Dataset Information

Coastal proximity of populations in 22 Pacific Island Countries and Territories.

ABSTRACT: The coastal zones of Small Island States are hotspots of human habitation and economic endeavour. In the Pacific region, as elsewhere, there are large gaps in understandings of the exposure and vulnerability of people in coastal zones. The 22 Pacific Countries and Territories (PICTs) are poorly represented in global analyses of vulnerability to seaward risks. We combine several data sources to estimate populations to zones 1, 5 and 10 km from the coastline in each of the PICTs. Regional patterns in the proximity of Pacific people to the coast are dominated by Papua New Guinea. Overall, ca. half the population of the Pacific resides within 10 km of the coast but this jumps to 97% when Papua New Guinea is excluded. A quarter of Pacific people live within 1 km of the coast, but without PNG this increases to slightly more than half. Excluding PNG, 90% of Pacific Islanders live within 5 km of the coast. All of the population in the coral atoll nations of Tokelau and Tuvalu live within a km of the ocean. Results using two global datasets, the SEDAC-CIESIN Gridded Population of the World v4 (GPWv4) and the Oak Ridge National Laboratory Landscan differed: Landscan under-dispersed population, overestimating numbers in urban centres and underestimating population in rural areas and GPWv4 over-dispersed the population. In addition to errors introduced by the allocation models of the two methods, errors were introduced as artefacts of allocating households to 1 km x 1 km grid cell data (30 arc-seconds) to polygons. The limited utility of LandScan and GPWv4 in advancing this analysis may be overcome with more spatially resolved census data and the inclusion of elevation above sea level as an important dimension of vulnerability.

SUBMITTER: Andrew NL

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6768456 | biostudies-literature | 2019

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Coastal proximity of populations in 22 Pacific Island Countries and Territories.

Andrew Neil L NL Bright Phil P de la Rua Luis L Teoh Shwu Jiau SJ Vickers Mathew M

PloS one 20190930 9

The coastal zones of Small Island States are hotspots of human habitation and economic endeavour. In the Pacific region, as elsewhere, there are large gaps in understandings of the exposure and vulnerability of people in coastal zones. The 22 Pacific Countries and Territories (PICTs) are poorly represented in global analyses of vulnerability to seaward risks. We combine several data sources to estimate populations to zones 1, 5 and 10 km from the coastline in each of the PICTs. Regional patterns ...[more]

PMID: 31568527

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Project description:The use of contraceptives for family planning improves women's lives and may prevent maternal deaths. However, many women in low and middle-income countries, including the Pacific region, still die from pregnancy-related complications. While most health centres offer family planning services with some basic contraceptive methods, many people do not access these services. More than 60% of women who would like to avoid or delay their pregnancies are unable to do so. This scoping review identifies and analyses evidence about family planning service provision in Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs), with the aim of better informing family planning services for improved maternal health outcomes in the Pacific. We used Arksey and O'Malley's scoping review guidelines, supported by Levac, Colquhoun and O'Brien to identify gaps in family planning service provision. Selected studies included peer-reviewed publications and grey literature that provided information about family planning services from 1994 to 2019. Publication data was charted in MS Excel. Data were thematically analysed and key issues and themes identified. A total of 45 papers (15 peer-reviewed and 30 grey literature publications) were critically reviewed. Five themes were identified: i) family planning services in the Pacific; ii) education, knowledge and attitudes; iii) geographical isolation and access; iv) socio-cultural beliefs, practices and influences; and v) potential enabling factors for improved family planning, such as appropriate family planning awareness by health care providers and services tailored to meet individual needs. While culture and religion were considered as the main barriers to accessing family planning services, evidence showed health services were also responsible for limiting access. Family planning services do not reach everyone. Making relevant and sustainable improvements in service delivery requires generation of local evidence. Further research is needed to understand availability, accessibility and acceptability of current family planning services for different age groups, genders, social and marital status to better inform family planning services in the Pacific.

Project description:BackgroundIn Pacific Island countries and territories, the burden of road traffic injuries and their attendant risks are considered significant but are poorly quantified. As with other low and middle-income countries, understanding the epidemiology of road traffic injuries in Pacific countries is critical to informing sustainable research and policy initiatives aimed at reducing this burden.MethodsWe undertook a systematic review and critical appraisal of the relevant epidemiological literature between January 1980 and December 2010, using key search strings for incidence and aetiological studies focusing on RTIs in less resourced Pacific countries.ResultsNineteen studies were identified. The majority were descriptive and were unable to provide population-based estimates of the burden of road crash injury, or reliable information on risk factors using well-designed aetiological research methods. All studies were published more than 10 years ago, and all but three reported on data from Papua New Guinea, thereby limiting the generalisability of findings to the current status in the region. Studies undertaken in Papua New Guinea suggested that RTIs were more frequent among young males, with head injuries the most common cause of death or hospital admission. Two thirds of fatalities occurred at the crash site or soon after admission. Most road crash victims were passengers or pedestrians. Factors postulated to influence the risk of RTIs were travel in open-back utility vehicles, utility vehicle overcrowding, and alcohol.ConclusionsThis review suggests that, despite increasing awareness of the importance of addressing road safety among stakeholders in less resourced Pacific Island countries, road traffic injuries have not been a research priority with little relevant current evidence from the region to inform policy. Robust epidemiological research that can assess the magnitude and key determinants of road traffic injuries in these settings is essential to determine context-specific road safety initiatives that are relevant and affordable. Greater attention to harnessing routinely collected data (e.g., hospital information systems and police crash statistics) to inform policy is also required.

Dataset Information

Coastal proximity of populations in 22 Pacific Island Countries and Territories.

Publications

Coastal proximity of populations in 22 Pacific Island Countries and Territories.

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