Praneeta Prakash 
Call has been made for urgent and transformative actions to end violence against women and girls in the Pacific region.
United Nations Resident coordinator, Dirk Wagener highlighted this during the launch of the phase two of the Pacific Partnership to End Violence against Women and Girls.
While highlighting the economic impact of violence against women, the UN Resident coordinator revealed that due to such violence Fiji’s economy losing an estimated seven percent of its GDP.
“The discrimination, violence and abuse targeting half of humanities comes at a steep cost. It limits women’s and girls’ participation in all walks of life, denies their basic rights and freedoms and blocks the equal economic and sustainable growth our world so desperately needs. In the face of this, we need transformative actions, actions that contribute to ending violence against women and girls in the region and actions that address the root causes.”
United Nations Resident coordinator, Dirk Wagener [Source: Ministry of Women, Children and Social Protection – Fiji/Facebook]
Wagener praised initiatives such as the Pacific Partnership to End Violence against Women, which are supported by multilateral efforts and the commitment of Pacific governments and donors.
However, he stresses that that real progress will require substantial political commitment, effective prevention programs, essential services, and solid budget allocations.
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