A new initiative to help nine Pacific nations meet their human rights commitments could have a long-term ripple effect in the region, the Pacific Community says.
Senior human rights advisor for the Pacific Community, Jayshree Mangubhai. Photo: Supplied.
$US2m boost for human rights work in Pacific
One of the aims of the Pacific Commonwealth Equality Project is to support MPs and community leaders champion human rights in their communities.
The project will receive about $US2 million in funding over two years from the UK government's Commonwealth Fund.
Senior human rights advisor for the Pacific Community Jayshree Mangubhai said she was confident the work would help create meaningful social change.
"Across the Pacific, there's a growing swell and momentum around human rights and then this project comes in at a perfect time to really support governments to put those commitments into action."
The project - a joint initiative between the Pacific Community (SPC) and the UK government - will support human rights work in Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.
The work has three components: supporting emerging national human rights institutions, providing technical support to help nations develop human rights action plans, and creating platforms for MPs and civil society leaders to improve human rights.