Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday unveiled a range of projects in the Pacific Island Nations (PICs) during the Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC) meeting in Port Moresby.
The 14 FIPIC members include Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Niue, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.
The major chunk of projects announced by Prime Minister Modi were in the domain of healthcare, with other projects in the areas of Information and Technology (IT), capacity-building as well as Yoga.
Bellow is the list of initiatives announced by the Indian Prime Minister.
Healthcare
A fully-funded super-specialty cardiology hospital in Fiji. “This hospital will be equipped with trained staff, modern facilities, and infrastructure, and it will serve as a lifeline for the entire region,” Modi said.
India will assist in establishing dialysis units in all the 14 Pacific island countries.
Sea ambulances to all the 14 Pacific Island countries (PICs).
A ‘Jaipur Foot’ (prosthetic limbs) camp in Papua New Guinea this year. Starting 2024, two more camps will be set-up in PICs every year.
A proposal to set-up ‘Jan Aushadhi’ centres in Pacific countries. The Jan Aushadhi scheme of the Indian government aims to provide affordable medicines to vulnerable populations.
Proposal to establish Yoga centres in the Pacific countries
Information and Technology (IT)
The ‘Centre for Excellence’ for IT in Papua New Guinea will be upgraded into a ‘Regional Information Technology and Cybersecurity Hub’.
A new 24*7 ‘emergency helpline’ in Fiji, with a proposal to set-up similar facilities in other countries as well.
SME sector
Indian assistance to develop small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in all the 14 Pacific nations.
“Under this scheme, machinery and technology supplies will be provided, and capacity-building programs will be conducted to enhance capabilities,” Modi said.
Capacity Building
1,000 training opportunities for citizens of Pacific island countries under the "Sagar Amrut Scholarship" over the next five years.
The Indian Prime Minister also pledged to set-up de-salination plants in all the 14 Pacific countries to address the problem of “water scarcity”