Seventeen-year-old Anamalia Falemaka of Talitha Project in Tonga participated in the UNCRC side event in Samoa in March 2020 titled ‘A dive into the Blue Pacific’. Girls like Anamalia used the forum to share their experiences, lessons learned and innovative approaches at the international event. It was a learning opportunity for participants to exchange information, knowledge and challenges faced in the Pacific region. The side-event involved grassroots civil society organisations in the Pacific which engage with girls and acknowledge their role, agency and expertise.
The Pacific Girl webinar on adolescent girls and COVID-19, coincided with the International Day of the Girl Child on October 11. It explored the impacts of the pandemic on adolescent girls in the region and the importance of listening to girls and young women in order to develop effective COVID-19 responses. The webinar amplified the concerns of young women and girls, and those working to support them, while discussing ways to support girls’ increased involvement in response and recovery.
More than 60 adolescent girls and young women reflected on the successes and challenges of the Pacific Girl program and shared ideas to inform future efforts at a series of virtual convenings held in May and June 2021. To ensure a safe space for open and honest dialogue, a closed panel discussion was led by adolescent girls and young women involved in six Pacific Girl initiatives across Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Vanuatu, and Chuuk State, Federated States of Micronesia in June.