It was to be the first Christmas she had planned to spend time with her family after being away for studies in Hawaii for four years.
But this did not go as planned due to a humanitarian crisis that needed her interventions as a qualified social worker with Empower Pacific whose core services aligned with humanitarian work in times of a disaster focusing on disaster preparedness and response.
This is one of the many impact stories which Empower Pacific has had to share to celebrate World Humanitarian Day(Saturday, August 19).
Ruci Sekitoga graduated from Brigham Young University in Hawaii with a Bachelors in Social Work with minors in Sociology and Pacific Island Studies.
She returned to Fiji in early 2020 and worked as a social worker with Empower Pacific in September that year.
“It would have been the first Christmas for me with my family in 2020 after four years and everything had been planned,” she said.
“Unfortunately, Tropical Cyclone Yasa struck and made landfall in Bua, Vanua Levu on December 17, 2020.
“Being an NGO providing Psychological First Aid (PFA) as part of its disaster response, Empower Pacific got a team ready to go out to Bua and I was also included in it.
“We left for Bua two days before Christmas. I decided to go because helping the people was more important than plans for Christmas with my family.”
Ms Sekitoga said the Empower Pacific team provided PFA to cyclone affected people in the Bua province who were in a vulnerable state.
She said a lot of people did not have clean and safe water to drink, food and even shelter as the cyclone had caused severe devastation impacting people’s lives.
“We distributed bottled water, dignity packs for the mothers and infant packs for babies while providing PFA to the people.
“I celebrated my Christmas 2020 and New Year 2021 doing social, humanitarian work in the Bua province. I stayed there for two weeks and returned to Lautoka.”
Two weeks after returning to Lautoka, Ms Sekitoga was again sent to Cakaudrove to provide PFA services.
“Tropical Cyclone Ana also struck the country on January 31, 2021 so there was a lot that we had to do for the people affected by not just TC Yasa but by TC Ana as well,” she said.
“I stayed in Cakaudrove from January 2021 to the end of March conducting PFA in villages and communities that were affected by the cyclone before I returned to Lautoka.”
“In April, I was also deployed with a team to the Macuata Province to conduct PFA for those who were affected by cyclones Yasa and Ana.
“Soon after arriving in Labasa, COVID-19 lockdown happened on Viti Levu and there were restrictions on movement and gathering of people.
“Apart from providing PFA for people affected by the two cyclones, we also focused on creating awareness on COVID-19 prevention and addressing mental health issues.”
She said, providing PFA in the three provinces on Vanua Levu made her experience the most growth in her professional career as a social worker and instilled much-needed skills as a humanitarian worker responding in times of a disaster or crisis such as the COVID-19 pandemic.
Timaima Delai, a counsellor, said despite the risks and challenges faced, engaging in humanitarian work gave her immense satisfaction and peace of mind knowing that she had assisted many vulnerable communities.
“I feel extremely fortunate that I’m on the other side of the situation where I can lead them to any sort of help,” she said.
“Therefore, delivering hope and standing in solidarity are at the very heart of humanitarian action.
“On World Humanitarian Day, we want to celebrate in this spirit, for in some of the bleakest situations, it maybe all that people have,” said Ms Delai.
Kimberley Murray, also a social worker, said she was grateful for the support from her team members, workmates and stakeholders in the aftermath of the cyclones and during the COVID19 pandemic.
“No matter what, the highs and lows, we tried to the best of our abilities to be there for the people,” she said.
Empower Pacific counsellor in Lautoka, Kiniviliame Naqaravatu led a team of three counsellors from the Western Division and one from the Labasa branch.
Mr Naqaravatu said apart from providing PFA to those hit by the cyclones, his team also had to provide counselling and PFA to people affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. He said leading a team for humanitarian work was his most memorable experience.
As we mark the 20th anniversary of the World Humanitarian Day, Empower Pacific also takes pride in its motto, “Putting People First”.
No matter what, people and humanity always come first whenever there is a humanitarian crisis.
•AVINESH GOPAL is Empower Pacific’s media and communications officer based in Lautoka. The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of this newspaper.
