Key Sectors - Women
PLP has long recognised that women comprise some of the Pacific region's most respected and esteemed leaders across a range of fields including private sector, civil society and political governance. Despite their undeniable value to the economic and social development of the region, Pacific women continue to face a range of barriers to participation and leadership in public life, including poor access to secondary and tertiary education and employment opportunities, high rates of Violence Against Women (VAW) and pervasive discrimination and gender inequality.
PLP is in the process of developing it's programatic approach to women's leadership and continues to provide support to a number of existing and emerging initiatives aimed at developing the leadership of Pacific women. These include:
Supporting Young Women's Leadership
In early 2011, PLP supported the World YWCA and a number of regional partners to develop the Pacific Young Women's Leadership Strategy, which outlined a common agenda for the development of young Pacific women's leadership by addressing the five key themes of Safe, Respected, Included, Connected and Skilled. The Strategy was officially launched in July, 2011 at the International Women's Summit in Zurich, Switzerland. The Strategy has also been showcased at a number of key regional events including the Pacific Islands Forum (PIFs) Leaders Meeting in Auckland and the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Perth.
The reference group that developed the Strategy has recently met again to discuss plans to establish a Pacific Young Women's Leadership Alliance. The Alliance will be a collaboration of key regional partners that will act of the issues outlined in the Strategy. PLP looks forward to continuing to work alongside the Alliance to support the development of young women's leadership in the Pacific.
Emerging Pacific Women’s Leadership Program
In collaboration with the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT), USAID, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and other key stakeholders, PLP is supporting Vital Voices to conduct the Emerging Pacific Women’s Leadership Program. Through this program, country delegations from 12 Pacific Island countries (Papua New Guinea, Kiribati, Tonga, Vanuatu, Nauru, the Solomon Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Marshall Islands, Samoa, the Cook Islands, Nauru and Niue) will meet in Vanuatu from the 7th - 9th December to plan and implement advocacy campaigns designed to address women's barriers to economic participation.
PLP will be supporting this initiative by inviting delegations to apply for small grants to fund the campaigns they have designed during the program. This initiative will provide the Pacific women leaders with enhanced knowledge, skills, and abilities to advocate for women’s economic opportunities and greater women’s leadership in civil society throughout the Pacific Island region.
Supporting Pacific Women in Business
Through its extensive networks in the Pacific Islands private sector, PLP continues to support women business owners and entrepreneurs to lead private sector development in the Pacific. PLP has established partnerships with the Pacific Islands Private Sector Organisation (PIPSO) and several of its National affiliated associations, including Solomon Islands Women in Business Association (SIWBA) and Samoa Women in Business Develoment Inc. (SWIBDI).
PLP is supporting SIWIBA to improve the opportunities for, and empowerment of, women in the private sector in Solomon Islands. We have facilitated links between SIWIBA and SWIBDI and funded a learning visit and exchange between the two organizations. With PLP support, SIWIBA will open its first office and training facility in Honiara in late 2011. This facility will provide a focal point for the organisation’s growing number of initiatives for women in the formal and informal business sectors, including a 'shop front' for its credit union where businesswomen (mostly in the informal and agricultural market) develop their own savings plans.
Gender Equality in Political Governance (GEPG) Program
The Pacific Region has the lowest number of women parliamentatians anywhere in the world. For example, of the nine countries globally that do not have a single woman in their National Parliament, five are Pacific Island Countries. Despite several promising intitiatives, progress on this issue continues to be slow. In response to this issue, the Pacific Leadership Program provides support to UN Women (formally UNIFEM) to deliver the GEPG Program across 15 Pacific Islands Countries.
The GEPG is an initiative UN Women which seeks to address this imbalance and increase the political participation of Pacific women as active citizens and leaders. PLP, on behalf of AusAID, provides funding for this five year program, which works to build knowledge and understanding of women and men in governance and leadership issues; undertakes research on the barriers and successful pathways to women’s leadership; and develops communication and training materials for use in the Pacific. More information about GEPG can be found here.