Britain has given the Pacific Community (SPC) a grant of $US2.37 million dollars to help improve the ability of nine Pacific Commonwealth countries to deliver on their human rights obligations.
The money is going to projects in Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu and will be spread over the two years that the UK is the chair of the Office of the Commonwealth.
The Pacific Commonwealth Equality Project will be implemented by the SPC's Regional Rights Resource Team in collaboration with the Commonwealth Secretariat, the UK Equality and Human Rights Commission, the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association and national human rights institutions across the Commonwealth.
The SPC's deputy director-general, Audrey Aumua, said there was political will to advance gender equality and human rights across the region.
With support such as that from the British government, the Pacific was near a turning point in achieving the common goal of a future based on a foundation of respect and equality, she said.
