Health
New Specialist Hospital to Elevate Health Care in Savai‘i Island
By Jeannie Penehuro/
Apia, Samoa — 14 September 2026 – A new private specialist hospital broke ground this morning at Salelologa, Savai‘i, to provide medical services that are currently not available in Samoa and reduce the need to send patients overseas for treatment.
With an annual cost of $12M tala to send Samoan patients for medical treatment in New Zealand, Fiji and India, the Government of Samoa and Pasifika Specialist Healthcare Samoa are working to reverse the trend by strengthening and providing specialist healthcare services in Samoa.
Speaking at the groundbreaking ceremony, Deputy Prime Minister La’aulialemalietoa Leuatea Polataivao Fosi Schmidt said the hospital will allow Samoa to treat patients who currently need to travel overseas because the required operations and specialist services are not available locally.
“For many years, Samoa could only transfer patients to New Zealand,” he said, explaining that the country has been unable to provide treatment for the growing number of illnesses affecting its people.
The Government will provide 10 acres of land for the hospital in the new Salelologa township, while Pasifika Specialist Healthcare Samoa will fully fund the construction and infrastructure.
Breaking ground for the project.
Part of the project is a 100-room hotel to accommodate and support overseas patients coming in from other countries for treatment in Samoa.
The founder and director of Pasifika Specialist Healthcare Samoa, Fa’aofonu’u Parish Kumar from Fiji, owns the largest private hospital operation in Fiji.
Fa’aofonu’u Parvish Nikesh Kumar said the idea for the private hospital came from a group of friends in 2026 who wanted to establish a new healthcare facility in Samoa.
Prior to that, he had been coming to Samoa since 2017 with his proposal but was not supported by the then government.
He outlined three main objectives for the project.
- To accelerate healthcare development in Samoa through improved technology and by addressing gaps in the current healthcare system.
- To support universal health coverage by making healthcare more affordable and reducing fees.
- To make the hospital accessible to people from countries across the Pacific.
He explained that building the hospital will take between 12 and 14 months and the fifth such project undertaken by his group.
The Pasifika Specialist Healthcare Samoa owner – Samoan chief, Fa’aofonu’u Parvish Nikesh Kumar.
Personal relationship through the Fa’aofonu’u chiefly title
Kumar says his relationship with Samoa is now very personal.
Early Monday morning before the groundbreaking ceremony, he sat down among chiefs, orators and villagers in a traditional bestowal ceremony where he received the chiefly title of Fa’aofonu’u of Gautavai village.
It is an honour, he said he does not take lightly “because I’m now a son of Samoa,” he told the Prime Minister and guests at the groundbreaking ceremony.
He said the new hospital could reverse the current trend of patients being transferred from Tuasivi in Savaii to Apia and will also benefit Samoa’s tourism sector by attracting patients from other countries.
The project is expected to expand specialist healthcare services in Samoa and provide patients with access to operations and treatment that previously required travel overseas.
Faaofonuuu Kumar acknowledged the Government and Cabinet for its support helping move the hospital project forward to a reality.