The upcoming 2024 7th PINA Media Summit in Niue will focus on establishing a secure environment for women in media across the Pacific. Makereta Komai, the PINA manager and Editor, noted that discussions about the challenges women face in the media began during the 6th PINA Summit held in Honiara in 2022.
“PINA, through discussions with women across the Pacific, has successfully brought the issues facing women in media to the regional forefront,” Ms. Komai stated. She highlighted that the importance of this issue was previously overlooked by media organizations in the region.
The dialogue initiated in Honiara led to a conversation between Ms. Komai and Rosi Doviverata, acting CEO of the Fiji Sun, about creating a network among women media professionals in the Pacific to discuss their work within a safe environment. This conversation resulted in the establishment of the Women in Media (WIM) Fiji organization, which has garnered interest from major Melanesian nations such as Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, and the Solomon Islands.
The co-founder of WIM Fiji explained that this organization has provided female journalists in Fiji with a platform to candidly discuss their challenges. “In Fiji, this safe space has allowed us to openly address the issues we encounter and articulate these concerns to our employers as a collective group,” she remarked.
The significance of these discussions has prompted PINA to revisit this topic at the upcoming Media Summit in Niue, underscoring its importance for the region. WIM Fiji plans to share their experiences at the Summit later this week.