“Living their best, healthiest lives”: Delivering Medical Supplies to Remote Islands in Kiribati

Excerpt from gavi.org

The Pacific island nation of Kiribati is dispersed across 3.5 million square kilometers of ocean, making it one of the most challenging places on the planet to coordinate the equitable delivery of medical services and supplies to its people. The World Bank is helping Kiribati to strengthen the management of its pharmacy supply chain, with a focus on ensuring health workers can make the most of all available resources.

It is no exaggeration to say that pharmacist Moannara Benete literally has one of the biggest jobs in the Pacific. Kiribati’s 21 inhabited islands are spread across some 3.5 million square kilometers of ocean, and as leader of the Kiribati Ministry of Health & Medical Services’ Pharmacy team, Moannara’s focus is ensuring medical supplies are available to all people in her country; no matter where they live.

This was already an immense challenge before COVID-19, and the pandemic has only amplified these challenges. Medical supplies have been difficult to source, and there have been significant delays in their arrival. This has led to an increase in urgent medical supply orders, which have driven up prices.

“Procurement of medical supplies is an important part of most health care services,” says Moannara Benete, from her office in Kiribati’s capital, Tarawa. “Our goal is to improve the overall health of the population by sourcing and buying quality cost effective medical supplies. A well-managed procurement program supports economic and social development by keeping the population as healthy as possible.”