NOTE

A separate discussion paper will be made available.

Presenter's Guide

Session No. 2
A look at the national economy

SHD CORE MESSAGES

-Economic growth is needed if a country is to aspire fro sustainable human development.  However, its goal need not be merely to increase national production.  The challenge is for such growth to be translated into actual benefits for most of the people, not only for a favored few.  It must improve people's aspirations for good health and a longer life, education and enough income to support a decent quality of life.

-economic growth must be achieved in ways that will destroy those precious things which enable people to work in peace and harmony: cultural identity and values; social cooperation; mutual trust.

-Economic growth need not be achieved at the expense of the environment.  Otherwise, succeeding generations will suffer; they will not be able to sustain a good quality of life.

-Hence, GNP alone will not measure a country's progress towards human well-being.  while it indicates wealth creation, it does not reflect progress in prolonging life, in achieving the level of education essential to managing life, and maintaining income to participate fully in the economy and other aspects of community life.  GNP also does not indicate the equitable distribution of the national wealth produced.

-There has been a new measure being promoted by UNDP world-wide.  It is called HDI of Human Development Indicator, a combined measure of average life expectancy, educational attainment and per capita purchasing power.

-In this measure, the value of each country's index is calculated on a scale between 0 and 1, the closer will the country be to building capabilities for sustainable human development.

-In many countries, HDI has been calculated for different population groups - rural and urban areas; different localities; different ethnic communities; or different income groups.

-These calculations help redirect development policies and programmes to rectify existing disparities.

-A country's economic growth need to reap benefits which can be channeled to improving a country's capability to achieve sustainable human development.

THE
VANUATU SITUATION

-Vanuatu has a Human Development Index (HDI) of 0.562 according to the 1996 Human Development Report.  It ranks 119 in a field of 174 countries.

-Per capita GDP is US$1,020, which is moderately low.  it is unevenly distributed.  Based on 1989 figures, urban per capita is about 18.5 times that of rural income per capita.  Income per capita of expatriates is 18 times that of ni-Vanuatu.  There is also wide disparity in the income growth rates of these two groups.  While expatriate incomes show astronomical increases, those of the ni-Vanuatu indicate steep decline.

-While few families relatively depend on cash economy, subsistence benefits are not enough to compensate for the great disparities in income between the ni-Vanuatu and the members of the expatriate community; the regularly employed ni-Vanuatu and those in agriculture and the informal sector; those in the urban and rural areas; and generally between men and women.

-Wide disparities in living standards and economic opportunities exist between urban and rural areas.  Provisions of essential services (schools, health care, transport, etc.) favors urban areas although 80% of the people live in rural villages.  Continuous electrical power is only available in Port Vila and Luganville.

-Poverty eradication in Vanuatu primarily refers to the need to reduce the gap between urban and rural standards of living, and that which is growing between the rich and poor urban residents.

PROPOSED
ACTIONS

-Carry out poverty mapping to identify the location, size, etc. of social groups most affected by the current socio-economic situation.

SHD CORE MESSAGES

-Functional literacy and access to information are the key tools by which people access the information they need to be able to participate effectively in community decisions.

-Improving the quality and relevance of education is a major issue in the promotion of sustainable human development.  Lack of skills for economic growth and human development has been traced to deficiencies in both the formal education system and non-formal education programmes.

THE 
VANUATU SITUATION

-Adult literacy rate is 30%.

-Tremendous constraints are met in expanding access to both primary and secondary schools and improving the quality of education.  pre school, non-formal and adult training programmes are all handled by NGOs and private institutions.

-A large number of primary and secondary schools are privately owned.  Standards may have increased, but the higher fees may have limited access to these schools.

-Despite current expansion, the secondary schools can only absorb 20 to 35% of primary school leavers.  This situation contributes to low level skills in the work force, as well as to unemployment.

-The major gains achieved during the 1979-1989 period are as follows: more children were attending primary schools, completing grade 6 and obtaining primary school certificates, more than twice the original number at the start of the period; disparities in educational levels between urban and rural had narrowed from 21.6% to 15.5%; beyond the rate for male attendance.

-In 1994, the education sector received the largest share (34%) of external assistance.  Education is the major item in the budget.  During the 1985-92 period, however, budget allocations fell by more than 20%.

PROPOSED
ACTIONS

-Review existing curricula and seek ways to integrate appreciation of rural and agricultural life in values formation; include indigenous or cultural knowledge and, on the whole, ensure complementation of traditional knowledge with modern practices.  As minimum objective, the education system should at least prepare the youth attitudinally to assume productive roles in village agricultural life since majority of them will not be absorbed by the formal economy.

-Assess the current outreach, course offerings of the non-formal education programmes carried out by NGOs and the rural training centers and formulate measures to broaden coverage and/ or realign curricula with perceived needs, e.g. sustainable livelihood skills, etc.

SHD CORE MESSAGES

-The pronounced urban bias in the provision of basic health services and the constraints faced by traditionally vulnerable groups, e.g. women, children, the elderly, cultural minorities, etc., in securing such services have become major policy concerns in many countries.

-Many countries now reflect a marked changed in disease pattern due to drastic change in lifestyle.  Such as the prevalence of communicable diseases vis-a-vis the incidence of lifestyle diseases, e.g. heart diseases, cancer, diabetes, etc.  Given limitations in health budgets, these countries face dilemma of allocating resources to achieve the most impact in human development.  This trend towards high curative costs stresses the role of education in improving nutritional and lifestyle practices.

-The spread of HIV/AIDS has become for many countries as major public health problem.  It represents a serious threat to human development.  In some countries, it has caused a significant drop in life expectancy.  In Europe and North America, it has become the leading cause of death for adults under 45.  HIV/AIDS cases in the Pacific are considered significant.

THE VANUATU SITUATION

-Malaria affects 200 per 1000 people a year and is the leading cause of under five deaths.

-Child  under nutrition with age indicating the influence of social factors, such as nutrition education, a mother's work load, changing eating habits and lifestyles, beliefs about food and cultural practices affecting food distribution.

-Maternal mortality rates are high which can be traced to overwork, poor nutritional status, small birth-spacing, low educational level, low family incomes and lack of access to health services.

-Asthma, tuberculosis and dengue fever are the leading causes of morbidity.  Filiarisis and leprosy are also present in the country.  Non-communicable diseases are on the rise reflecting changes in diets, lack of exercise and the effects alcohol consumption and smoking.

-While there is no reported cases of HIV/AIDS, the presence of sexually transmitted diseases indicates a group vulnerable to AIDS.  Hepatitis B infection is common.

_Even for minor skin and respiratory complaints, rural people tend to seek treatment more in urban-based hospitals than in local health aid posts.  Reduced budget allocations have resulted in the retrenchment of health staff and closure of many rural-based facilities.

PROPOSED ACTIONS

-Review the feasibility of imposing user fees so as to provide for maintenance costs of health facilities.

-Maintain health standards and commit more resources to the rural-based health delivery system to improve facilities and staff quality.

-Encourage families to row or eat local foods.

Presenter's 
Guide

Session No. 5
A look at environmental resources

-We must present needs without depriving future generations of enough resources to meet their needs.  In planning for sustainable development, economic, social and ecological issues need to be taken into account together.

-Good environmental management is good economics.  It ensures that non-renewable resources will not be lost.  it adds value to resources and identifies new products and opportunities: solar energy and biomass fuel; medicinal products from protected rainforests; ecotourism; natural fiber for textiles, etc.

-Environmental resources are well-managed if they benefit of the people and when they are conserved for sustaining ecosystems.

-It will be costly to ignore environmental factors in development planning and implementation.  Examples of the costly effects of neglecting the environment are: decrease in people's welfare, effect on public health, extinction of endangered species, loss of amenities such as natural environments, reduction of opportunities for recreation and constraints imposed on development potential for future generations.

-A degraded environment affects the disadvantaged more since it will be more costly to produce or purchase goods.  Children is disadvantaged areas suffer much more than adults.  An enhanced environment can improve the living conditions of families.

-Women have always contributed significantly to primary environmental care: they bring their extensive knowledge, skills and perspective of the environment to a broad range of activities, including both development activities and household chores: water and fuel collection; agriculture, small-scale industries, etc.

-Environmental degradation results in more burdens for women, e.g. more distance to travel to the gardens due to constraints brought about by soil erosion.  Women are credited for thinking of ways to use environmental resources more effectively.

-Land and sea resources belong to custom owners and their descendants and customary rules determine their use.

-Vanuatu's environmental resource are now under constant threat from factors such as: rapid population growth, changing lifestyles and consumption patterns, and the effects of industrial developments.

-What seem to be insignificant day-to-day actions are just as damaging: intensified cash cropping; tilling of marginal lands; inadequate use of waste products; increased use of non-biodegradable packaging and containers.  the key issues regarding the country's environmental resources are as follows:

a.  diminishing forest areas due to logging, shifting cultivation under population pressure and other agricultural developments;

b.  rapid soil erosion and loss of soil fertility due to logging, road construction, land clearing for agricultural projects, reduced fallow periods and cultivation on steep slopes;

c.  near shore over-fishing, reef damage and depletion of reef resources;

d.  water pollution through human waste and inadequate disposal of household rubbish;

e.  inefficient disposal (or recycling) of cans, plastics and other pollutants.

-The country's commitment to the preservation of its environmental resources has been shown by: formulation of the 1993 National Conservation Strategy; endorsement of the Pacific Regional Sustainable Development Plan of Action; participation at the International Barbados Conference; linkages with regional projects and initiatives, e.g. Sustainable Development Network, SPREP's capacity 21 Programme.

-The computer-based Vanuatu Resource Information System (VANRIS) provides information on the type, distribution and current use of the country's natural resources.  it supplies data to agencies, organizations and projects for their environmental planning activities.

-Prepare an environmental master plan to guide future development activities

-Review the structure of the Environment Unit to see the feasibility of upgrading it to a full department

-Intensify information campaigns to ensure broad-based community awareness on environmental protection and the implications of misusing natural resources

-Encourage appropriate government agencies and NGOs to support existing community initiatives to preserve at-risk resources

-Assess kastom practices and identify those which promote sand environmental protection and management.

Presenter's 
Guide

Session No. 6
A look at civil society institutions and their respective roles

-The fundamental role of institutions in economic and social development has been widely recognized in recent years.  it is however important to realize that institutions which have worked in one place may not work in another.  Institution building does not mean scrapping old traditions and values wholesale to make way for institutions based on so-called modern ways.  Local institutions, no matter how old, may be considered good or bad for development in so far as they adhere to norms of participation and reciprocity.

-Civic society is based on voluntary participation and horizontal interaction; its networks (sports clubs, neighborhood associations, trade unions or grassroots organizations, NGOs) are the building blocks of social capital.  The more these organizations are the most likely that the citizens will cooperate for mutual benefit.

-Good governance at the national and local level and an active civil society are mutually reinforcing.  Weak and corrupt governments, as well as strong and authoritarian regimes, can reduce civic space and hence, weaken civic society.  a passive civil society , on the other hank, which cannot exact accountability from those who govern, may also allow a democratic government to wither and die to give way to an abusive regime.

-National  governments need to find new ways of enabling their people to participate more in government and to allow them much grater influence on the decisions that affect their lives.

-The government will have to help strengthen civil society institutions to ensure sustainable people-centered development.  New patterns of governance are needed with are focused on the rising aspirations of the people.

-Among the many steps which can enhance the roles of civic institutions towards the achievement of sustainable human development are:

a.  decentralization of decision-making authority from a capital cities to provinces, towns outer islands, districts and villages; and

b.  guarantee of greater freedom for NGOs and people's organizations.

-In local government areas where it has been carried out successfully, decentralization has encouraged local participation, reduced costs and increased efficiency.

-In places where they thrive unhindered by government, NGOs and people's organizations can offer powerful means of correcting the inadequacies of markets and governments in serving the interests of majority of the people.

-NGOs play an outstanding role in disseminating information and empowering diverse groups with skills so they can participate actively in the development process.

-The Malvatumauri serves as the advisory council to the national government on kastom issues.  The Vanuatu National Council of women is recognized as the forum for women's participation in decision-making.  Both organizations have structures at provincial, local area and community levels.

-The political parties and the churches have their own unique roles to play in enabling people to transcend kinship or parochial interests and consider issues crucial t the nation as a whole.

-a political party has formed a women's wing and the Women in Politics Party was founded and launched during the 1995 elections indicating the determination of to provide a mechanism for women to be more active in the elections and the overall political process

-trade unions have created awareness about workers' right and management responsibilities.

-Examine how customary laws and existing jurisprudence can be harmonized t ensure justice for all, including the disadvantaged.

-Initiate social mobilization strategies in the delivery of government services.

-Encourage or support the partnership between the government and appropriate civil society institutions in development planning, implementation and management.

-Address the issue of land and family security to ensure a sound basis for social capital formation and sustainable human development.

-Provide ways for government, community and the private sector to at least exchange information as the first step towards strengthening the existing social organization.

Presenter's Guide

Session No. 7
A look at employment and livelihood

-it is quite obvious that these livelihood activities do not fit the usual idea of wage or on-the-job employment.

-Sustainable livelihood, then is much more than having a salary job.  It embraces all the possible ways a family or individual does to earn a living.

-A strategy to promote sustainable livelihood, therefore, will have to go beyond job creation.  It will have to include:

a.  sustainable management of natural resources, especially common property resources, and equitable access to them by the  disadvantaged;

b.  redistribution of private and public livelihood resources to the disadvantaged;

c.  accessible health services for prevention of disease and for prompt and effective treatment of illness and disabilities;

d.  removal of restrictions on livelihood activities particularly those undertaken by the disadvantaged;

e.  safety nets for the disadvantaged at bad times, helping them out during bad seasons or poor harvests, enabling tem to conserve their livelihoods.

-The suave Declaration on SHD in the Pacific emphasizes the need to expand employment and livelihood opportunities and enhance the productivity of the rural and subsistence sectors.  this strategy is based on the findings of the 1994 Pacific Human Development Report that economic growth in the region for many years to come will not be able to generate enough jobs for the rapidly growing labor force.

-hence, in addition to encouraging the growth of jobs in the formal sector, policies and programmes must also encourage the expansion of the informal sector.

-Critical to livelihoods of rural people are agricultural diversification and greater access to land.  Equally important are adequate pricing policies which remove biases against the rural sector, expanding the domestic market for goods and services in which the rural sector has a  comparative advantage; upgrading and improving access to basic infrastructure and social services, transferring and adapting appropriate, environmentally sound technologies, and providing greater access to credit, inputs and extension services on reasonable terms.

-In urban areas, promoting income opportunities and livelihoods require extensive support for self-employment and micro-enterprise development.  In particular, governments need to remove obstacles to informal sector activities and ensure fair competition and the smooth functioning of markets by reducing barriers to market entry.

-On the job training apprenticeships and youth employment programmes need to be considered a priority.

-Credit schemes, low-cost technologies and access to market information for micro and small producers also deserve urgent attention.

-aware of the foregoing ideas, the UN agencies and Pacific governments have recently launched the pacific Employment and sustainable Livelihood Initiative or PESLI for short.  its objective is to contribute to the efforts of the Pacific island nations to generate productive employment strategy that gives central place t employment in national development policies, strategies and programmes.

-There is an increasingly visible and vigorous informal sector.  Majority of the people produce their goods through subsistence means and sell them to be able to pay for commodity goods and services.  The subsistence economy has traditionally acted as a support system, cushioning the undesirable of unemployment, wage loss and high inflation rates.

-Outside agriculture, about 14% of the workforce are in formal wage employment.  The formal sector virtually consist of a few businesses, government employment, tourism and the offshore tinance center.

-The government is the major employer; 60% of those in formal employment work for the government.  their wages and salaries account for 45 to 50% of the entire government budget.

-A total of 189 businesses were registered from Dec 93 to Jun 95, mostly by male owners.  Female owners accounted for 16%, while joint male-female owners made up 10% of the total volume.  An estimated 70% of urban business are small trading and agricultural operations.

-the following trends of Vanuatu's agricultural production need to be seriously considered so as to provide appropriate support to the existing small holders system:

a.  Agricultural production is declining.  Its share of the GDP dropped from 26.7% in 1983 to 18.9% in 1993.  There were also 45% fewer people employed in agriculture in 1989 than in 1979.

b.  Cash cropping is on the increase.  There is a pronounced shift from subsistence cultivation to the raising of cash crops.

-The Women's Business Unit of the Department of Cooperatives and Rural Business Development conducted in 1994 a study of women market sellers in both urban and rural areas with 949 respondents.  Of the total, 64% said the money earned was the main source of family income.  Only 28% attended a training course.  majority (73%) said their main source of loans was the family.  Most goods produced were agricultural.  Many women traders (89%) spent money on household expenses, including food; 37% spent it on school fees and 38% on securing a business license.

-Expand in-country opportunities for skills building.

-Improve the income generation potential of agriculture without posing a threat to the subsistence systems, food security and the long-term sustainability of land resources.

-encourage the production of traditional crops for sale on the domestic market.

-Improve access to land.

-Provide access to agricultural training and research which matches the needs and potential of the smallholders system.

-Formulate relevant policies to further develop the emerging informal sector of the economy.

-Establish small credit schemes for women and youth.

Session No. 8
Priority issues and proposed actions
Towards an Integrated Framework for SHD Implementation

NOTE

The session will:

a.  prioritize the various actions proposed during the previous sessions;

b.  validate or assess these action in the context of the overall strategy for UNDP cooperation and the proposed programme areas;

c.  summarize the key elements or denote an action agenda towards an integrated framework for SHD implementation in Vanuatu.