A small team from UnitingWorld visited Solomon Islands in the aftermath of Severe Tropical Cyclone Maila and saw first-hand the impact of your support.
Our partner, the United Church in the Solomon Islands (UCSI), continues to build climate resilience, prepare communities for disasters and promote healthy, safe relationships. Rev Siera Bird, UnitingWorld’s International Program Manager for the Pacific and a Solomon Islander, shares what she saw:
How is disaster preparedness making a difference?
UCSI has been training Community-Based Disaster Risk Management Committees village by village. The communities I visited were full of gratitude, because the training meant they knew exactly what to do when the cyclone Maila hit. The UCSI team are really excited to see the community disaster committees activating early, just as they were trained, and showing people what to do and getting them to safety. It was remarkable to hear that no lives were lost in such a severe cyclone.
What changes have you seen on gender equality?
In Vanua village, one of the first communities to take part in the UnitingWorld-supported Gender Equality Theology training back in 2019, I saw real change. One woman, Lovelyn, told me her husband, who once argued about women’s roles and work, now cooks and helps at home. Rev Wilson Agiri, who hosted us in his church, spent much of his time cooking for us and caring for the sick in his community, work that was traditionally left to women. It felt to me like a whole community shift is slowly happening through God’s grace.
What’s next: clean energy for Solomon Islands
We’re thrilled to be starting a new project to bring solar power to ten remote communities in Choiseul and Malaita Provinces, replacing costly diesel generators with reliable sustainable electricity for schools, health centres and churches that are used as evacuation centres. More than 8,600 people will benefit from safer nights, better healthcare, refrigeration for fishing families and stronger disaster response. To deliver this project, we will need your donations to co-invest with funding from the Australian Government’s REnew Pacific initiative. We are working in collaboration with Caritas Australia and Baptist World Aid Australia, in partnership with several Solomon Islands churches including UCSI.
What do you hope for the future of this partnership?
I pray my people can enjoy the abundance and fullness of life God intends. Gender-based violence is still at crisis levels and that weighs heavily on my heart. People are very vulnerable to disasters, but there are many things we can do to help. I hope and pray we will have a closer partnership built on shared wisdom between people in the Solomon Islands and Australia.
There’s so much we can learn from each other.
Thank you for making this transformative partnership in Solomon Islands possible through your support.