Feature article

International Women's Day | by Joanna McLeod

Feature Article No. 2 | 7 March 2007

March 8 is the United Nations' International Women's Day, and the theme for this year is 'Ending impunity for violence against women and girls'. This means it is the perfect time to examine some of the work that NZAID is doing to support the realisation of the human rights of women and girls.

NZAID is committed to achieving gender equality for all people, young and old. The outcome we are after is a reduction of violence and conflict so that all people, particularly women and girls can live with dignity, free of fear and fulfil their potential. At the programming level, NZAID's strategic approach is to ensure that women's empowerment and gender equality are actively pursued in all development activities.

Four such programmes are detailed below – a women’s refuge in Tonga, a programme to strengthen reproductive health services for women, men and adolescents in Papua New Guinea, a domestic violence prevention programme in the Pacific, and a gender based violence prevention programme in Samoa.

"Women who know they are safe will be better placed to contribute to their societies in a range of positive ways, and will also be better able to achieve economic independence," says Kirsty Burnett .

Preventing domestic violence in Tonga

The team at the National Centre for Women and Children in Tonga are supporting victims and survivors of domestic violence.

Violence against women and children is rarely publicised in the Pacific, but according to local women’s groups it is a significant problem. In Tonga, violence against women is now seen as an issue for concern, and this is largely due to the work and perseveran5 June, 2007vernmental organisation (NGO) established in 2000, which offers counselling and support services for victims and survivors of domestic violence.

Funded by a variety of donors, including NZAID, the Centre is modelled on support services such as the New Zealand Women's Refuge, and provides short-term safe house accommodation, and a venue for counselling, advisory, training and other services. The Centre also undertakes advocacy work and produces public awareness materials such as posters and stickers.

As the only welfare organisation of its kind in Tonga, the Centre caters to the main island of Tongatapu and is developing outreach work for the outer islands. It covers a variety of needs, including child abuse and neglect, marital problems, sexual assault, domestic violence, poverty, accommodation, incest, and legal assistance.

According to Kirsty Burnett, NZAID's development programme manager for Tonga, the National Centre for Women and Children supports an environment of safety for women and children in Tonga so they are empowered to forge their own destinies away from the effects of violent and abusive relationships.

Strengthened Reproductive Health Services in Papua New Guinea

Within the Health Sector Improvement Programme, NZAID is supporting United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) to improve access and quality of sexual reproductive health services in four provinces of PNG, with a commitment of NZ$ 3.4 million over four years. UNFPA’s focus is on meeting the sexual and reproductive health needs of women, men and adolescents through the identification of relevant reproductive health services, the adoption of service standards and the training of categories of health workers to provide quality reproductive health services. The reproductive health services being provided include safe-motherhood, family planning, and prevention, screening and treatment of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) including HIV/AIDS, prevention of gender-based violence (GBV) and male involvement in reproductive health activities.

Pacific Prevention of Domestic Violence Programme

Since early 2006, in collaboration with the New Zealand Police and the Pacific Islands Chiefs of Police, NZAID is supporting a regional programme to build capacity of Pacific Police services to effectively respond, reduce, and prevent domestic and family violence. The programme involves national level programmes implemented with the police services in the Cook Islands, Samoa, Tonga, and Kiribati, complemented by a regional component of training, networking and information sharing involving all Pacific police agencies. The programme is worth NZ$ 5 million over five years.

Gender Based Violence Prevention Project in Samoa

The Gender Based Violence Prevention Project draws on the recommendations of the Samoa Family Health and Safety Study. The project aims to improve the status of women in Samoa, specifically by:

Disseminating evidence-based information on GBV to enhance public awareness and knowledge of its consequences on women’s rights, empowerment and status.
Improving information and data on abuse and sexual exploitation of women through targeted studies on women
Strengthening capacity of service providers in dealing with victims of GBV, including counselling, care and support
Reviewing and promulgating polices on the prevention of GBV and women empowerment.

The project will run from June 2006 to December 2007 and is funded jointly by UNFPA and NZAID. NZAID’s contribution of NZ$330,000 covers two-thirds of the total project cost. The project will be coordinated and implemented by the Samoan Ministry of Women, Community and Social Development, in collaboration with civil society organisations, the Samoan Ministry of Health, the World Health Organisation, UNFPA and NZAID.

Contact: communications@nzaid.govt.nz

Related link: International Women's Day 2007