Pacific Women Define Their Development Priorities

Pacific Women Define Their Development Priorities

Labasa, Fiji Islands 13 May 2011 - FemLINK Pacific's 2nd Interactive Dialogue today involved 22 women leaders from the provinces of Macuata, Bua and Cakadrove who tabled seven priority issues as they spoke to a representative of the Prime Minister's Office and the Chief Executive Officer of the Labasa Town Council., Jiten Prasad.

They welcomed the opportunity to find out how they could integrate their development priorities into local government and national development planning processes, particularly to influence annual budgets and corporate plans (because) the issues are not just women's issues, but are issues of all their community.

And according to the President of the Vunicuicui Multiracial Forum, Julie Waqa, policy and programmes needed to extend beyond the traditional women in development approach, but an integration of women's needs, the use of gender analysis and integration of commitments in CEDAW, the MDGS and the priorities set out in the Women's Platform for Action:, which she said could be achieved by ensuring a 30% target for women's participation in decision making positions: "We need more than one woman representing all of us and our programmes with FemLINKPacific and the Pacific Centre for Peacebuilding help us come together to develop our strategies and recommendations, such as what we have presented today" she said:

Representing the market vendors, Lusiana Matai, who has been a vendor 2000, also spoke on behalf of Litea who has been a market vendor for three months, Mereia for three years, Adi Sivo for one year and Asinate from Dogoru who has been selling grog for eight years:

"We are glad to hear about the development for a women’s market because there are many issues the female vendors experience:. Our produce are damaged because of the tarpaulins, as there are no proper roofs over our tables and the heat damages our produce," she said adding there needed to improvements in the space allocation for vendors. Currently there are not enough tables which cause conflicts amongst the vendors. She also highlighted that the public conveniences need to be open beyond the current hours of 8am to 530pm:

The improvement they would like to see include the access to public convenience, toilet bathroom shower facilities for the vendors who have to come in early and leave late.

“We have some facilities in the market but they close at a certain time, but we want it to be open longer even 24 hours, and speaking from personal experience, when I come early or work late, I don’t know where to go to visit the convenience facilities”.

The improvement they would like to see include the access to public convenience, toilet bathroom shower facilities for the vendors who have to come in early and leave late.

“We have some facilities in the market but they close at a certain time, but we want it to be open longer even 24 hours, and speaking from personal experience, when I come early or work late, I don’t know where to go to visit the convenience facilities”.

Lusiana further highlighted that at the market they need a shelter for vendors because vendors have to bring their produce late at night and because there is no secure storage, they find themselves sleeping with their produce rather than at a relatives.

“Many vendors arrive from the rural interior areas and due to lack of safe storage space for their produce most of these vendors go to the old police station and sleep there on the verandah, waiting for the next day to sell. We really need a change, and would like to request for a rest house for the vendors.”

She added that a mother’s room/crèche facility is also needed in the market as many market vendors bring in their children especially toddlers and need a safe space for child care.

“We do not have any proper place for child care at the moment but we need it. We know mothers that bring in their children change their children on the table and at times it even rains, and it is really awkward for us to see.”

"We would like to be part of the planning and implementation of the women’s market project and we recommend at least 30% representation of women market vendors in any committee." In response the Town Council CEO said that Prasad said that while the current design for the market development had been completed without involving the women vendors, he assured the women that local government would like to be inclusive of submissions and ideas from the women market vendors.

“From our side, we can call a meeting with the stakeholders such as the market vendors, before we proceed with forward with future projects.” Engendering Infrastructure Development as well as Humanitarian Assistance Programmes said Akisi Katariana from Koroivou, Tunuloa, Cakaudrove especially for rural and remote communities, which suffer serious damage during floods and cyclones: "We must ensure DISMAC programmes and humanitarian assistance, crop rehabilitation programmes involve us women. Women are home managers and at the end of the day we provide food on the table and with this we would like to be participate in food security programmes (because) women are home managers and at the end of the day we provide food on the table, and we would like to participate in food security programmes.” Many areas, she said, are still in the rehabilitation process with the crops they had planted, especially after the damaged caused by cyclone Thomas last year.

Safe Motherhood Practices and Services were highlighted by Salote Daugunu who poke on behalf of women’s group from Vatulutu Women’s Group in Kubulau, Bua, Tawake Marama Club from Tawake in Cakaudrove, Wainika and Wainigadru Women’s group in Cakaudrove, Koroivonu women’s group in Tunuloa, Cavanalulu Women’s group, Lagi Dogotuku and Dogoru’s Women club outside Labasa: "Women in rural and remote communities have many issues at we want to raise but one is about health services. We need rural health centres focusing on women’s health with improved facilities. Some concerns from women are for examples in times of emergencies our lives are at stake because of slow response from relevant department and high cost of transportation from our rural communities." There needs to have a a simpler and more consdierate approach to the fees charged for women's economic empowerment programmes, especially livestock and agro-based co-operatives and small businesses outside of the town boundary, as these are not simply profit making enterprises said Adi Makitalena of Naleba who is one of the women leaders involved in a women’s cooperative who are seriously worried by the number of and costs of business licenses being applied to their income generating programmes: "Please can you tells us whether there is only one license for small income generating projects especially for women’s economic security," she stressed adding they all need to better understand “the fine print” of income generating programmes and facilities being offered.

Nirmala Sharma speaking on behalf of the multiracial women's groups in Vunicuicui, Naleba and Waiqele called for more women to be included in planning for road, electricity, water supply projects:: "Also when it comes to agriculture planning, women are leaders and farmers too and we need more girls trained in the agriculture sector with scholarships allocations and agriculture field officers must visit us and help us with our food garden projects including seed supplies."

Additionally without proper infrastructure support such as the case of electricity for Vunicuicui Multiracial Women’s Cooperative, the women cannot achieve their business targets and meet their business loan repayments.

Nirmala Sharma, shared that “Lack of Electricity, in Nasoni where we have our cooperative multiracial shop, we would like to ask government to look into providing the area with electricity, because in our shop, we have a refrigerator and as it is funded by the Northern Development Project, and we have loaned from the Fiji Development Bank, it is very hard for us in making the payment for our cooperative shop, so if we have electricity it will make it easier for us to pay our loans and it will be much more busy if we have electricity in that area.”

She said having electricity will be able to support any type of development project in the rural areas such as Vunicuicui.

Rural infrastructure improvements, including road improvements, they added, paved the way to enhance women’s access to health services, education facilities for their children, as well improving the opportunity for local level market development.

The interactive dialogue was the culmination of this week's consultation supported by the UNDP Strengthening Capacities for Peace and Development project, Strengthening Women in Local Government as well as the Generation Next community radio project supported by the International Women's Development Agency, as well as the broader work of the Regional Media and Policy Network on UNSCR1325 supported by AUSAid.

The women who took part in the interactive policy dialogue had travelled from as far as Tawake Village right at the Udu Point to the village of Kubulau, and Naleba, Vunicuicui, Waiqele, Dogoru and Siberia.

Both the local and national government officials took this opportunity to explain to the rural women leaders the existing decision making structures and highlighted entry points which the women can use to deliver their development priorities, in particular the national budget process.

According to the Labasa Town Council CEO Jiten Prasad to ensure their issues incorporated into the local government annual corporate plan, they need to submit their recommendations by July of each year for the preceding year:

“For local government if we are developing our corporate plan for the preceding year, we normally prepare the draft by October and formalise it by November so we can submit it to the Ministry of Local Government. We would appreciate if all the submissions could come in to us by July or August,” he said.

The Interactive Dialogue was produced as a community radio programme which featured during the 7th anniversary commemoration of FemTALK 89.2FM

ENDS

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