We had one of the worst health services in the last several years – Prof. Prasad

We had one of the worst health services ever in the history of this country over the last several years and the transformation of the health sector is very important.

This has been highlighted by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Professor Biman Prasad while officiating at the Transforming Primary Health Care in Fiji workshop at Novotel Hotel in Lami this morning.

The Deputy Prime Minister says sometimes it's better to come into government having been in Opposition because you can see from a perspective that usually you do not when you are in the Government.

He adds the agenda for the Coalition Government is very clear and they have laid an objective that in the next four years, they are going to transform the health sector right from primary care to tertiary care.

Professor Prasad says in terms of putting everything together in the context of development that supports how we as a country can form and progress, we now have a very competent Minister for Health.

He says the objective of development in improving the quality of life, the people and the subject of the theme of this workshop, Transforming Primary Health Care in Fiji, is a timely one.

Professor Prasad says this workshop is significant as it is going to define how we as a country can deal with not only our health issues but also how we can grow our country.

He says he believes that from an economics point of view, something that he always took into account in areas of economic studies and health economics was at the forefront of development and he acknowledged the Ministry of Health and the whole health organization for putting this program.

Professor Prasad says he has included some very good experts for this three-day workshop, leaders of the Health sector, frontline practitioners, stakeholder agencies and people from the social sectors and they have all agreed that the country has gone through a very difficult period during COVID and indeed, post COVID.

He says the COVID pandemic has changed the whole architecture of politics, economics, the new empiricism and geopolitics during economics and how countries put themselves on the development agenda.