Apenisa Waqairadovu 
Fiji is set to gain faster, more affordable, and more effective development support under a new global financing model launched by the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank.
The two major lenders today announced the first Pacific projects to roll out under the Full Mutual Reliance Framework, an approach that allows countries to work with a single lead lender for an entire project, cutting duplication, speeding up delivery, and reducing costs.
Fiji’s major benefit will come through the Pacific Healthy Islands Transformation Project, a US$236.5 million health initiative that will modernize primary healthcare and support the development of a new state-of-the-art regional hospital.
This will significantly expand access to treatment for cancer, diabetes, heart disease and other major illnesses across Fiji and the Pacific.
World Bank President Ajay Banga says the new approach is designed to make life easier for countries that need development support.
“We pursued this framework for one core reason: our clients asked us to make their lives easier. To work faster. To be better partners.”
ADB President Masato Kanda says the model will allow lenders to tackle regional challenges more effectively from disaster resilience to better transport systems.
“Our goal is to make development finance simpler, faster, and more effective.”
This marks the largest World Bank operation in the Pacific, with ADB co-financing to be considered early next year.
The second initiative under the framework is a US$120 million ADB-led project in Tonga, focusing on major upgrades to transport, urban systems, and climate-resilient infrastructure but it also underscores the wider benefits Pacific nations can expect from the new partnership model.
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