Fiji Times, 27th August 2018
HEALTH consequences of climate change are not given the importance that it needs.
Pacific Community (SPC) Director-General Dr Colin Tukuitonga made the comment in his public lecture at the University of the South Pacific last week.
In his presentation titled ‘The ‘hidden’ health danger of climate change’, Dr Tukuitonga said it was worth remembering that climate change affected the social, economic, environmental and cultural determinants of health.
“It is hard to imagine any aspect of life that is not affected by climate change and I call it the effect multiplier, which means that most of the health consequences that we see are not new or unexpected,” Dr Tukuitonga said.
He said people in the Pacific needed to be better prepared to protect their health.
“We need to be better prepared in respect of the basic things that we see, like access to water and sanitation.”