Fresh round of community consultations supports TCAP as it moves closer to construction

November 15, 2020 Tuvalu Project

16 Nov 2020

Photo: Puanita Ewekia/Tuvalu Coastal Adaptation Project/UNDP

Funafuti, November 2020 – The Tuvalu Coastal Adaptation Project (TCAP) team has returned this month from conducting public consultations with more than 400 women, men, youth, people with disability, fisherman and landowners, island leaders, government staff and Kaupule (council) staff on Nanumaga, Nanumea, and Funafuti. The consultations are part of ongoing engagement with communities on the three islands covered by TCAP, designed to elicit local input on the project and address any emerging environmental or social concerns.

Facilitated by Project Manager Alan Resture, with the assistance of the Project Communication Officer and Administration Officer, the meetings provided an opportunity to discuss the project’s recently completed Environmental and Social Impact Assessments (available for viewing here). The revised Gender Strategy and Action Plan for the project was also discussed as part of the community consultations.

“Community consultations are key to community ‘buy in’. Having people express their views and concerns about the project allows them to see that the project belongs to them, it gives them a sense of ownership and empowerment, and that working together with all stakeholders will tender all the support needed to push the project forward.” – Alan Resture, TCAP Project Manager

During the sessions, participants reiterated concerns around the contamination of freshwater sources (as a result of construction dust); and pressure on limited island medical supplies and drinking water due to an influx of workers, while also making recommendations to address each.

Further issues raised – including the impacts of increased traffic and machinery on the islands’ narrow roads and unsealed roads; the use of local labour for construction works, along with the provision of proper training; and inclusion and equal participation of men, women, youth and disabled in decision-making – are also to be considered and integrated into the project’s Environmental and Social Management Plan, currently under revision.

As part of the trip, the team also visited the islands’ primary schools to raise students’ awareness of the project and its goals, the coastal protection designs planned for the islands, and the potential for their own contribution to the project’s implementation next year (including respect for workers and staying out of dangerous construction areas).

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The project’s revised Gender Strategy and Action Plan was presented for the first time and endorsed by most participants.

Discussion in relation to gender equality included concern around the fair distribution of job opportunities; equitable salaries; opportunities for women to earn income from the project by selling local food and handicrafts; and ensuring a safe working environment for both men and women during the groundwork activities.

By promoting the inclusion of women, TCAP will contribute to the government’s ongoing efforts to address gender inequalities, particularly in the area of coastal adaptation to build community resilience against impacts of climate change.

The consultations were carried out over eighteen days between July 9-10 (Nanumaga), September 4 – 22 (Nanumea), and October 27 – November 2 (Funafuti).

For more information, please contact Puanita Ewekia, TCAP Communications Officer, at puanita.ewekia@undp.org

Temoulima, 30, from Nanumaga

Temoulima, 30, from Nanumaga said that on her island there have been big changes in household roles and responsibilities relative to 10 years ago. Traditionally, men hardly washed dishes or clothes, and never cooked, though they have held certain roles in the home – feeding pigs, cutting toddies and fishing while women do domestic chores, weave mats, or make handicrafts for a living. Nowadays, you can see men helping women with cooking, washing and even with weaving. “There is a big change in men and women’s roles in our community, including in decision-making: in the past, island leaders made final decisions without getting women’s views. Now, they more widely take into account women’s and other views in island development plans.”