Raising the voice of rural women in Tuvalu
‘Berm Top Barriers’ built by the Tuvalu Adaptation Project will prevent waves overtopping important agricultural land in Nanumaga, March 2024. © TCAP.
Lilian Falealuga Tine is an outspoken advocate for the rights of women in Tuvalu. She has worked for the Department of Rural Development; and she was the former Interim Coordinator of Tuvalu National Council of Women as well as Secretary General for the Tuvalu Red Cross Society. Former Board Director for the Tuvalu Development Bank of Tuvalu and currently Board Director for the Tuvalu Post Limited.
She worked as First Secretary at the Tuvalu Embassy in Brussels, Belgium and was President for the African, Caribbean and Pacific Ambassadors’ Spouses Association and Patron of the British and Commonwealth Women’s Club, raising funds to address women’s needs in these regions, with the Tuvalu Disability Association (Fusi Alofa) and the Tuvalu National Council of Women as some of the beneficiaries.
This International Women’s Day, themed: “Invest in women: accelerate progress,” she spoke about the role of the Tuvalu Coastal Adaptation Project (TCAP) in empowering women in the long-term. While the core element of the infrastructure-building project is to reclaim and raise land from the sea, protecting the community from sea level-rise – a critical component of the project has been about supporting women to speak up at the governing board and community levels.
The importance of female leadership role models
“In the Pacific context, we have fewer role models as leaders and it is harder for women to build themselves up,” she explains.
“For example, in Tuvalu in the last general election, we lost the only woman Member of Parliament and so we lost that strong female voice in Parliament. Although we may have the capability to do it, family obligations may not allow us to move forward. You must have the support of your husband, families and your island community to thrive, and you may have to prioritize other family commitments, and that is a challenge.”
Lilian says she was very lucky, because her late husband, Ambassador Tine Leuelu supported her in all of her roles when he was alive and working in public office.
“He knew I wanted to continue working in the area of empowering women even when we had to travel for his own work,” she explained, and this allowed her to be a voice at different levels for other women who did not have those opportunities.
“Women need to have the confidence, experience and knowledge, and to support each other. Sometimes there is division within the communities and among women, and this needs to be overcome. Women should take advantage of community meetings, national consultations to raise their voices and speak up."
Education for freedom
TCAP has supported the role of women through education, scholarships and encouragement at governing board level.
“TCAP has also given opportunities to women to work within their communities, reviewing their development plans and expanding their opportunities,” Lilian noted.
“Women can sit in those planning meetings, enabling outer-island women to sit together and discuss their development focus in the long-term.
“The project has also supported women with specific interests, for example in education, to ensure that their visions can be supported. With education, women can have the freedom to choose what careers they want to pursue,” she added. “We need to continue advocacy and awareness-raising about other issues like domestic violence, to ensure that young women coming out of high school understand their rights, because issues such as domestic violence dishearten to women come forward to represent themselves.”
Knock-on impacts for the whole community
Yet alongside being heard, what women in Tuvalu really want is elevated economic empowerment. “Women depend on their small businesses such as selling handcrafts like bags, necklaces, mats. Leaders need to put more resources, technical assistance and inject more finances into economic empowerment opportunities and infrastructure for women,” she explained.
“Women in the outer islands sat together with young and old people and debated their vision for development on the island, to improve their strategic plans.
“Women think about communities and the whole family, as everyone is affected by climate change,” she notes.
“Sometimes the voice of women is lost in political planning and donor-related funding policies, especially conditions that deter women organizations from accessing funds for their identified priorities. As Small Island and Developing States, more effort is needed to highlight the concerns of women at every level, from grassroot level as a collective voice to the higher levels. The knowledge of women in how to combat climate change and effects of sea-level rise can be a positive contribution to the initiatives of decision makers.”
Hopeful now that the Gender Affairs Department of Tuvalu has again been transferred to the Office of the Prime Minister, this has “shortened the route for us to be heard,” says Lilian, making it easier for the voices of women especially in the outer islands to be heard.
With increasing pressure on communities to achieve food security and Global Development Goals, achieving gender equality is more vital than ever. Ensuring women’s and girls’ rights is critical to creating prosperous and just economies, and a healthy planet for future generations.
TCAP is supported with thanks to the Green Climate Fund, alongside the Government of Tuvalu and Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
About the Tuvalu Coastal Adaptation Project
With US$36 million financing from the Green Climate Fund and US$2.9 million co-financing from the Government of Tuvalu, the 7-year Tuvalu Coastal Adaptation Project is contributing to strengthening the resilience of one of the world’s most vulnerable countries to climate change and sea-level rise. Implemented by the UN Development Programme in partnership with the Government, the project is improving coastal protection in key locations on the islands of Funafuti, Nanumea and Nanumaga. While new measures will act as a buffer during storms, the project also strives to build the capacity of national and island governments and local communities in adapting to climate change in the longer term. Learn more at TCAP.tv Follow the project on Twitter @TCAP4Tuvalu or on Facebook
About the United Nations Development Programme
UNDP is the leading United Nations organisation fighting to end the injustice of poverty, inequality, and climate change. Working with our broad network of experts and partners in 170 countries, we help nations to build integrated, lasting solutions for people and planet. Learn more at undp.org
About the Pacific Community (SPC)
The Pacific Community (SPC) is the principal scientific and technical organisation in the Pacific region, proudly supporting development since 1947. It is an international development organisation owned and governed by 27 country and territory members.
SPC is a key project partner to TCAP, undertaking Environmental and Social Impact, Geotechnical, Sea Level Measurement and Wave Inundation Assessments in support of TCAP’s work programme. SPC will also deliver a hands-on training programme for Tuvalu government officers and other interested parties in 2023. Among various subjects the training will cover use and improvement of the hazards dashboard.
Additional photos from the Tuvalu Coastal Adaptation Project also available on Flickr: https://flic.kr/s/aHsm6S2Zkw *Please credit as indicated