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Priorities of the People: Hardship in the Marshall Islands
What Causes Hardship?
The decline in field trips has greatly reduced trade and incomes
The major causes of hardship in both urban and rural areas identified during
the community consultations and national workshop were
- Inadequate health and/or education support for children;
- Poor basic service provision, especially safe drinking water and electricity;
- Overcrowding and low quality housing on Majuro and Ebeye;
- Lack of regular and frequent field trips;
- A range of child- and youth-related problems, including school dropouts,
youth “idleness,” joblessness, alcohol abuse, and teenage pregnancy;
- Limited jobs and ways to earn cash;
- Low levels of education and not enough training opportunities for youth
who wish to return to school; and
- Increasingly stressed gender relations and women’s increased workloads.
Causes specific to the outer islands were also cited: the lack of
field trips, low price of copra, lack of electricity, and higher costs
and lack of supplies compared to Majuro and Ebeye. A price comparison
conducted during the assessment revealed that the cost of
17 basic food and household goods on Jeh, Ailinglaplap Atoll was on
average 47% higher than on Delap, Majuro Atoll (see figure below
for a sample of the price differences).
The decline in the frequency and regularity of field trips,
which is closely related to the decline in the copra industry, and
other ship transport to the outer islands has greatly reduced trade
and income opportunities.
incomes
Girl, 7 Years Old
A 7-year-old girl was raped by a friend
of her father’s who was about 23 years
old. Her father was a construction
worker, and one evening he came home
with some of his work mates and
started drinking. The family lived in a
very small house. There were about six
small children in the family ranging
from 1–7 years old and the family often
found it hard to make ends meet.
The stepmother got angry with the
father over his drinking and left the
house. The father got drunk and passed
out. His friend took the little girl to his
own house sometime during the night.
He raped the girl, who then passed out.
When he woke up in the morning, he
noticed that she was bleeding from her
vagina. He took her to the emergency
department of the hospital, left her at
the entrance, and ran away. The little
girl wouldn’t talk or answer any questions
until later in that evening, when
she finally gave her name and the name
of the man who had raped her. The
hospital got in touch with the stepmother.
When the father was brought to the
hospital and told the story, he broke
down crying in great shame. The man
who raped the little girl was sentenced
to jail. When asked how he came to do
such a thing, he said that he didn’t
mean to do it and didn’t think it would
cause any real damage.
Women Three groups were identified as especially affected by hardship: children,
the youth and women.
Children
Child poverty and child neglect in urban areas was seen as leading
to problems of malnourishment and increasing numbers of school
dropouts. In many large extended families, children do not receive
the individual care they need, and some teenage and young mothers
do not know how to raise children properly. Cramped, crowded
living conditions on Majuro and Ebeye also contribute to problems
of child abuse and neglect.
In the outer islands, poverty-related issues affecting children
include lack of school supplies, lack of transportation to and from
school, lack of food (at times), and lack of clothes.
Youth
The Marshall Islands has one of the youngest populations in the
Pacific. About two thirds of the population was below 24 years old
in 1999, and the youth population is growing at one of the highest
rates in the region. Individuals and families consulted during the
assessment were concerned about the pressures faced by young
people regarding school and jobs, and social issues such as youth
idleness, alcohol abuse, teenage pregnancy, school dropouts and
loafing, and youth suicide. Youth-to-Youth in Health volunteers
said many of these problems stem from a loss of culture due to rapid
cultural change and influence from American culture. They argued
that the fast pace of cultural change had resulted in a loss of identity.
Many youth problems stem from cultural change
Low educational attainment of youth was seen as a pressing
problem in the urban areas of Majuro and Ebeye, but also by parents
on the outer islands who wished to see their children complete high
school. Concerns included the rate of school dropouts, students’
failure to gain a place at high school, few vocational training opportunities,
and limited re-entry schemes for young people who wish
to return to school.
There was also a general perception that there were not sufficient
jobs, particularly for those young people who did not complete
high school. However, there was some disagreement among
people from Ebeye and Majuro as to whether youth unemployment
was really due to the lack of jobs or to youth idleness.
Women
Women face
increased
workloads and
a decline in
status
A trend observed during the assessment was the increasing evidence
of unhappy families due to strained relationships (often
related to alcohol abuse), women’s increasing share of incomerelated
activities, and a perceived decline in women’s status in the
family and the community stemming from cultural change.
Both male and female respondents said women on the outer
islands have larger workloads as a result of women’s increasing
participation in income generating activities, including copra and
handicraft production and fundraising activities, as well as their
continued involvement in household tasks such as cleaning, food
preparation, and childcare. In some cases, women were the sole
economic provider of their family either due to male unemployment
or an unwillingness of former partners to support their children.
On Majuro and Ebeye, women reported feeling stressed by men’s drinking,
cheating, and violence. Domestic violence and sexual abuse are not easily discussed
in public. Women who are victims of such abuse may prefer to keep these matters
to themselves rather than bring shame on the family. In many cases, this violence
is related to alcohol abuse, cramped living conditions, and the pressures of
unemployment.
Women’s declining influence in the family and community
was commented on during the assessment. “In the past, your grandmother
would tell boys what to do and they would obey. Now they
don’t listen” (female, aged 46). The loss of respect for women was
tied to a general loss of respect for elders and chiefs: “In the past,
women enjoyed more influence, but that was in the days when the
Eroij still commanded respect” (female, over 40 years old).
Poor Service Delivery
Lack of water, power, and transport are causing hardship
The delivery of basic services was fundamental to people’s view of the
level of poverty and hardship they experience. The people consulted were in
agreement that hardship results when there is
- Lack of safe drinking water for those without water catchments on the outer
islands, or piped drinking water in the urban areas of Ebeye and Majuro;
- Lack of electricity for those without solar power on the outer islands;
- Lack of transportation to and from schools, particularly on the outer islands.
This was seen as a disincentive for many students particularly in hot or rainy
weather. This was compounded in schools that had no safe drinking water or
toilet facilities;
- Overcrowding and low quality housing on Majuro and Ebeye; and,
- Infrequent and irregular field trips to the outer islands. transport are
causing hardship
Fisherman, 66 Years Old
He is a fisherman from Bikarej on Arno
Atoll. He recently went to Arno in his
wooden boat with fish that he and
other fishermen from Bikarej had
caught. He took the boat from the fishing
base to Majuro to sell their catch.
(The boat goes three times a week on
Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.)
Unfortunately, inefficient administration
at the point of sale on Majuro (operated
by the Marshall Islands Marine Resources
Authority or MIMRA) meant
that he was unable to get paid for the
fish—and this is not the first time, he
said.
He had no choice but to return to
Arno for two nights and wait until Friday
when the boat makes a return trip
to Majuro so he could collect their payment.
If all goes well, he will be able to
cash the check on Majuro, take the boat
back to Arno, and finally return to
Bikarej to distribute the money.
His story highlights the difficulty
faced by small fisherman due to a lack
of transport and facilities. In terms of
his opportunity costs, the delay in payment
cost him at least 3 days work.
More generally, the lack of transportation
to the outer atolls is an issue in
terms of the lack of food and other
products available in the stores and the
irregularity of copra shipments. While
there was an interest in the community
to be involved more in agriculture, they
lacked the necessary tools and resources.
Ailinglaplap Atoll
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| On
Ailinglaplap, the health assistant sits with his entire stock of supplies
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In the outer islands of Ailinglaplap Atoll, the residents expressed a pressing
need for more regular and frequent field trips to sell their copra and prevent
local stores from running out of food, fuel and other supplies. The lack of
electricity was also an issue for those residents without solar panels. Fuel
for kerosene lamps and refrigeration was seen as expensive, particularly compared
with the cost of solar power. The lack of safe drinking water was a further
concern for residents without water catchments. Many houses still have a traditional
thatched roof, which is inexpensive but impractical for collecting rain water.
School was mentioned as an important community priority, reflected in high
student enrollment. Critical comments about the low quality of education included
not enough teachers, students being sent home because of teacher absenteeism,
lack of school supplies, and the lack of transport to and from school.
The lack of a health dispensary was a matter of great concern. On Jeh Island,
residents said they had been waiting 3 years for the government to repair the
abandoned dispensary. “We badly need a clinic and better supplies”
(female, aged 34).
Ebeye
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| Water
catchments are needed by those without piped water |
The services seen as most pressing on Ebeye were improved education and training
facilities and better housing. For those without piped water, a safe water supply
was also an issue. Most commented that the electricity supply had improved since
American Samoa Power Authority took it over in 2000. However, a few weeks after
the assessment was conducted one of the main generators went off-line, causing
a loss of power on Ebeye.
Many of the houses on Ebeye were built as typhoon relief
accommodation, particularly in the Dump Town area. Most now
need a considerable amount of maintenance work. Landowners
were seen as not caring for property and not allowing householders
to renovate their houses even when the lessees offered to pay for the
renovations. Many residents also commented on the lack of land
and overcrowding within houses.
Education was viewed as the single most important factor in
children’s future lives and livelihoods. Parents unanimously endorsed
the view that children should be encouraged to complete
high school. Some parents were involved as Parent-Teacher Association
members for this reason. There was, however, a level of general
community dissatisfaction with educational and training services.
The public elementary school was judged to be “worsening” due to
not enough supplies and not enough teachers. People commented
on the very poor pass rate for students seeking entry into the public
high school system (only 1 student out of 97 passed this year).
Majuro Atoll
Most informants rated the quality of services as good. The two
exceptions were households that lacked a safe water supply or
electricity. Furthermore, while there were some critical comments
made about the cost of education and poor quality, most Majuro
residents consulted did not see that there were problems with
access as in other places. This can be explained by the greater range
of both public and private elementary and high schools available on
Majuro.
As with Ebeye, there was also a concern over the physical
condition of housing. A number of respondents expressed a desire to
improve their houses or build new houses if there was some form of
public fund available to assist them.
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