28th November 2025 Time: 09:00 – 10:30 BST Format: Online (YouTube, LinkedIn, Facebook) Partners: Global Social Prescribing Alliance (GSPA) • Commonwealth Pacific Climate Fund (CPCF) • Ministries of Health, Pacific Islands - WHO Theme: Health and Resilience in the Pacific – Addressing NCDs, Strengthening Systems, and Building Investment Opportunities

The Pacific Islands World Health Innovation Summit brought together health, climate, and investment leaders to discuss strategies for addressing non-communicable diseases (NCDs), strengthening health systems, and fostering sustainable development in the Pacific region.

Welcome and Opening Remarks

Gareth Presch, CEO of the World Health Innovation Summit, opened the session emphasizing the urgent need for integrated approaches that combine health, resilience, and investment opportunities in Pacific Island nations.

Gareth highlighted key priorities and opportunities:

Health Priorities & Opportunities

• Strengthening community health through innovation – leveraging the WHIS model to support locally driven, culturally grounded health solutions across Pacific Island nations.
• Scaling social prescribing to address NCDs, mental health, and social isolation—major challenges for Pacific communities.
• Building resilient healthcare systems by integrating prevention, early intervention, and digital health technologies.
• Supporting climate-related health adaptation, recognising the Pacific as frontline communities experiencing direct health impacts from climate change.
• Empowering local health leaders and youth through capacity-building programmes, partnerships, and skills exchange initiatives.
• Driving community impact via WHIS and World Health Innovation Day, celebrating and scaling local success stories from the region.

Economic Growth & Sustainable Development

• Mobilising sustainable investment with partners through the Commonwealth Pacific Climate Fund, enabling climate-resilient infrastructure, clean energy, and community health initiatives.
• Positioning health as an economic driver—advancing a wellbeing economy framework that strengthens productivity, workforce resilience, and long-term prosperity.
• Promoting a health innovation ecosystem that attracts global partners, supports local entrepreneurs, and encourages knowledge exchange.
• Aligning all initiatives with UN SDG 3 (Good Health and Wellbeing) and interconnected goals on climate action, gender equality, and sustainable communities.
• Unlocking value through public–private partnerships that generate long-term returns while delivering measurable social and environmental impact.
• Supporting digital transformation to improve access, reduce costs, and connect Pacific nations to global healthcare and innovation networks.

Key Speaker Insights

Dr Les Ala – Medical Consultant, RGH, Vanuatu

Focus: NCD Burden and Prevention

• Resource Constraints & Competing Priorities: Limited resources in Pacific Island countries often divert funding away from NCD programs toward climate change commitments and other priorities.
• Economic and Social Impact of NCDs: Diabetes and related complications remove individuals from the workforce. Families bear care costs without state welfare, affecting national productivity.
• High Treatment Costs: Significant funds are spent on treating NCD complications, highlighting the need for preventive strategies.
• Prevention Strategies: Public health education, early detection via mass screenings, and prompt evidence-based treatment.
• Sustainability Needed: Ongoing, repeated, and sustainable prevention programs are essential for impact.

James Harris – Founder, Commonwealth Pacific Climate Fund (CPCF)

Focus: Geothermal Energy & Development Linkages

• Energy as a Development Driver: High energy costs hinder healthcare, education, and overall development.
• Geothermal Opportunity: Collaboration with Stele Energy aims to harness abundant shallow geothermal resources across the Pacific Ring of Fire.
• Current Projects: Initial developments in Bougainville and Papua New Guinea, with promising prospects in Vanuatu.
• Transformational Potential: Projects can serve as test cases for wider geothermal deployment, enabling further health-related programmes.

Dr Sandro Demaio – WHO Asia-Pacific Centre for Environment and Health

Focus: Prevention & Climate-Resilient Health Systems

• Alignment Opportunities: NCD prevention is a cornerstone of sustainable, climate-resilient health systems.
• Co-Benefits: Healthy diets and human-centric urban design reduce NCD risk and improve environmental outcomes.
• Policy & Financing Leverage: Programs like Best Buy packages for NCDs and ATACH demonstrate how climate policies benefit health objectives.
• Integrated Action: Emphasizes collaboration between health and climate sectors to maximize shared benefits.

Tahina Booth – Founder, Grass Skirt Project, Papua New Guinea

Focus: Community-Based, Gender-Responsive Prevention

• Youth & Gender-Focused Programs: Sport initiatives advance gender equality and NCD prevention.
• Economic Value Demonstration: Programs offer governments tangible examples of cost-effective community prevention.
• Hub-Based, Locally Led Approach: Programs adapt locally while linking to regional agendas on health, gender, and resilience.
• Long-Term Benefits: Early interventions reduce downstream costs, embodying the principle “health is wealth.”

Dr Sivaneswaran Poobalasingam – Lifestyle Medicine, Asia-Pacific

Focus: Lifestyle Medicine in NCD Management

• Malaysia’s Example: Lifestyle Medicine clinics proactively tackle NCDs.
• International Recognition: Presentations at G20 India Summit, National Forum in Romania, and Doha Declaration (2024) highlight global consensus on lifestyle medicine.
• Impact: Reduces healthcare costs, alleviates system pressure, improves provider well-being, and promotes longer, healthier lives.
• Closing Thought: Dr. David Katz: “Adding years to your life and life to your years.”

Minna LeVine – Nordic Business Council USA

Focus: Investment & Community-Based Health Programs

• Program Strategy: Community-led programs with global partnership engagement.
• Funding & Partnerships: Multilateral agencies, climate and health funds, philanthropic foundations, and private sector partners.
• Risk Management: Addresses technological, social adoption, environmental, governance, and data risks.
• Global Scaling Vision: Lessons from Pacific pilot sites aim to inform scalable models for healthy, preventive, and equitable systems worldwide.

Tana Torrano – Nordic Business Council USA

Focus: Education, Health, and Strategic Planning in American Samoa

Conclusion

The summit highlighted the urgent need for integrated, preventive, and sustainable health solutions in the Pacific. Key takeaways include:

• Addressing the economic and social burden of NCDs
• Leveraging climate solutions to support health and development
• The transformative power of prevention, lifestyle medicine, and community-led initiatives
• Investment and partnership opportunities for resilient, healthy communities By linking health, climate, and economic strategies, the Pacific Islands WHIS session demonstrated a blueprint for resilient, equitable, and innovative health systems—creating lasting impact across the region.

We had around 200 attendees joining online via YouTube, LinkedIn, and Facebook from countries spanning Italy, Fiji, Solomon Islands, USA, United Kingdom, Australia, Libya, South Korea, New Zealand, Nigeria, Papua New Guinea, Brazil, Ireland, Singapore, Uganda, Colombia, India, Vanuatu, Malaysia, Republic of Moldova, and Indonesia.