SETTLING into island life is not easy for someone who has lived all of his or her life on the mainland.
But as time goes, one just has to adjust to the lifestyle on the island and call it home, even for a while. This is the story of Emi Ucanibaravi, who is a senior counsellor employed by Empower Pacific and based on Kadavu since 2019.
Originally from Verata in Tailevu, Ms Ucanibaravi has two brothers and two sisters who have their own families. Her parents and a sister have passed away. She started working as a HIV practitioner at Lautoka Hospital’s ante-natal ward in 2007.
She attended a six-week training before taking up the job and pursued further studies while working. Ms Ucanibaravi graduated with a diploma in counselling from the Australian Institute of Professional Counsellors in 2010.
After graduating, she worked in Lautoka and Nadi.
She managed the Empower Pacific branch situated at the Nadi Hospital premises.
In 2015, she was transferred to the Suva branch housed next to the Diabetes Hub opposite the Colonial War Memorial Hospital. Around mid-2016, she was sent to manage the Labasa branch but her stay lasted for a few months only.
“Sometime in September 2016, I was told to get ready and go to our branch in Honiara, Solomon Islands,” she said. “I went there as a senior counsellor and technical advisor. I had to come back to Fiji in early 2018 because my mother had passed away.”
Recalling her stay in Solomon Islands, Ms Ucanibaravi said she had to coordinate work with other stakeholders there.
“As it is done in Fiji, I also used to work closely with other NGOs, dealing with domestic violence and child abuse cases.
“I was based at our office in the National Referral Hospital in Honiara which is commonly known as Numba 9 Hospital. Counselling is something new to people there.”
Ms Ucanibaravi resumed her normal work sometime after returning from the Solomon Islands and was asked by her superiors later in 2018 to go to Kadavu. She said even though Kadavu was far from home, she agreed to go to Kadavu and man the Empower Pacific branch at the Vunisea Hospital.
“It’s far from the mainland and I faced some challenges in the beginning, especially with the food as I wasn’t used to eating too much fish ,which is on the menu daily,” she said.
“But I’m all good now and I’ve settled in on the island. There’s no city life and I come to the mainland only when it’s something to do with my work.”
Ms Ucanibaravi lives in a rented flat at Namuana village which is a 20-minute walk to her office at Vunisea Hospital. In April 2021, she left Kadavu for a while because of the restrictions in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic and worked at the Suva branch.
She returned in April 2022 and has been there since then. Her area of counselling and social support work covers 75 villages in nine tikina. (districts). “I go around to these villages, helping vulnerable communities under the UNDP’s Access to Justice Program.
“Some of the 75 villages are accessible by road and some by boat.”
Ms Ucanibaravi said she counsels and helps villagers on how to access justice, especially in regards to domestic violence and child abuse cases.
“The good thing is that more people on Kadavu are getting to know about Empower Pacific now. They take time out to talk to me when they come to the hospital.
“People in Kadavu are very friendly and sometimes I bump into them when I’m on the mainland for work related matters. Ms Ucanibaravi said some of the reasons she likes her work are meeting and listening to people, and visiting new places.
But most of all, she said, it is the passion to help vulnerable people by way of counseling and social support.
- Avinesh Gopal is Empower Pacific’s Media and communications Officer, based in Lautoka
