Samoa

Refer to 2025 report under Fiji MCO

Refer to 2024 report under Fiji MCO

Refer to Fiji MCO Annual Report 2023

In 2022, the Pacific Conference of Churches (PCC) influenced regional and national churches and faith leaders to prevent Violence Against Women and Girls and achieve gender equality. Focusing specifically on Sustainable Development Goals; 5: Gender Equality, 10: Reducing Inequalities, and 17: Partnerships, PCC galvanized senior church leadership within the PCC network to endorse and approve the Gender Status Card for Churches in the Pacific: Building safe, dignified and empowered communities in the Pacific. The Gender Status Card is the first of its kind globally and was presented at the World Council of Churches Summit in September 2022 as a model to increasing advocacy and accountability for churches to prevent and respond to violence. The tool is an action-oriented, simple, self-assessment tool developed in consultation and in partnership with member churches across the Pacific, it guides PCC’s member churches and other faith organizations in the region on assessing, monitoring, and implementing their commitments towards creating safe churches free from gender-based violence in the Pacific. Five churches from Vanuatu, Kiribati, Fiji, Samoa and Tuvalu have started their assessments. The assessment process has opened a dialogue and started to change mindsets among church administrators and personnel on the role of VAWG in faith settings. The assessment and action plan will be reported into the regional Pacific Leaders Meeting held annually as a scorecard for church members’ ability to secure the safety of women, children and survivors of VAWG. The rollout of the Gender Status Card will continue throughout 2023, with training of member churches on how to utilize this tool scheduled. It cannot be understated the importance of the faith community in Pacific life and the opportunity this partnership provides to reach a wide sector of society across the Pacific.
UN Women played an instrumental role in co-developing and co-designing the Gender Status Card with PCC through technical assistance and quality assurance. The consultation and validation process were co-led by UN Women and PCC and substantive drafting and revisions were contributed by UN Women to ensure the Gender Status Card remains a relevant tool and model for churches across the region. UN Women also developed the training package and materials for the member church trainings on the Gender Status Card, alongside co-training during the pilots in Fiji and Kiribati after the launch of the tool. Globally, PCC’s Gender Status Card has been acknowledged as best practice, with PCC being invited to two international conferences by the World Council of Churches to share these lessons learnt and best practice, in Australia and Germany.