It was an exciting day for women market vendors trading at Vunisea Market on Kadavu as they joined the rest of the world in celebrating International Day of Rural Women for the first time last Thursday (October 15, 2020).
With the theme ‘Building rural women’s resilience in the wake of COVID 19’, it strongly resonated with the island community, which was heavily impacted by the dual crises.
A statement from UN Women quoted market vendor Setaita Bainivalu who said this was her first time to be part of the event and experience a celebration dedicated specifically for women.
She said the celebration would create more visibility, especially on their contribution as women market vendors on the island.
She said they looked forward to the Markets For Change Project training because this program would make them better businesswomen.
New Zealand High Commissioner to Fiji Jonathan Curr who was also part of the celebration said his government was delighted to be part of the expansion of the Markets for Change project.
Mr Curr said the vendors at Vunisea market joined an empowered, entrepreneurial, skilful community of women in other Markets for Change sites throughout Fiji and across the wider Pacific.
“It is a privilege to witness in person the positive impact that these markets have on women’s livelihood, benefiting not only themselves but also their families and communities,” Mr Curr said in the statement.
Australian High Commissioner to Fiji John Feakes said Australia had had a long standing commitment to supporting the rebuilding of markets across Fiji since TC Winston.
He says more than 80 per cent of market vendors are women and they believe that markets are an important place to empower women, especially those living in rural areas.
Market vendor Silivia Ovaova of Vukavu Village in Kadavu says she is grateful for the tents given.
Ms Ovaova who has been a market vendor for four years said the tents would help them continue to practice social distancing.
“I’m happy that we will now have ample space to sell our produce with the additional new tents,” she said.
Sandra Bernklau, a representative of the UN Women in the Pacific, acknowledged the vital and varying role women played in their homes and communities, as farmers, workers, entrepreneurs, community leaders and key actors in crisis situations.
She said it was important to support the important role of rural women in development and to recognise the contributions to economic development at the community and national level, and support those efforts through improved and safe working conditions in markets.
A UN Women project, M4C is principally funded by the government of Australia’s Pacific Women Shaping Pacific Development (Pacific Women) program and has expanded to include funding support from the government of Canada, and more recently the New Zealand government.
UNDP is an implementing partner.
The M4C project is a multi-year, multi-country initiative that aims to have marketplaces in rural and urban areas of Fiji, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu that are safe, inclusive, and non-discriminatory, promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment.
