20 Nov 2003

New Zealand and France confirm health collaboration in Pacific

4:31 pm on 20 November 2003

The French Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Renaud Muselier, and the New Zealand foreign minister, Phil Goff, have signed a joint statement to co-operate in an initiative for public health in the Pacific.

In collaboration with the Secretariat of the Pacific Community, the two sides have agreed to reinforce existing mechanisms for responding to diseases like tuberculosis, malaria, dengue fever and SARS.

They signed the document in Wellington today.

The cost of the three year project will be divided into equal parts, with each country contributing just over 350-thousand US dollars.