‘Attending trainings, I know that my actions speak louder. I am standing here as a deaf person to show you that having many skills has changed my life and I can contribute to my family’s income,’ shares Clera Tegu.
As part of commemorations for International Day of Persons with Disabilities, Pacific Women through Pacific Girl is proud to present this video featuring Ms Tegu. She is one of the many girls in the Solomon Islands who are being supported to develop their confidence, skills and knowledge through the Young Women’s Christian Association’s (YWCA) Girls Rise Up! program.
Yoshiko Capelle from the Pacific Young Women's Leadership Alliance was one of three special guests who provided pre-recorded messages for the ‘Pacific girls and COVID-19’ webinar.
The webinar promoted girls’ involvement as essential in the recovery from the COVID-19 outbreak.
Fijian activist Virisila Buadromo was one of three special guests who provided pre-recorded messages for the ‘Pacific girls and COVID-19’ webinar.
The webinar promoted girls’ involvement as essential in the recovery from the COVID-19 outbreak.
Roselyn Sidal, Julie-Ann Guivarra and Jacqui Joseph in conversation with Tara Chetty about the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on adolescent girls in the Pacific region. The webinar also included video messages from Natasha Stott-Despoja, Virisila Buadromo, and Yoshiko Capelle plus performance from two young women: Anna Vea and Mia Kami.
This video features girls from Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Tonga and Vanuatu highlighting the issues experienced by girls before and after the global pandemic.
Girls also share what they want changed to address the issues faced by themselves and their peers particularly during the COVID-19 response and recovery period.
Pamela, 13, is a dynamic adolescent, head girl and an active participant in one of Equal Playing Field school action groups in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea’s capital.
She was in Fiji; caught in transit between Papua New Guinea and Samoa due to changes in her connecting flight on her way to attend “A dive into the Blue Pacific” side event at the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) earlier this month.
Pacific Island adolescent girls participating in the two-day preparatory workshop ahead of the Pacific Girl Regional Stakeholders’ Dialogue in May 2018 wrote a song together to express their feelings and experiences. It highlights challenges for Pacific girls, including teen pregnancy and cyberbullying, and encourages girls to believe in themselves to overcome any barriers.
Adolescent girls in the Pacific face challenges because they are girls; and they can also be discriminated against for other reasons, such as having a disability or getting pregnant. In this short video, adolescent girls from the Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Tonga and Vanuatu talk about the issues that are important to them – such as education and climate change, the challenges they face – such as violence in their homes and cyber bullying, and the strategies they believe will work to empower adolescent girls in the region.
Natasha Stott Despoja AO, Australia’s candidate for the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) was one of three special guests who provided pre-recorded messages for the ‘Pacific girls and COVID-19’ webinar.
The webinar promoted girls’ involvement as essential in the recovery from the COVID-19 outbreak.
This is a pre-recorded poetry performance by Anna Jane Vea for the ‘Pacific girls and COVID-19’ webinar.
The webinar promoted girls’ involvement as essential in the recovery from the COVID-19 outbreak.
The poem ‘What I See, Hear and Understand’ was written for the Pacific Girl webinar and shares the perspective of an adolescent girl growing up in the Pacific.
This is a pre-recorded musical performance by Mia Kami for the ‘Pacific girls and COVID-19’ webinar. The song was performed live.
The webinar promoted girls’ involvement as essential in the recovery from the COVID-19 outbreak.
The song ‘Dear Society’ is for Ms Kami’s sister, reflecting on the damaging expectations that society has of women, and why it’s important for us to support each other. It was composed in honour of her older sister who passed on at the age of 15 after undergoing multiple surgeries on her face to remove a tumour.
Designed for and by girls, Pacific Girl is the only regional program in the Pacific dedicated to adolescent girls and advancing their rights and opportunities.