Pacific Islands look to US, Australia, New Zealand for help with Covid-19 vaccines

The geographical advantages that helped the likes of Tonga and Kiribati remain coronavirus free have also ended up hurting the tourism-dependent nations economically

Their larger regional neighbours say they will lend a hand, but challenges include storage and distribution, anti-vaccination sentiment, and affordability

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A beach in Fiji. The pandemic has wrecked the tourism-reliant economies of many Pacific nations. Photo: AP

Published: 6:00am, 23 Dec 2020Updated: 8:43am, 23 Dec 2020

Pacific Island countries are banking on the support of larger regional neighbours to vaccinate their populations against Covid-19, as their economies reel from the collapse of tourism and international travel.

The United States, Australia and New Zealand have all pledged to assist with immunising the island nations, many of which have limited medical infrastructure and rely heavily on development aid.

Pacific Island countries have largely avoided coronavirus cases thanks to their remote locations and swift imposition of border controls during the early days of the pandemic. Tonga, Kiribati, Nauru, Palau, Tuvalu are among the only countries to remain officially Covid-19-free, while Fiji, the Solomon Islands, Samoa and Vanuatu have reported a relative handful of cases.

But those same geographical advantages have amplified the pandemic’s economic toll. Tourism-dependent economies such as Fiji, Vanuatu, Paulu and the Cook Islands are facing some of the sharpest economic contractions in the world this year, ranging from between 7 per cent and 19.8 per cent, according to the Asian Development Bank’s (ABD) latest economic forecast.

“They are desperate to open borders and get their economy going but quarantine-free travel will be a long time coming,” said Colin Tukuitonga, former director general of Pacific Community, an intergovernmental development aid organisation.

“The vaccine is critical to these plans – it reduces the risk of Covid-19, but also restores confidence among planners and politicians that Covid-19 can be controlled,” he added. “It’s the one big thing the islands are hoping for in order to open borders and permit travel.”

Pacific Island nations have largely avoided coronavirus cases thanks to their remote locations and swift imposition of border controls. Photo: AFP

The US is leading immunisation efforts in Palau, the Federated States of Micronesia, and the Marshall Islands, sovereign states that rely on Washington for their defence under a Compact of Free Association, with vaccinations expected to begin within weeks.

For other Pacific islands, the timetables for immunisation are less clear.

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