Australia: Funding to UN Women Pacific Office’s Project

Press Release
Tuesday 1 March, 2011
For immediate release

Australia Continues Funding to UN Women Pacific Office’s Project on Violence Against Women and Girls

Suva, Fiji – Australia is providing FJ$863,000 to the UN Women Pacific Sub-Regional Office (UN Women) for 2011 to support ending violence against women (VAW). The funding will also address the connection between VAW and HIV and AIDS. This represents a FJ$172,760 increase on previous funding level.

UN Women’s Pacific EVAW Fund was established in March 2009 to provide financial and technical support to government and civil society organizations in their efforts to eliminate violence against women and girls in the Pacific region. Australia’s additional funding assistance delivered through AusAID Fiji’s bilateral programme will enable UN Women to work with organizations in Fiji working to end violence, enabling them to access resources to support their work and as well as training to develop their capacity to design and deliver the best possible services, based on good practice and lessons learned elsewhere in the Pacific region and globally.

The continuity of funding between the Government of Australia and UN Women was announced by the Acting High Commissioner, Ms Judith Robinson, and the UN Women Pacific Sub-Regional Office Regional Programme Director, Ms Elizabeth Cox.

“Along with its efforts to eliminate violence against women in Australia, the Australian Government is committed to intensifying its efforts to assist the Pacific region address violence against women especially through partnerships with national governments, civil society, international donors and multilateral organizations, and men and women in the community,” said Ms Robinson.

Ms Cox welcomed the AusAID’s second round of financial support to this effort for Fiji. “AusAID’s additional support is timely and responds to the expressed need of many government agencies and women’s organizations to take strategic actions and deliver needed services to eliminate violence against women and girls in Fiji. The project has the potential to work with diverse partners and addresses the link between poverty, disability, HIV, health, police and justice services.”

The project is not just about making grants. It includes the provision of technical advice and mentoring; sponsorship for practitioners and advocates to attend leading national and regional training programmes and be attached to successful EVAW organizations; convening of leading EVAW partners and stakeholders in Fiji, improved coordination and networking among advocates, government officials and the media; development of toolkits to support self-study and skill development among practitioners; documentation of lessons learned and good practice developed by and shared among organizations and individuals supported by the Pacific EVAW Fund.

ENDS

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