A world with

thriving communities
Highlights of our work in
the Pacific and beyond
July 1 2017 – June 30 2018

Volunteer Service Abroad

Connecting people – transforming lives 1
 A world with
“VSA volunteers leave for their assignments with
two kete – one filled with the knowledge and
skills to help others develop better lives, the
second empty to bring back the strengthened
relationships and experiences that only people-
to-people connections can create.”
thriving communities
(MFAT-VSA Partnership document)

We believe in Manaakitanga,
We believe our work must celebrate our values

• Respectful partnerships
• Working and learning together
• Cross-cultural understanding
• Fairness, social justice and
self-determination
• The power of volunteering

Connecting people – transforming lives

Front Cover: VSA volunteer Joan Middlemiss with Joses Togase in Vanuatu
How we work pages: Left to right: Carola Callum and Philip Johnson in Vanuatu Gina Kaitiplel, Jackie Cronin in Solomon Islands by
Robert Taupongi. Bryn Pearson playing rugby in Solomon Islands by Ash Lyall. Children playing in Solomon Islands by Rachel Skeates.

Volunteer Service Abroad Te Tūao Tāwāhi Inc is a registered charity (CC36739) under the Charities Act 2005.

2
 The Pacific and Micronesia
beyond
Where we work
Melanesia
Kiribati

PNG
Asia
Bougainville

Timor-Leste

Solomon Tuvalu
Islands
Polynesia

Fiji

Samoa
Vanuatu
Cook Islands

Niue

Tonga

Volunteer Service Abroad

Te Tūao Tāwāhi
Tūao: to stand/be in the world (volunteer).
Tāwāhi: the other side (of the sea).
VSA volunteers become a part of the
communities in which they work. When they
find their place in the world, they change
lives and their lives are changed too.

VSA office locations

4 5
From local need to
lasting change
How we work
VSA sends extraordinary Kiwis to share
their skills and work alongside people
in the Asia-Pacific region to create a
fairer future for all, and work alongside Returned volunteers
Volunteers get involved in their join VSA Connect,
communities in the Pacific and beyond our alumni association,
communities outside of their
to achieve what’s important to them.
assignment too. and share their experiences lasting change
with school and community
groups in NZ. The partner organisation is able to
continue to work from a stronger
on assignment foundation, providing more
opportunities for the community
Volunteers live in the community
long after the volunteer is gone.
and work alongside their colleague
towards their organisation’s goals.
VSA recruits a great volunteer.

We work with the organisation to

design our assignment.

local need
One of our partner organisations
identifies a need for support.
 A world with
thriving communities

Organisational highlights 11

The power of volunteering 12

Gender equity in the Pacific 15

Climate action and the environment in the Pacific 16

Youth issues in the Pacific 19

Countries we work in
Impact beyond assignment
Finances
Our partners
Volunteer Service Abroad Te Tu-ao Ta-wa-hi
Patron: Her Excellency the Right Honourable Dame
Patsy Reddy GNZM QSO DStJ
President: Dr Simon Mark. Council Chair: Evan Mayson
Council members: Deidre Brookes (Deputy Chair),
John Bowis, Kirsty Burnett, Hone McGregor, Peter Elmsly,
Dana MacDiarmid, Kirikaiahi Mahutariki
Chief Executive Officer: Stephen Goodman MNZM
All of our work aligns with the
Sustainable Development Goals:
seventeen goals to transform
our world. Read more at
www.vsa.org.nz/related-sdgs
Kia ora,
20
It has been a busy and exciting year for VSA. On July To increase the impact of our work, we have also
1 we began a new five-year partnership with the focused on identifying projects and independent
24
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT). VSA has funding options. This included supporting a Leitana
had a close and successful partnership with MFAT Nehan Women’s Development Agency building project
26 for over 50 years, and this arrangement builds on that in Bougainville, and the Couppe Safe House in Kokopo
success. The longer period will enable VSA to grow in East New Britain, Papua New Guinea. Completion
and strengthen its efforts throughout the Pacific. of both of these projects has been possible through
27
Over the next five years we plan on delivering 1,000 funds raised independently by VSA, and stand
volunteer assignments, primarily focused within the alongside MFAT-funded volunteer assignments.
Pacific. These will provide a lot of opportunities for
These are wonderful initiatives that will really make
New Zealanders to share their skills with our
a difference to the people in those communities,
partner organisations and communities, to assist
and potentially lead to other opportunities for VSA
them to thrive.
volunteers to work with women in Bougainville and
To achieve the 1,000 assignments, we’ll have more Papua New Guinea. We will continue to look for more
staff in Polynesia, where previously, five countries of these opportunities.
were managed by one Programme Manager. From
We are pleased and proud of the achievements
October 2018 we will have full-time Programme
Managers located in Kiribati, to manage volunteer
VSA has made over the past year, together with
our partners and supporters. Thank you for your
assignments both there and in Tuvalu; Tonga, to
commitment to our work.
manage our programme there, as well as the Cook
Islands and Niue; and Samoa.
There is demand for VSA volunteers: our partners
tell us that the contribution and overall impact of our
volunteers is overwhelmingly positive. The model of
skills-sharing we use, and the way volunteers work
alongside local partners with humility and without a
personal agenda, is appreciated throughout the region. Stephen Goodman, VSA CEO Evan Mayson, VSA Council Chair

Above: Left to right: VSA volunteer Nid Satjipanon, Koreta Kadi and Margaret Kisi in Solomon Islands by Robert Taupongi
 Organisational highlights

176
assignments supported their own
partner organisations plus another

294 organisations

86.1%
of our partner organisations are
confident that sustained outcomes
have been achieved

217
women mentored in leadership by
VSA volunteers

1175
People mentored
593 women
582 men

5017
People trained
2507 women
2510 men

Left: VSA volunteer Peter Gearing in Timor-Leste by Wayne Lovell. This page
top to bottom: VSA volunteer Roseanne Ulunga in Solomon Islands by Jack
Thompson. VSA volunteer Michael Mills in Cook Islands by Diane Thorne-
George. VSA volunteer Josh Mitikulena in Vanuatu by Gina Kaitiplel. VSA
10 volunteer Nicole Colmar, Donald James and VSA volunteer Mick Kearney in 11
Vanautu by Gina Kaitiplel.

100%
of partner organisations said
that volunteering made a
positive impact
176
assignments
supported 470 partner
organisations
57% of partner organisations
no longer need volunteers for
the original need as volunteers
have grown local skills.
12
The power of
volunteering
Volunteers create connections between communities:
Jan Kennington is volunteering as a Special Education
Adviser – Primary Education with Loto Taumafai
Society for People with Disabilities (LTS) in Apia,
Samoa. While her assignment involved working with
teachers at LTS, which provides education for children
with disabilities, to deliver the curriculum effectively,
she has found other ways to have a positive impact.
LTS has two blind students, currently, who had no
equipment. Through her New Zealand connections,
she organised the donation of two braille typewriters
by the Blind and Low Vision Education Network NZ
(BLENNZ). The students, with support from the Blind
Foundation of Samoa, are already successfully using
the machines. “It’s changed their lives,” Jan says,
BLENNZ also included braille school books, paper and
even specially-made stories about LTS researched by
a BLENNZ volunteer back in New Zealand. Jan says
“Knowing that there are people that care about them
in New Zealand has made a huge impact.”
“A person’s time is really valuable for us here in
Bougainville. Volunteers come with the types of
skills we don’t have and we really appreciate
the information they share with us. And it’s not
only one-way sharing, we also share how we
do things so they adapt and they are part of the
local community. That is what volunteering is for:
to be one with the people that you come to work
with. Buildings may collapse tomorrow, but the
information they leave, we pass onto our children
and they use it later on in thier lives.”
Helen Hakena, co-founder, Leitana Nehan Women’s
Development Agency. VSA partner since 2007.
Photo: VSA volunteer Rachel Smith in Solomon Islands by Robert Taupongi.
13
 Gender equity
in the Pacific
In Pacific, just 7% of
Parliamentarians are women

.. women in leadership

VSA volunteer Christine Ross is working as a Gender

Governance Specialist with the United Nations
.. trained/mentored
Development Programme (UNDP) Pacific Office in Fiji.
Christine facilitated a workshop in the Cook Islands in
February for their four women MPs, plus Speaker of

3100
the Cook Islands Parliament, Honourable Niki Rattle,
to form a Parliamentary Women’s Caucus. The Caucus
was launched on International Women’s Day, March 8
2018, becoming one of around 80 women’s caucuses
worldwide recognising cross-party commitments to
advancing gender equality. Hon. Rattle says, “I hope that
women of Cook Islands will be able to see that they too, women received coaching,
can stand and lead.” Early signs are promising: in the mentoring or training from
June 2018 election 20.5% of candidates were women, VSA volunteers
compared to 13% in 2014.

“We had a meeting at a rural school, where we

addressed 50 or so community members; mostly
217
women mentored
male, many older. We weren’t exactly welcomed;
in leadership by VSA
the community had some tough questions. My volunteers
colleague, a young woman who was usually quite
timid and quiet, stood up and addressed the men, In the Pacific, just 7% of
politely, but firmly, and answered their questions,
parliamentarians are women
and in the end she had them all on her side. This
was immensely rewarding. Capacity building can
transform and empower people.”

Zubin D’Sousa, VSA/Downer Infrastructure Adviser,

Solomon Islands Ministry for Education and Human
Resources Development.

Photo: VSA volunteer Emily Richardson (right) and Marie Nutenmal in

Vanautu by Gina Kaitiplel.

14 15

1,958
people assisted to increase
benefits from agriculture
23,600
people provided with new and
improved water supply*
20,099
vulnerable people assisted after
a natural disaster**
*Work with UNDP in Solomon Islands
**Cyclone Gita, Tonga, and Ambae
evacuation, Vanuatu
16
Climate change and the
environment in the Pacific
“I was in Tonga and due to return to New Zealand
when Cyclone Gita struck. The devastation that
Cyclone Gita left in its wake was horrifying and
the impact it had on friends here was heart
breaking. Some of the food crops were badly
damaged or destroyed during the cyclone and
it was very clear that local production of food
crops would be impacted. We have built a shade
house (1,054m2) in Tongatapu which will be used
for propagation. There is also an existing nursery
in ‘Eua (also very hard hit by the cyclone) that will
be used for similar purposes. Local farmers will be
involved in training on site at the nurseries where
they can gain hands-on experience. Seedlings
raised in the nursery will be distributed to affected
communities.
The intention with the nursery is to have something
that is built to last and able to respond to disaster
relief situations in the future.”
Bruce Johnson undertook an eight-week assignment
in Tonga with the Mainstreaming of Rural Development
Innovation Tonga Trust (MORDI) as a horticulturalist.
The aim of his assignment was to help address the
need in Tonga following Cyclone Gita to re-establish
food security.
Photo: VSA volunteer Nadine Rutter in Vanautu by Gina Kaitiplel.
17
 Youth issues
in the Pacific

“I’m at a youth centre, so their primary focus isn’t to

come to dance, it’s to come and escape whatever
is going on in their lives, or maybe their family
doesn’t have enough money for them to go to
school. They’re learning perseverance, teamwork –

two
a whole bunch of things I want to leave them with.”

Josh Mitikulena, Dance Tutor, Wan Smolbag, Vanuatu

“There is a huge need for jobs in Timor-Leste. A huge

percentage of the population are aged under 25 –
and these people need work. It is very humbling to
see how many hours some people are prepared to
million
people aged 15-24 in the
put in for a very small sum of money. Pacific – 20% of the total
population and one-third of the
My workplace employs people who live with a
disability, or who have come from a disadvantaged
working aged population.
background. Disabled people in Timor-Leste have
a difficult life. Whether they are born disabled or
whether they have been left disabled following an Young people are
accident, cultural beliefs are such that they are twice as likely to be
deemed to have done something bad or evil to unemployed
deserve this. These people are often denied the
basic right to education and gaining meaningful
employment is very difficult for them. To be In Papua New Guinea, Solomon
employed is very highly valued and can be totally Islands and Vanuatu, the birth
life changing.” rate in girls aged 15-19 is 5%.
(It’s 1.6% in New Zealand)
Jeanette Daysh, Small Business Adviser, Nazareth
Foundation, Timor-Leste

Photo: VSA volunteer Josh Mitikulena and Oline in Vanautu by Gina Kaitiplel.

18 19

Laulu Fialelei Enoka, Nuuese Talaifaga, Leo Tagaloa and VSA volunteer Chris Barnes in Samoa
The Pacific and
beyond
Where we work
Polynesia and Kiribati
46 assignments, 30 partner organisations
The Polynesia programme includes Samoa, Tonga,
Cook Islands, Niue, and Kiribati in Micronesia. While
this programme has been managed from New Zealand,
three new Programme Managers have been recruited to
be based in Apia, South Tarawa and Nuku’alofa.
Natural disasters, particularly cyclones, are having a
significant impact on the region. Cyclone Gita was
devastating for Tonga as well as having an impact on
Samoa. We were able to respond to Cyclone Gita
by sending a volunteer to help partner organisation
Mainstreaming of Rural Development Innovation
Tonga Trust (MORDI) set up a nursery to enable the
distribution of seedlings for food security and re-
establish incomes for small farmers.
VSA’s focus in Samoa continues to be on tourism and
agriculture. Assignments in tourism supported the
quality of product and standards alongside Samoa
Hotels Association and the Ministry of Natural
Resources and Environment. Agriculture assignments
supported horticulturalist training with the Savai’i
Coconut Farmers Association and with Women In
Business Development Inc. Other assignments included
working with partners such as Loto Taumafai Society for
People with Disabilities and Samoa Water Authority.
20
VSA continues to be strongly focused in the public
sector in the Cook Islands. We provided ongoing support
to the professional development of tertiary educators
and improvements in government policy. VSA also
supported the improvement of water supply systems
in the Pa Enua (outer islands) through a chain of water
engineer assignments.
In Niue, two volunteers worked with the Department of
Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries in partnership with
SPC to increase the number and quality of fruit trees
and build the skills of local people to produce crops.
In Kiribati, VSA has had one volunteer supporting the
Marine Training Centre to increase the skill level of
English teachers. Another volunteer is supporting
the roll out of changes to Early Childhood Care and
Education in the recent Education Bill. VSA continues
to have a focus on urban planning in response to
issues arising from high population density in Tarawa.
Volunteers have provided ongoing support to the
Lands Division in the Ministry of Environment, Lands
and Agriculture Development (MELAD). This work has
built the Kiribati Government’s capacity to survey and
manage land and ensure appropriate urban planning.
Healthcare development is a key priority for Kiribati, and
VSA volunteers have supported the future of the health
workforce by helping improve the services provided
by Te Meeria (the mental health ward) and supported
initiatives focused on the cervical screening programme
with the Kiribati Family Health Association.
Bougainville
31 assignments, 14 Partner Organisations
This year, volunteers worked in agriculture, health,
law & justice, and resilience. Assignments with
the Nazareth Rehabilitation Centre and Leitana
Nehan Women’s Development Agency supported
women escaping domestic violence by giving them
counselling, training and a safe space for them and
their children.
Volunteers worked across several agencies addressing
conservation and critical climate change concerns –
working directly with communities to improve their
disaster preparedness and resilience, in Buka, Chabai,
Wakunai and Arawa.
In November 2017 VSA led the formation and monthly
meeting of NZInc in ARoB (New Zealand High
Commission, NZ Police & VSA.) This has been very
successful for better coordination, information sharing
Helen Hakena, Co-founder and CEO of Leitana Nehan Women’s Development
and risk management.
Agency in Bougainville by Adam Constanza.
Papua New Guinea
16 assignments, 10 partner organisations
This year, the focus in Papua New Guinea was on
education, economic growth and health, in particular
public health improvement. Two volunteers worked
with health professionals and communities to
improve the treatment of diabetes and address
health education gaps in terms of causes, risks, and
prevention of lifestyle diseases. To date, over 3000
people have received health education and information
on the risks and burden of lifestyle–related diseases on
health and longevity.
VSA has continued to work with teacher training
institutes in East New Britain and two volunteers
worked alongside Callan Services to strengthen their
strategic planning as well as their skills in empowering
people living with disabilities, particularly focusing on
community-based rehabilitation work.
VSA volunteer Christine Schmidli and Maryludy Semoso in PNG.
Two volunteers worked with the Catholic Archdiocese
of Rabaul on an innovative new low-cost housing
development, which includes a safe house for women
and children escaping domestic violence.
21
 Solomon Islands Vanuatu
22 assignments, 14 partner organisations 32 assignments, 19 partner organisations
One of the main challenges in Solomon Islands is When Ambae Volcano erupted in October 2017, 11,500
meeting the needs of areas outside of Honiara. VSA people were evacuated from the island. Repatriation
is consciously working in more remote areas, despite and further evacuation in 2018 has been disruptive for
the costs and management challenges that poses. the population of Ambae and also in Luganville, where
Over a quarter of assignments this year were outside many have been resettled. VSA supported both the
Honiara; these were in Malaita and Isabel and future NZ representatives and National Disaster Management
assignments are being scoped in Western Province Office with office space and logistics support in the
and Temotu. initial crisis.

VSA volunteer Jackie Cronin and Hilda Tango in Solomon Islands
by Robert Taupongi.
VSA continued to support education in Solomon Islands, The majority of assignments have been in tourism,
largely through our programme with Downer to provide agriculture and education, working with partners such
Infrastructure Advisers to the Asset Management as the Vanuatu Qualifications authority, the Ministry of
Division of the Ministry of Education and Human Education, the Vanuatu Agriculture College and Wan
Resources Development, a Jewellery-making Adviser for Smolbag Theatre.
the Technical Institute of Malaita and a Library Adviser
with the Honiara City Council. In tourism, there have The Vanuatu Programme has successfully focused
been three assignments with Auki Lodge in Malaita, on ensuring that the cross-cutting issues of
Isabel Provincial Government and Imperial Travel Service gender equity, climate change and environmental
VSA volunteer Mick Kearney and Donald James in Vanautu by Gina Kaitiplel.
and several are currently being developed or recruited sustainability are mainstreamed across the
for. In economic development, we supported economic programme. All volunteers are now briefed by the
governance through a Legal Adviser for the Ministry of Women’s Centre. A partner forum was held with
Provincial Government and Institutional Strengthening. volunteers who are specialists in cross cutting issues
We supported ICT through an IT Adviser for Isabel sharing their experiences with the others.
Provincial Government.

Timor-Leste
23 assignments, 15 partner organisations
The Timor-Leste programme has continued its work
in education; a key area of need given the young
population and the demand for vocational training.
Volunteers undertook five assignments with the Dili
Institute of Technology and Xanana Gusmao Reading
Room. This included two e-volunteering assignments
supporting the Dili Institute of Technology to produce
English language resources. Further assignments with
UNICEF to provide mentoring in community pre-schools
are currently being developed.
VSA has seen the benefit of focusing assignments
within specific thematic areas in order to maximise
impact. The VSA Timor-Leste strategy will be completed
by the end of 2018 highlighting priority areas like
tourism development and climate change adaptation
where collaboration between partner organisations and
volunteers can have greater impact.
VSA volunteer Hugo Egan in Timor-Leste by Wayne Lovell.
Fiji/Cambodia
Fiji: Three assignments, three partner organisations
Cambodia: One assignment, one partner
organisation
VSA does not have an office in Fiji, however,
volunteers have been placed very successfully
with international partners: UN Women, The Pacific
Community (SPC), and UNDP.
These volunteers have had a remarkable impact: one
working with parliamentary committees in several
Pacific Island nations to increase the representation of
women in leadership; one helping to shape the energy
strategy in the Pacific and another trained UN Women
staff to use an instant data collection system to collate
ideas for positive impact for women market vendors of
the Pacific.
One volunteer is in Siem Reap, Cambodia,
volunteering as a Horticulture Adviser with
Bridget Cassie in Fiji by Mary Curnow.
International Development Enterprises (iDE). He is
working with around 500 farmers to encourage more
diverse, high-value planting.

22 23

86%
of partner organisations report
lasting change 6-12 months after
an assignment
2,636
people in New Zealand came to
talks by Returned Volunteers, to
hear about VSA’s work
24
Our impact beyond
assignment
Often, the impact of a volunteer’s assignment won’t
truly be known until they’re long gone. In 2015, VSA
volunteer Lauren Hart spent nine months in Port
Moresby advising on an MFAT-funded ChildFund PNG
project to launch a free phone service for victims
of domestic violence. Three years later, the 1-TOK
Kaunselin Helpim Lain is still serving thousands of
people around the country. Since its launch, the centre
has received 13,000 calls. The top issues that callers
phone about are intimate partner violence, relationship
issues, child welfare/child abuse, and legal issues.
Kinime, a social worker at the centre, says “They can
call in from wherever they are, in secret, behind doors,
out of reach of anyone. And also knowing the service
is available, it empowers them. It also helps them to
think that they can do something.”
Volunteer Thoraya Abdul-Rassol, who was on
assignment in 2016, organised funding through the
Tindall Foundation for the Falease’ela Environment
Protection Society to print a picture book in English
and Samoan telling Legend of the LIua le Vai o Sina
River.
“We printed 1000 copies of the book in English.
It has been very popular in Samoa and has been
sold to tourists, and in the local book shops.
Our family runs an ecotourism business in Samoa
and as part of our adventure tours, we take
visitors from overseas on waterfall hikes up the
Liua le Vai o Sina River. We have had positive
feedback from teachers about the children in
local schools enjoying the book and loving the
fact that it is a book actually set in Samoa. The
money raised by the sales of the books has been
used to maintain the 9000 native trees planted
along the river bank and in the rain forest. Thank
you again for your generous support in enabling
us to publish our book in English. Thank you also to
Thoraya, she was such an encouragement to us.”
Olsen and Jane Vaafusuaga, Falease’ela Environment
Protection Society
Photo: VSA volunteer Jeanette Daysh in Timor-Leste by Wayne Lovell
24 25
Finances Thank you

Income Thank you to our partners, in New Zealand and

throughout the Pacific – your support means we
can give more people the chance to share their
skills with communities in the Pacific and beyond
$8,299,926 – connecting people, and transforming lives.
Government grants

$265,386
Fundraising

$181,595
Investment income

$5,870
Membership subs

$427,114
Other

$9,179,892 total

Expenditure

$7,281,209
Volunteer programme
expenses

$1,016,510
Communications, Business
Development and Fundraising

$431,088
Head office

$55,614
Governance

$108,766
Revenue Growth

$8,893,187 total
For the full financial
report please visit:
vsa.org.nz

Back page photo: VSA volunteer Kaitlin Scott and Paulino Pacheco Cardoso Magno in Timor-Leste by Wayne Lovell.
 volunteer/donate
www.vsa.org.nz

Connecting
28
people – transforming lives