(Suva, Fiji 21 June, 2017) – Investments by the Pacific Youth Council (PYC) in civil society leadership is one way that it can sustain the voices of youth in the Pacific development discourse, a roundtable meeting in Suva has been advised.
The comments were made by the Pacific Islands Association of Non-Governmental Organisations (PIANGO) Executive Director, Emele Duituturaga during a panel discussion on PYC’s role in the Pacific development discourse at a PYC Partners Roundtable meeting this week.
Ms Duituturaga told PYC executives from Polynesia, Melanesia and Micronesia that PIANGO had begun developing a next generation leadership program in 2016 with the intention of ensuring sustainability of civil society efforts in the Pacific.
“PIANGO’s new strategic direction is Reshaping the Pacific We Want for Future Generations because we want to invest in the future and that means nurturing a leadership pipeline.
“Is PYC the pool from which we, as current baton holders, can pull from in this regard? Where are the young leaders that PYC has generated through its affiliates now? Are they in civil society?,”she asked.
Ms Duituturaga said civil society organisations themselves, like PIANGO, must undertake internal reflections to ascertain whether its structures were enabling and conducive to the effective participation of youth.
“This is important because civil society must continue to be the bedrock of democracy and social justice in the Pacific.
“Sustaining this is first and foremost a leadership issue – this is why PIANGO journeys with PYC and will increase its focus on next generation leaders,” she said. (ENDS)
Contact:
Vani Catanasiga, PIANGO. Email: vani.vulaca@gmail.com
(June 9, 2017, New York) – Activists and representatives from prominent Pacific Island organisations, led by the Pacific Islands Association of Non-Governmental Organisations (PIANGO), are taking part in a high-profile side event at the United Nations (UN) Oceans Conference at UN Headquarters in New York today. PIANGO is the Pacific Organising Partner for the UN NGO Major Group at the Oceans Conference.
The panel discussion, aptly themed “Voices from the Blue Frontier,” focused on a more sustainable approach to the “Blue Economy” and shared community experiences from the world’s first experimental deep sea mining project “Solwara One” in Papua New Guinea (PNG), highlighting environmental threats and rights violations of indigenous resource owners and local communities through deep sea mining.
The panel is featuring prominent speakers such as the Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Development Forum (PIDF), Francois Martel; Executive Director of PIANGO, Emele Duituturaga; Human Rights Attorney, Julian Aguon; Sarah Thomas nededog, PNG Catholic Cardinal John Ribat and Fair Oceans Expert, Kai Kaschinski.
The side event is designed to provide a platform for engagement and knowledge sharing on the underlying science of seabed mining and to highlight the need for strong governance measures to ensure that appropriate social and environmental safeguards are in place to protect against projected adverse effects of seabed mining in the Pacific Ocean.
“The United Nations Oceans Conference provides a further opportunity for multi-stakeholder participation and partnership building between governments, the private sector and civil society. This event is a demonstration of this inclusive approach and in particular, amplifies the voices of Pacific people, who have the greatest stake in the outcomes of the Oceans Conference,” Emele Duituturaga, Executive Director of PIANGO explained.
“As Small Island Developing States, Pacific Island countries are particularly affected by these ocean developments. Our people rely largely on the ocean and marine resources for their livelihoods, while environmental pollution of oceans and climate change increasingly threaten existing economies.
“For many years, organisations of small-scale fishermen around the world have been fighting against ocean grabbing and the privatisation of fisheries resources. Deep sea mining is an example of such growth-oriented strategies and the unsustainable utilisation of marine resources. It disregards the rights of local communities and their livelihoods, and satisfies the resource needs of industrialised countries and emerging economies,” Ms Duituturaga said.
“Deep sea mining is not a strategy for sustainable development of Pacific Island countries. Deep sea mining and the negative impacts of climate change are based on the same failed model of development. Both threaten the health of the marine environment that is of such vital importance for Pacific Small Island Developing States. We have repeatedly reiterated that we need to rethink prevailing development models and approaches and reshape the Pacific we want.”
The Ocean Conference will result in a Call for Action that has been agreed to by countries http://bit.ly/2rzRT2q, and which will be formally adopted at the conclusion of the Conference. Additional outcomes include the results of seven partnership dialogues that will focus on solutions, and the voluntary commitments to action. (ENDS)
Contact:
Ms Emele Duituturaga, Executive Director, PIANGO Email: emele@piango.net
Date: 2 March 2017
Guam – The Pacific Islands Association of NGOs (PIANGO) and Payuta Inc have established a Micronesian hub in Hagatna, Guam in partnership with Westcare Pacific Islands, a not for profit organisation on Guam.
The hub called the Pacific Partnership Office, was officially opened last week by PIANGO executive director, Emele Duituturaga and Payuta Inc Vice Chair, Theresa Arriola and Westcare Foundation Chief Operating Officer, Maurice Lee.
“PIANGO is grateful to Payuta Inc – our Guam national liaison unit (NLU) who facilitated the connection to Westcare Foundation. Westcare has availed a structured space and office which we will be sharing with Payuta Inc. Westcare will also be recruiting a programme officer to operate from the hub.” Duituturaga said.
“For a while now, our NLUs in the Northern Pacific have been calling for support and connections with the rest of their Pacific family particularly as they juggle the demands of a changing world,” she said.
She said the establishment of the Pacific Partnership Office is an effort to build regional interconnectedness and to link national activities of CSOs to regional and international levels.
“This is a reminder that much of what we do at the regional and global levels do not directly impact on the work of CSOs out here unless we spend time with them to explain the connection.”
“The establishment of this office echoes the commitment that the PIANGO family has to unifying regional consciousness that should inspire Pacific leaders in all sectors.”
She said the representatives from Micronesian NLUs also attended the ribbon cutting ceremony on Friday 28th April and were inspired to build their own country hubs. “Apart from influencing regional and international policy, PIANGO is also focused strengthening community engagement and CSO coordination from the bottom up”.
“Westcare Foundation, Payuta Inc and PIANGO will continue to look into fully resourcing the office so it’s positioned well to keep our NLUs in Micronesia, particularly those in the Northern Pacific involved in regional policy discourse,” Duituturaga said.
ENDS
Date: 2 May 2017
Guam – A One Micronesia position is key to ensuring that the US adheres to its Paris agreement commitments and controlled military presence in the sub region.
This was part of a 16-points resolution reached at the 7th Payuta Inc Not for Profit Congress in Tumon, Guam on 26-27 April by civil society leaders from Guam, Federated States of Micronesia, Northern Marianas (CNMI) and Marshall Islands. The meeting was co-facilitated with the Pacific Islands Association of NGOs (PIANGO).
PIANGO executive director said PIANGO’s Micronesian NLUs have articulated their support for Pacific resilience in the face of environmental challenges; by vowing to build solidarity through a “One Micronesia” position.
“A highlight of the 7th Payuta Non Profit Congress Resolution is agreement of the CSO leaders to encourage a “One Micronesia” position for the US to adhere to its commitment to the Paris Agreement, and address concerns about its US military presence and the use of the Micronesian islands.”
Duituturaga said the CSO leaders also resolved to commit to increased Pacific CSO participation at the next climate change summit (Conference of the Parties 23) in Bonn, Germany.
“The resolutions also highlighted their aim to strengthen community resilience against climate change, including enacting appropriate legislations to ensure this.”
“I was heartened when they resolved to design consistent and entrenched education campaigns to empower Northern Pacific communities to re-think development issues that truly benefit their islands’ environment and secure a more sustainable future for their children.”
Duituturaga said there was also a strong representation of youth issues in the resolution which called for more youth participation in policy making and the development of youth center networks across the Pacific.
“There was also expressed support for dialogue processes on the decolonization of the mind particularly with the youth,” she said.
ENDS
Date: 1 May 2017
Guam – A more systematic relationship with governments helps civil society to better promote accountability.
These sentiments were echoed by at the Pacific Islands Association of NGOs Micronesian Subregional meeting in Hagatna, Guam last week where more than 30 civil society leaders from the Federated States of Micronesia, Guam, Northern Marianas, and Marshall Islands had gathered to discuss sub regional development issues.
PIANGO executive director Emele Duituturaga who facilitated at the meeting said a lot of focus went into discussing the local level situation and the need to strengthen PIANGO national liaison units (NLUs).
“There is a greater appreciation of the need for effective coordination of CSOs at the state and national levels and for the NLUs to invigorate the efforts for CSOs to work together and to develop a systematic relationship with government,” Duituturaga said.
She said that while most were aware of the Agenda 2030 or SDGs, most if not all were struggling with how it is reported and monitored.
“There is general agreement that the Agenda 2030 or SDGs is important to monitor and they need to get organised to hold governments accountable for this,” she said.
She said as part of organising themselves, it was unanimously agreed that the PIANGO Code of Minimum Standards and accreditation would be a useful tool to strengthen their systems. Duituturaga said the fact that Guam already had an existing accreditation system was pleasing to note and that PIANGO will work with the Guam NLU, Payuta Inc to build on this.
“The meeting also discussed PIANGO’s organisational development matrix as a health check on organisational effectiveness,” she said.
Duituturaga said the two-days subregional meeting ended with each of the NLUs; FSM Alliance of NGOs(FANGO), Marianas Alliance of NGOs(MANGO), Payuta Inc and Marshall Islands Council of NGOs agreeing to a 5-points action plan. The main actions focused on SDG awareness, CSO mapping, Capacity strengthening including relations with government and Accountability standards.
ENDS
Date: 31 March 2017
SUVA – Pacific Islands Association of NGOs (PIANGO) will hold the Micronesia sub regional meeting as a build up to the 7th Non Profit Congress in Guam next month.
This was revealed in an official statement issued by the board of Payuta Incorporated yesterday to its members and to its regional umbrella body, PIANGO.
“The Payuta Board of Directors is pleased to announce the 7th Micronesian Non Profit Congress to be held on Guam from April 26-27, 2017,” the board said in the statement.
“We are also planning for our traditional Policy Forum and the formal meeting of the Pacific Coalition of NGO Leaders on Friday, April 28th.”
“The Pacific Islands Association of NGOs will hold Micronesian Subregional Meetings prior to the congress on Monday, April 24 and Tuesday, April 25. These sessions will be hosted by Payuta member organizations ICAN and Sanctuary, Inc.”
The board said the congress with the theme, By Us, For Us, Within Us, will focus on strategies that will lead their consumers, communities, and the various sectors and pacific island jurisdictions to the “table” to discuss how they can better themselves.
“The “onus” is on us and the “ownness” is within us. These concepts imply rights and responsibilities and a oneness with ourselves.”
The statement said presentations will be made that will evoke the ideas of responsibility and perhaps even an obligation of families, community organizations, policy makers and advocates to assert their interests towards progress and change.
Payuta Inc board chair, Sarah Thomas-Nededog who also serves as chair of the PIANGO board said they expect to have 100 local, regional and national participants as presenters and attendees.
“The 7th Nonprofit Congress will bring together approximately 100 key individuals from Guam and the region representing the nonprofit, business and governmental sectors to explore policy and practices around key societal issues facing Guam and the larger Micronesian region,” Thomas-Nededog said.
“As in our 6 previous conferences, this event is followed by a policy forum when we submit our adopted resolutions to our local and regional policy makers inviting them to partner with us in addressing issues identified at the congress.”
ENDS
For Further Information Please Contact PIANGO Communications: Email- communications@piango.org or phone: (679) 3300060
Facebook: facebook.com/Pacific2020 Twitter: @Pacific_2030
Date: 20 March 2017
Suva – The Pacific Islands Association of NGOs will host a global gathering of civil society organisations in Suva on 4-7 December this year as part of International Civil Society Week (ICSW)
PIANGO executive director, Emele Duituturaga said she was delighted to receive official notification as well as a video of the announcement of PIANGO’s successful hosting by CIVICUS secretary general, Dr Danny Sriskandarajah.
“PIANGO and its 24 affiliates in Polynesia, Melanesia and Micronesia are excited to be the hosts of the 14th ICSW not only because of the international participants that are expected at the event but also because it is the first time for an ICSW to take place in the region,” Duituturaga said.
“With Fiji as host country, PIANGO’s member the Fiji Council of Social Services (FCOSS) will have a special role to play to ensure the civil society community in Fiji are engaged.”
“We are expecting over 1,000 participants, based on 900 participants from more than a hundred countries at last year’s ICSW held in Bogota, Columbia so this is going to be a huge undertaking for PIANGO and its regional affiliates.”
“PIANGO had begun scoping work for the hosting of the weeklong event last year particularly in securing a venue large enough to cater for the numbers we are expecting. We are delighted to be able to secure the USP Laucala campus for this” she said.
Duituturaga said the PIANGO Council meeting held in December last year in Suva had endorsed the hosting of the event.
“This means the full support of PIANGO’s affiliates or national liaison units in 24 Pacific countries is behind this initiative. We expect to see PIANGO members front the effort to host their colleagues from other regions in true Pacific style.”
In a video announcement posted on CIVICUS youtube channel, Dr Sriskandarajah said the CIVICUS board felt it was important as a global alliance to show solidarity with the Pacific especially at a time when climate change and sustainability is high on the region’s agenda.
“We are delighted to be working with PIANGO, the umbrella body for the Pacific civil society to host the event (ICSW 2017) themed, “Our Planet, Our Struggles, Our future,” he said in the video statement released last week.
The event objectives are to:
- Connectthe different sources and forces of citizen action, empowering civil society to be more robust and effective, ensuring diversity and multi-stakeholder engagement, and encouraging both formal and informal networking.
- Sharetools and experiences for enhancing citizen action, facilitating capacity building trainings and activities, amplifying citizen voices through social media and technology, and building awareness of the importance of a vibrant civic space, with the special focus on how to enhance national and global monitoring and accountability.
- Celebratethe power of innovation to affect social change, enhancing citizen participation and promoting sustainability, highlighting innovative leaders and stories of change.
ICSW events follow a different approach to conferencing according to CIVICUS.
“It celebrates innovation and relies on multiple partnerships with local, international, and multi-sectoral organisations who pool their resources together to convene a diverse international group of leaders in civil society issues,” a statement on the CIVICUS website outlined.
ENDS
Date: 17th August 2016
Suva – The groundswell of support for West Papua across the region is the ideal build up to the upcoming Forum Leaders meeting in Federated States of Micronesia says Pacific Islands Association of NGOs (PIANGO) Executive Director, Emele Duituturaga.
Duituturaga made the comments after presenting the issue of West Papua to the Regional Civil Society Forum in Suva, last week.
“There is definitely a change of mood across the Pacific on this issue as they begin to understand the severity of the human rights abuses and violence faced by West Papuans and the colonial history,” Duituturaga said.
“Our CSO forum heard of issues raised in national consultations and what other CSO partners had echoed and we were pleased to hear that there is widespread support from CSO partners across the region for this as a priority regional issue.”
“So it is heartening to see West Papua under the list of initiatives for leaders’ consideration in the summary of recommendations compiled by the Forum Specialist Sub-Committee on Regonalsim,” Duituturaga said.
West Papua is one of the six initiatives listed for leaders’s consideration and has been again reiterated by the Foreign Ministers meeting as one of the agenda items for leaders to consider at the September meeting.
“The Pacific Coalition on West Papua was set up by Solomon Islands Prime Minister, Sogovare after the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) meeting to expand the advocacy network on the issue of West Papua from within the bounds of the Melanesian bloc to the greater Pacific Region to lobby for support for its resolve to take up the issue to the United Nations for intervention.”
“Polynesian leaders through the initiative of the Tongan Prime Minister are also mobilising their support after a meeting in Tahiti where they discussed this issue,” she said.
Duituturaga said civil society in the Pacific are looking forward to seeing West Papua on the agenda for the Forum Leaders meeting next month.
PIANGO will be organising a CSO Roundtable in Pohnpei prior to the Leaders meeting, at which the issue of West Papua will discussed as part of the broader decolonisation and self-determination agenda for the Pacific.
ENDS
Date: 12th August 2016
Suva – Officials from the Pacific Islands Association of NGOs (PIANGO) and a number of its regional affiliates have begun a yearlong training in regional policymaking processes and implementation.
The Non-State Actors (NSAs) Capacity Building Program begun last week in Suva and is being coordinated by the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat.
Approximately 10 participants from 15 Forum Island Countries were representatives from PIANGO and its national liaison units and lead agencies from the region completed the first phase of one week training.
PIANGO Executive Director, Emele Duituturaga welcomed the move by PIFs to build capacity in an area that was often neglected in civil society work.
“PIANGO is excited that a lot of its members from the region are participating in this training. Policy making and coalition building are just a few components of the yearlong training and are essential components of civil society work,” Duituturaga said.
“So this training has come at the right time for PIANGO and its partners in the region.”
Duituturaga said PIANGO had expressed interest in the training because it provided an opportunity for continuous learning and development on policy and budget analysis as well as coalition building.
“It also provides an opportunity for the dissemination to others of the newly learned knowledge. Over the course of the year, PIANGO’s representatives at the training will receive support from their nominated supervisor as well as receive ongoing mentoring,” she said.
She said the training also incorporates a practical component which will require participants to develop a one page concept for a project that they will work on over the course of the year.
Sushil Patel, PIANGO Communications Officer who attended said, “The training has helped me better understand the policy making processes, at local, national, regional and international levels. It has enhanced my skills on research and analysis on policies making connections from grass roots to international forums.”
This first training session ended this week, with the next training module expected to take place in February/March 2017.
ENDS
Date: 22 July 2016
Suva – Samoa needs a legal framework to facilitate meaningful civil society engagement in the implementation of the sustainable development goals (SDGs) and ensure that no part of Samoan society is left behind.
These sentiments were echoed at the Action for Sustainable Development (A4SD) facilitated side event at the UN High Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development in New York this week, by Samoa Umbrella for Non Governmental Organisation (SUNGO), President, Roina Faatauvaa-Vavatau.
Ms Vavatau was presenting a civil society perspective on national processes for engaging civil society organisations (CSOs) on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) work in Samoa at a session titled, “How can we ensure that no one is left behind promise is delivered? Connecting national perspectives to enable mutual learning and joint action” in New York, US.
Samoa is the first and only Pacific island country from the 22 countries that volunteered to spearhead the review of global agenda.
“The civil society perspective has been the outcome of the Samoa civil societies SDGs consultations that was held in Apia on June 23rd June, 2016 through an initiative of the UNDP Regional office.”
According to Vavatau, the aim of the consultation was to “gauge feedback from both CSOs and private sector on the question of “How can UN support the implementation of SDG?”.
“Though it was a UN initiative, it nevertheless provided an avenue for awareness raising and dialogue on SDG implementation on how CSOs and private sector can best make intervention into the SDGs implementation process.
Vavatau said some of the issues raised by Samoan CSOs at the government held consultation were the need to increase awareness and capacity level to minimize gaps between the actors, localisation of indicators and conducting research and data collection to identify gaps and measure progress.
“In Samoa, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade is the focal point for the SDGs implementation, whereas department of statistics is tasked with the data collection.”
“The implementation modality adopted by Samoa has been that SDG Goals have been integrated and aligned with the Samoa Development Priorities (SDS 2016-2020).”
“SDS has several sectors and outcome of these sectoral reviews will inform the SDG progress. CSO intervention are made through these sectoral reviews,” she said.
“There is still a need to improve the partnership and facilitate a more meaningful and genuine dialogue so that there is commitment to ensuring no one is left behind” said Vavatau.
Vavatau’s participation in New York at the HLPF was facilitated by Pacific Islands Association of NGOs (PIANGO) engagement with A4SD.
Alanieta Vakatale from the PIANGO secretariat was also in New York with Vavatau to participate at Action for Sustainable Development organised workshops over the week to plan engagement in the monitoring and implementation activities for the SDGs and Paris Agreement.
ENDS