Name: Pacific conversations with Fred Samuel Tarisongtamate by Development Policy Centre in Interviews
Duration: 33 min 17 s
Description: Tess Newton Cain sits down with Fred Samuel Tarisongtamate, the Government Chief Information Officer for Vanuatu.

Interviews

Today’s episode is on SDG3.8 - Achieve Universal Health Coverage. Universal Health Coverage means ensuring everyone, everywhere, has access to quality essential health care services, medicines and vaccines. It also means ensuring that health expenditure isn’t a large proportion of total household expenditure. Universal Health Coverage encompasses all of the other targets under SDG3. It’s essential - and it’s also a bit of a utopia, if you look at the current state of many health systems around the world.

Today’s guest is Australia’s Ambassador for Global Health, Dr Lucas De Toca PSM. Dr de Toca is a medical doctor, adjunct professor in medicine, and public health expert with extensive experience in pandemic response, First Nations health and rural health service delivery. He leads the Global Health Division and the Indo-Pacific Centre for Health Security at the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, managing Australia’s relationship with multilateral health organisations and our international development assistance in health.

Today we look at Universal Health Coverage and why it’s so hard to attain. We speak about how stretched the health workforce is in the Indo-Pacific region, and why Australia has shifted to a greater investment in primary health care since Covid-19. We speak about why financing health is so difficult for so many countries, and how Australia can leverage our immense domestic health expertise to better support the region. And - Lucas tells us why he thinks he has the best job in the world. 

Since recording this episode, Lucas has made a number of exciting announcements, including Australia’s new Pacific Climate and Health Resilience Package announced during Cop29, and our new partnership with the World Mosquito Program to support the control of mosquito borne disease in Timor-Leste, Kiribati and Indonesia. Additionally, and very excitingly, Lucas announced $56.8m is going to achieving universal sexual and reproductive health and rights in the Indo-Pacific, to improve access to sexual and replicative health services in Southeast Asia.

SDG3.8 - Universal Health Coverage, with Dr Lucas de Toca PSM, Australian Ambassador for Global Health

Welcome to Episode 8 of Good Will Hunters in our series on SDG3 – Good Health and Wellbeing. I am your host, Rachel Nunn.

This episode is the final in our series and focuses on SDG3.9 – Substantially reducing the number of deaths and illnesses caused by hazardous chemicals, air, water, and soil pollution and contamination. Poor air quality remains a significant health challenge, especially in low- and middle-income countries, where pollution disproportionately impacts vulnerable populations.

Today, I’m joined by three exceptional guests: Professor Lidia Morawska, a leading expert on air quality and its health impacts; Dr. Bronwyn King, a globally recognized radiation oncologist and tobacco-free investment advocate; and Anna-Maria Arabia, Chief Executive of the Australian Academy of Science: 

Dr. Bronwyn King AO – Dr. King is a radiation oncologist and the founder and CEO of Tobacco Free Portfolios, recognized for her work in tobacco control and finance reform. She is also an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) for her service to community health​. 
​
Distinguished Professor Lidia Morawska – Professor Morawska is internationally recognized for her work on air quality and its health impacts. She holds a distinguished professorship, which reflects her contributions to science and public health policy​.

Anna-Maria Arabia – Anna-Maria is the Chief Executive of the Australian Academy of Science, known for her leadership in advocating for science and research in Australia and globally​. 

Together, we’ll explore the intersection of air quality, public health, and policy, discussing both the challenges and the innovations that can help us achieve cleaner air and healthier lives.

Indoor air quality gained significant attention during Covid-19, highlighting a critical gap in Australia’s health policies: we have no mandated standards for indoor air quality. Australians spend 90% of our time indoors, yet there are no regulations governing the quality of the air we breathe. Other countries are doing better in this regard, but many are also doing much worse.

As we close this series, I want to thank you for joining me on this exploration of SDG3. Australia's role as a major health donor to the region is crucial, and we need a cohesive plan to measure and report on our contributions to these targets. Strengthening health systems will require sustained investment in the health workforce, culturally sensitive care, road safety, and leveraging our incredible domestic R&D capabilities. And above all, we can’t manage what we don’t measure – tracking our progress is essential if we are to make real strides toward achieving good health and wellbeing for all.

It’s been a privilege to host this series, and I hope it’s inspired you to think about the work that lies ahead and how we can collectively drive progress. Thank you for listening, and I hope you enjoy today’s episode.


SDG3.9 - Reducing Deaths and Illnesses from Hazardous Air, with Dr Bronwyn King AO, Distinguished Professor Lidia Morawska and Anna-Maria Arabia

Surprise! I’m back with a bonus episode of Good Will Hunters!

I’m thrilled to feature Lady Roslyn Morauta in this special wrap-up episode.

Lady Roslyn and I spoke yesterday, on December 18, covering some of the major themes from this series: health financing, the health workforce (including community health workers), the work of The Global Fund, Australia’s role in global health, and more. Most importantly, I asked her the big question: What should we do over the next five years? With little hope of achieving the SDG3 targets if we continue with business as usual, her insights are more critical than ever.
Lady Roslyn needs no introduction, but for context, she is the Chair of the Board of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, a role she assumed in May 2023.

She brings deep and multifaceted experience with the Global Fund, having served as Vice-Chair of the Board for four years, represented the Western Pacific Region constituency as Alternate Board Member, and chaired Papua New Guinea’s Country Coordinating Mechanism. She has been a steadfast advocate for health, HIV programs, and gender equity, with a strong understanding of the Global Fund’s strategies, processes, and grant implementation at the country level.

Lady Roslyn has lived and worked in Papua New Guinea since 1982 and served as the country’s First Lady from 1999 to 2002, during her husband Sir Mekere Morauta’s term as Prime Minister. In addition to her advocacy work, she has an impressive professional background, having worked in publishing in England, taught Politics at the University of Ghana, the Australian National University, and Queensland University, and held research roles with the Defence Department in Canberra and the Australian Social Welfare Commission.

Enjoy this special bonus episode, and I wish you all a very happy and safe festive season!

Bonus Episode - Lady Roslyn Morauta

Peripheral Vision: Women Leading Conflict Research, Winter 2025

In this podcast Devpolicy Director Stephen Howes sits down with Michael Clemens, a Senior Fellow at the Centre for Global Development and migration expert. The main topics covered were:

- The US Seasonal Workers Program 
- Skilled vs. unskilled migration 
- Fostering skilled migration 
- The Australia Pacific Technical College

Stephen Howes interviews Michael Clemens

Devpolicy Research Associate Tess Newton Cain sits down with Peter Forau, Director General of the Melanesian Spearhead Group Secretariat, discussing their successes throughout 25 years of operation.

A full transcript is available here: http://devpolicy.org/pacific-conversations/1.%20Transcript%20of%20interview%20with%20Peter%20Forau.docx

A blog post is available here: http://devpolicy.org/peter-forau-on-why-the-melanesian-spearhead-group-is-a-success-20130305/

Interview with Peter Forau on the Melanesian Spearhead Group

Frank Jotzo, Senior Lecturer at the ANU's Crawford School of Public Policy, sits down with Rachely Kyte, Vice President for Sustainable Development at the World Bank. In this brief but wide ranging interview they discuss the risk a 4 degree warmer world poses for development, Australia's approach to combating climate change (in particular its price on carbon emissions), and the World Bank's role in combatting climate change.

An interview with World Bank VP Rachel Kyte

Devpolicy Research Associate Tess Newton Cain sits down with Sir Mekere Morauta, Review Leader of the 2013 Pacific Plan Review.

A full transcript is available here: http://devpolicy.org/pacific-conversations/2.%20Transcript%20of%20interview%20with%20Sir%20Mekere%20Morauta.doc

Blog post available here: http://devpolicy.org/in-conversation-with-sir-mekere-morauta-20130408/

Pacific conversations - interview with Sir Mekere Morauta

Devpolicy Research Associate Tess Newton Cain sits down with Sina Retzlaff, Samoa country representative for the Pacific Leadership Program.

A full transcript is available here: http://devpolicy.org/pacific-conversations/3.%20Transcript%20of%20interview%20with%20Sina%20Retzlaff.docx

Blog post available here: http://devpolicy.org/in-conversation-with-sina-retzlaff-20130522-2/

Pacific conversations - interview with Sina Retzlaff

Tess Newton Cain sits down with Fred Samuel Tarisongtamate, the Government Chief Information Officer for Vanuatu.

Pacific conversations with Fred Samuel Tarisongtamate

Welcome to this new series of Good Will Hunters, hosted by Paul Ronalds, CEO of Save the Children Global Ventures, and myself — Rachel Nunn, Founder of Good Will Hunters and Founder of Evoluta. You’ll hear Paul and I introduce ourselves again shortly, and share a bit about why we’ve chosen to do this short series on the for-purpose sector.

Before we get into the episode, I’d like to acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the land on which I record these episodes — the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation — and pay my respects to Elders past, present and emerging.

In this first episode of the series, we’re joined by Dr Andrew Leigh, Assistant Minister for Productivity, Competition, Charities and Treasury.

Productivity is front and centre for this government — from boosting skills to mainstreaming artificial intelligence in the way we work. But what does a more productive charity sector look like? In this episode, we talk about the government’s role in supporting and sustaining the sector — and they’re a pretty important player, not least because 50% of the charity sector’s income comes from government.

We dive into the role of AI in boosting productivity, the government’s plan to double philanthropy by 2030, and why the voice of the charity sector is more important than ever.
I’d personally like to see a dedicated productivity agenda for the charitable sector — something I’m sure many of you might join me in pushing for.

Let’s get into it — and as always, I’d love to hear your thoughts.


Success in the For-Purpose Sector — With Andrew Leigh MP

Welcome to this new series of Good Will Hunters, co-hosted by Paul Ronalds, CEO of Save the Children Global Ventures, and me — Rachel Nunn, Founder of Good Will Hunters and Evoluta. 

Before we begin, I’d like to acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the land on which I record these episodes — the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation — and pay my respects to Elders past, present and emerging.

In this second episode of the series, we’re joined by the excellent Liv Whitty, CEO of Oho — a compliance automation and safeguarding platform designed for the care sector. Oho scans employee credentials continuously, helping organisations stay on top of Working With Children Checks, Police Checks, and other compliance measures — and closing the information and system gaps that bad actors can exploit.

But this is a conversation about business models in the for-purpose space. Oho ultimately chose a for-profit structure — but they could just as easily have gone down the not-for-profit route. In this episode, we unpack how that decision was made, and how you can approach the same question in your own work: What structure best supports your mission?
For Oho, the decision came down to the nature of the mission — preventing abuse by enabling mass adoption of a safeguarding tool. To reach the scale required, the team needed access to capital and fast product uptake, and a for-profit structure felt like the right path. 




Success in the For-Purpose Sector — With Liv Whitty

Welcome to this series of Good Will Hunters, co-hosted by Paul Ronalds, CEO of Save the Children Global Ventures, and me — Rachel Nunn, Founder of Good Will Hunters and Evoluta. You’ll hear Paul and I introduce ourselves properly in just a moment.

I’d like to acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the land on which I record these episodes — the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation — and pay my respects to Elders past, present and emerging.

In this third episode of the series, we’re joined by Grant McCabe, Managing Partner for Boston Consulting Group iN Australia and New Zealand, and President of the Geelong Cats Football Club. Paul, Grant and I talk about people - how to build and inspire great teams and what principles underpin effective leadership in the for-purpose sector

Jim Collins Leadership Theory: https://www.ft.com/content/fe2649df-fa54-4fe6-a925-f9e3a2559e27

Success in the For-Purpose Sector — With Grant McCabe

Welcome to this series of Good Will Hunters, co-hosted by Paul Ronalds, CEO of Save the Children Global Ventures, and me — Rachel Nunn, Founder of Good Will Hunters and Evoluta. You’ll hear Paul and I introduce ourselves properly in just a moment. Before we begin, I’d like to acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the land on which I record these episodes — the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation — and pay my respects to Elders past, present and emerging.

In this fourth episode of the series, we look at philanthropy. We have two industry leaders — John McLeod, co-founder of the JB Were Philanthropic Services team and one of Australia’s foremost experts on trends in giving, and Melissa Smith, founder of She Gives, a philanthropic platform redefining how women engage with giving. First up you’ll hear John, and then you’ll hear Melissa. We’ve also added a few links to the show notes so you can learn more about the work of both guests.

https://www.jbwere.com.au/campaigns/jbwere-nab-charitable-giving-index-
https://shegives.com.au/story/melissa-smith-on-the-power-of-stories-and-simple-acts/




Success in the For-Purpose Sector with John McLeod and Melissa Smith

Welcome to this series of Good Will Hunters, co-hosted by Paul Ronalds, CEO of Save the Children Global Ventures, and me — Rachel Nunn, Founder of Good Will Hunters and Evoluta. 

You’ll hear Paul and I introduce ourselves properly in just a moment.  Before we begin, I’d like to acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the land on which I record these episodes — the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation — and pay my respects to Elders past, present and emerging.

In this fifth episode of the series, we look at technology and its uses in the for-purpose sector. And who better to talk to than David Spriggs, CEO of InfoXChange, an organisation focused on technology for social justice. Keen listeners will recall David has been on the show before. In this episode, we delve into the challenges and opportunities facing the for-purpose sector, across AI, data, and cybersecurity and we talk about the importance of investing in digital transformation. Enjoy the episode.


Success in the For-Purpose Sector with David Spriggs

Success in the For-Purpose Sector with Kevin L Brown

The Development Policy Centre is a think tank for aid and development policy based at Crawford School of Public Policy, The Australian National University. We undertake independent research and promote practical initiatives to improve the effectiveness of Australian aid, to support the development of Papua New Guinea and the Pacific island region, and to contribute to better global development policy. 

Our events are a forum for the dissemination of findings and the exchange of new ideas. You can access audio recordings of our events through this podcast, as well as interviews from the Devpolicy Blog (www.devpolicy.org).

Pacific conversations with Fred Samuel Tarisongtamate

Development Policy Centre

Related tracks