Fiji, May 6 -- Pacific Island governments are actively preparing contingency plans to prioritise fuel use for critical services as the Middle East crisis threatens to disrupt supplies and drive up costs, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) says.

ADB Pacific Department Director General Emma Veve said governments across the region are already assessing how limited fuel reserves would be allocated if supply chains are disrupted.

"There is active thinking at the government level about where fuel would need to be directed - ensuring that essential services continue to operate," Veve said in an interview with PACNEWS at the sidelines of the bank's 59th Annual Meeting in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.

She said countries are working closely with bilatera...