BY JOHN HOUANIHAU
The Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) reaffirms its commitment to support maternal and newborn health in Solomon Islands following a two-day visit by senior agency officials.
KOICA South Asia and Pacific Director General, Dr Jongmin Park and Pacific Islands Team Assistant Manager, Ms Songi Lee visited the Ministry of Health and Medical Services (MHMS), the World Health Organization (WHO) Solomon Islands office, and the National Referral Hospital (NRH) last week.
The visit follows KOICA’s USD 5 million support to the Maternal and Newborn Health Care in Solomon Islands Project, which is being implemented through WHO in partnership with MHMS and development partners, including World Vision and Save the Children.
During meetings with WHO, Dr Park and Ms Lee were briefed on the project’s progress.
The initiative is currently being implemented in Honiara City Council, Guadalcanal, Western, Central, and Malaita provinces and focuses on strengthening national governance, improving the quality and use of maternal and newborn services, and increasing community trust and awareness.
WHO officials reported that nearly 83 per cent of the project had been implemented in 2025, with efforts being enhanced to achieve full completion by June 2026.
Dr Park said that KOICA was proud to support the project, adding that the visit allowed him to witness both its achievements and challenges firsthand.
He expressed confidence in the successful completion of the initiative.
MHMS Permanent Secretary, Mrs Pauline McNeil thanked KOICA for its continued support, noting the project’s positive impact on frontline health services despite ongoing challenges.
“The partnership with KOICA and WHO has strengthened our efforts to improve maternal and newborn health care and contributes significantly to building a resilient health system,” Mrs McNeil said.
WHO Solomon Islands Officer-in-Charge, Mr Georgios Theocharopoulos said the project has strengthened the capacity of more than 600 frontline health workers through training in obstetric and newborn care and infection prevention and control.
Meanwhile, NRH Medical Superintendent Dr Titus Nasi said that the hospital data from 2023 to 2024 shows a significant reduction in fatality rates among extremely low birth weight babies following the rollout of Kangaroo Mother Care training.
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