The Fiji National University receives a grant of $FJD4.4M from the Australia Government.

This is granted to the College of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences to fund Learning & Teaching (L&T) and Research responses to COVID-19 for Fiji and the Pacific.

FNU Vice-Chancellor, Professor Toby Wilkinson says the grant was timely for the College given its history of providing learning, teaching and research in medicine and its lead role in providing support and training to medical personnel in the battle against the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Dean CMNHS, Dr William May, says Australia was committed to Fiji and the Pacific.

Meanwhile Australian High Commissioner, John Feakes confirms that Australia will support its Pacific neighbors to recover from this pandemic.

This grant will enhance learning at the College through state of the art digital technology and virtual platforms, allow research to inform COVID-19 vaccination studies, NCDs in Fiji, and COVID-19 situational analysis for Health Care Workers in Fiji and the Pacific.

It will support the establishment of the Pacific Observatory – a real-time health data and information repository based at the Fiji Institute of Pacific Health Research (FIPHR), CMNHS.

Funding from the Australian Government will also support the FNU CMNHS and Fiji Ministry of Health to conduct research on COVID-19 vaccines’ impact in Fiji; in collaboration with the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute (MCRI) in Melbourne and other research institutions in Australia and New Zealand.