Bill Gates’ recent essay “Three tough truths about climate” carried a warning worth heeding in the Pacific: don’t let the urgency of climate change overshadow the slow, vital work of investing in people’s health. The reminder comes as the world prepares for the COP30 climate negotiations in Brazil, and as Australia, alongside the Pacific, bids to co-host COP31. For a region where human security is shaped as much by preventable diseases as by rising seas, this message hits close to home.
Today, up to 10% of the world's total ocean surface comes under the exclusive economic zones of 23 Pacific Island countries, who also hold some of the planet’s richest biodiversity and cultural heritage. Yet their development needs are as diverse as their geography and populations. For smaller atoll nations, the climate crisis is existential. For larger Melanesian states, the quieter crises of health, population growth, education and inequality are just as destabilising.
In his essay, Gates cautioned that climate change is serious but that “we can’t cut funding for health and development to [address] it.”
Every statistic tells the same story: where literacy and education are weak, health and climate vulnerability deepen.
While Gates speaks to the importance of investing in health, the deeper layer of resilience lies in literacy – the ability of people to read, reason and act on information. Across the region, literacy rates reveal deep inequalities. According to UNESCO data, Vanuatu’s adult literacy stands at 89% and Fiji’s at 99%, while Papua New Guinea lags well behind at approximately 70%. The consequences of these poor outcomes in PNG are stark. The country records one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world; 189 women die per 100,000 live births due to pregnancy-related causes. PNG’s WASH Policy 2015–30 shows that just 33% of rural residents have access to safe drinking water and only 13% to basic sanitation, which results in high rates of waterborne diseases and diarrheal deaths.
Without health literacy, which is the capacity to use reading, writing, speaking and numeracy to make informed health decisions, people are unable to understand vaccination messages, nutrition advice and disaster warnings. Every statistic tells the same story: where literacy and education are weak, health and climate vulnerability deepen.
The Lowy Institute’s 2025 Pacific Aid Map shows that development financing in the region has tilted heavily towards infrastructure projects, driven by strategic competition among donors, which has in turn diverted resources away from human development. Donor support for education is close to a record low. In 2023, only US$216 million was spent on education and US$364 million on health, compared to more than US$1 billion spent on climate change projects. The chart below shows that since 2008, investment in health and education has remained steady, while climate-related spending has tripled.
This trend raises concerns about the long-term foundations for the region’s development. While philanthropists such as Gates have played a crucial role in strengthening global health systems, solving these challenges remains a sovereign responsibility. For too long, Pacific governments such as PNG have relied on churches and non-governmental organisations to deliver basic services despite being resource-rich. As climate finance grows, so too must the ambition of Pacific governments to deliver quality education and health outcomes for its people.
The recent surge in climate activism has revived a regional spirit reminiscent of the anti-nuclear campaigns of the 1970s and 1980s. Indeed, it was a group of law students from Vanuatu who spearheaded the push for the landmark UN resolution on climate change through the International Court of Justice. This type of action shows precisely what can be achieved when we invest in education – an integral component of the Pacific’s future resilience.
