Building Resilience of Health Systems in Pacific Island Least Developed Countries to Climate Change
Introduction
The health impacts of climate change are diverse and serious, including water- and vector-borne diseases, undernutrition, and the mental and physical effects of extreme weather and climate events. Extreme weather and climate events also disrupt the delivery of health care services.
Ministries of Health in Kiribati, Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu have limited technical capacity to effectively integrate climate-related risks into policy, planning, and regulatory frames, and into interventions to control the current and project future burden of climate-sensitive health outcomes.
In consultation with stakeholders, this 5-year project (2023 - 2028) will increase the capacity of national health systems and institutions, and sub-level actors, to manage long-term climate-sensitive health risks, through four complementary outcomes. The regional approach will facilitate catalytic partnerships across countries, training and capacity development of climate change and health specialists in the countries, and documentation of lessons and best practices, thereby ensuring that these can be replicated and scaled-up across the region.
The project will be implemented closely between WHO and Ministries of Health in participating countries.
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Key results & output
Outcome 1: Governance of health system and institutional capacities strengthened by mainstreaming climate-related risk and resilience aspects into health policy frameworks
Outputs
Kiribati
1.1: Climate change and health risk and resilience considerations integrated into relevant institutional mechanisms, policies, plans, and legislation.
1.2: Co-ordination capacity of MHMS strengthened to enhance collaboration with climate change and health-relevant agencies and ministries, including the Health Sector Coordination Committee (HSCC) and the Kiribati National Expert Group on Climate Change and Disaster Risk Management (KNEG).
1.3: Capacity of health decision-makers strengthened to better understand and integrate climate change risks in health planning and programmes.
Solomon Islands
1.1: Climate change and health risk and resilience considerations integrated into relevant institutional mechanisms, policies, plans, and legislation, including the development of a HNAP focusing on water-and-food borne disease, vector-borne disease, nutrition/foods security.
1.2: Co-ordination capacity of MHMS strengthened to enhance collaboration with climate change and health-relevant ministries.
1.3: Capacity of health decision-makers strengthened to better understand and integrate climate change risks into health planning and programmes.
Tuvalu
1.1: CC&H risk and resilience considerations integrated into relevant institutional mechanisms, policies, plans, and legislation.
1.2: Co-ordination capacity of MoH strengthened to enhance collaboration with climate change and health-relevant ministries.
1.3: Capacity of health decision-makers strengthened to better understand and integrate climate change risks into health planning and programmes.
Vanuatu
1.1: Climate change and health risk and resilience considerations integrated into relevant institutional mechanisms, policies, plans, and legislation, including the development of a HNAP focusing on water-and-food borne disease, vector-borne disease, nutrition/foods security.
1.2: Co-ordination capacity of MoH strengthened to enhance collaboration with climate change and health-relevant ministries.
1.3: Capacity of health decision-makers strengthened to integrate climate change into health planning and programmes
Outcome 2: Capacities of health system institutions and personnel strengthened in managing health information and weather/climate early warning systems
Outputs
Kiribati
2.1: HIS strengthened by digitising health records in selected facilities to better record and report CSHRs.
2.2: Strengthened national health surveillance for CSHRs.
2.3: Integration of meteorological and climate early warning information into HIS and the National Health Information Strategic Plan and Programme, to develop a climate-informed health early warning system.
Solomon Islands
2.1: HIS strengthened by digitizing health records in selected facilities to better record and report CSHRs.
2.2: Strengthened national health (and environmental health) surveillance to include climate-sensitive health risks.
2.3: Integration of meteorological and climate early warning information into HIS, through collaboration with the MHMS and other relevant ministries to develop a climate-informed health early warning system.
Tuvalu
2.1: Health Information System strengthened by digitising health records in selected facilities to better record and report CSHRs.
2.2: Strengthen national health surveillance for CSHRs
2.3: Integration of meteorological and climate early warning information into HIS, to develop a climate-informed health early warning system.
Vanuatu
2.1: HIS strengthened by digitizing health records in selected facilities to better record and report climate-sensitive health risks.
2.2: Strengthened national health surveillance for climate-sensitive health risks.
2.3: Integration of meteorological, climate early warning, DRM information into HIS, through collaboration with VMGD and other relevant ministries to develop a climate-informed health early warning system.
Outcome 3: Improved coverage and quality of health services addressing climate-related diseases and reduced climate-induced disruptions in the function of health care facilities.
Outputs
Kiribati
3.1: Health service delivery enhanced, and capacity strengthened to effectively prevent and manage CSHRs, disaster risks, and other environmental determinants of health in selected communities and the Tungaru Central Hospital.
3.2: Services in selected healthcare facilities are climate-resilient, incorporating effective prevention and clinical case management of CSHRs and DRM-H; Enhanced delivery of vector control, food and water safety programme and actions in selected communities.
3.3: Strengthened public health and clinical workforce that is aware and capable of control and prevention of CSHRs and DRM-H.
3.4: Expand and strengthen service delivery at community levels with empowered communities that understand climate change and health impacts and are capable of addressing those using community-based health adaptation strategies.
Solomon Islands
3.1: Health service delivery enhanced, and capacity strengthened to effectively prevent and manage CSHRs, including water-and-food-borne disease, vector-borne disease, and nutrition/food security, as well as disaster risks, and other environmental determinants of health in selected sites.
3.2: National Referral Hospital and other selected healthcare facilities have reduced disruptions of services during extreme weather and climate events by incorporating improved access to health services, sufficient medical and disaster response supplies, improved access to climate-smart energy, improved communication resources and technologies.
3.3: Strengthened public health and clinical workforce to be aware and capable of control and prevention of CSHRs, as well as disaster risk management for health.
3.4: Capacity of service delivery at community level is expanded and strengthened with empowered communities that understand climate change and health impacts and are capable of addressing those using community-based health adaptation strategies.
Tuvalu
3.1: Effectively prevent and manage CSHRs, disaster risks, and other environmental determinants of health in selected communities.
3.2 Services in selected healthcare facilities are climate-resilient, incorporating effective prevention and clinical case management of CSHRs and DRM-H.
3.3: Strengthened public health and clinical workforce that is aware and capable of control and prevention of CSHRs and DRM-H.
3.4: Empower communities/kaupules to understand CC&H impacts and are capable of addressing these using community-based health adaptation strategies.
Vanuatu
3.1: Effectively prevent and manage climate-sensitive health risks, including water-and-food-borne disease, vector-borne disease, and nutrition/food security, as well as disaster risks, and other environmental determinants of health in selected sites.
3.2: Vila Central Hospital, Northern Provincial Hospital, and other high-risk healthcare facilities have reduced disruptions of services during extreme weather and climate events by incorporating improved access to health services, sufficient medical and disaster response supplies, improved access to climate-smart energy, improved communication resources and technologies.
3.3: Strengthened public health and clinical workforce that is aware and capable of control and prevention of CSHRs, as well as disaster risk management for health.
3.4: Capacity of service delivery at community level expanded and strengthened with empowered communities that understand climate change and health impacts and are capable of addressing those impacts using community-based health adaptation strategies.
Outcome 4: Enhanced south-south cooperation and knowledge exchange for promoting scale-up and replication of interventions
Outputs - All countries
4.1: Knowledge exchange and the sharing of the latest techniques and good practices for climate change and health are enhanced
4.2: Generation of knowledge products to support the integration of climate change impacts on health into planning
Programme meetings & workshops
Inception workshop, 2021 TBC
Reports & publications
Videos & multimedia
Monitoring & evaluation
The project results will be monitored annually and evaluated periodically during implementation. Supported by Component/Outcome 4 (‘Knowledge Management and M&E’), the project will also facilitate learning and ensure knowledge is shared and widely disseminated to support the scaling up and replication of results.
Project-level monitoring and evaluation will be undertaken in compliance with UNDP requirements as outlined in the UNDP POPP and UNDP Evaluation Policy. Mandatory GEF-specific M&E requirements will be undertaken in accordance with the GEF M&E policy and other relevant GEF policies. Other M&E activities deemed necessary to support project-level adaptive management will be agreed during the Project Inception Workshop and will be detailed in the Inception Report.
The Project Manager is responsible for day-to-day project management and regular monitoring of project results and risks, including social and environmental risks.
The Project Board will take corrective action as needed to ensure the project achieves the desired results. The Project Board will hold project reviews to assess the performance of the project and appraise the Annual Work Plan for the following year. In the project’s final year, the Project Board will hold an end-of-project review to capture lessons learned and discuss opportunities for scaling up and to highlight project results and lessons learned with relevant audiences. This final review meeting will also discuss the findings outlined in the project terminal evaluation report and the management response.
The Implementing Partner is responsible for providing all required information and data necessary for timely, comprehensive and evidence-based project reporting, including results and financial data, as necessary.
The UNDP-GEF Regional Technical Advisor will support the Project Manager as needed, including through annual supervision missions.
All M&E records for this project will be maintained up to seven years after project financial closure.
Key reports include:
- Inception Workshop Report
- Annual Project Implementation Reports (PIR)
- An Independent Mid-term Review (MTR) to be made publicly available in English and posted on the UNDP ERC by October 2023)
- An independent Terminal Evaluation (TE) upon completion of all major project outputs and activities. To be made publicly available in English and posted on the UNDP ERC by January 2026
The project’s terminal GEF PIR along with the terminal evaluation report and corresponding management response will serve as the final project report package. This will be discussed with the Project Board during an end-of-project review to discuss lessons learned and opportunities for scaling up.
LDCF Core indicators will be used to monitor global environmental benefits and will be updated for reporting to the GEF prior to the project’s Midterm-Review and Terminal Evaluation.
Lessons learned and knowledge generation
Results will be disseminated within and beyond the project through existing information sharing networks and forums. The project will identify and participate in scientific, policy-based and/or any other networks, which may be of benefit to the project. The project will identify, analyse and share lessons learned that might be beneficial to the design and implementation of similar projects and disseminate these lessons widely. There will be continuous information exchange between this project and other projects of similar focus in the same country, region and globally.
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Contacts
- UNDPReis Lopez RelloRegional Technical Specialist, Climate Change Adaptation