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Priorities of the People: Hardship in Vanuatu

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What is Hardship?

The primary goal of the assessment was to identify the people’s perceptions of poverty and hardship by talking to key community leaders (chiefs, elders, church leaders), women, youth, and people who were identified as suffering from poverty and hardship. Most people consulted defined poverty as a state of “having nothing” (no gat samting), “being hopeless,” and “struggling for survival.” Communities described hardship (Laef I had tumas) as “temporary and manageable life difficulties.” Hardship was defined as

• poor living conditions,
• inability to get jobs,
• cannot afford prices of goods,
• cannot afford school fees and materials,
• struggling to provide for family needs,
• difficulty accessing health services, and
• “worrying about lack of money all the time.”

Ni-Vanuatu mentioned difficult situations such as rebuilding after a cyclone and not being able to afford to buy goods, especially when the price of copra drops or they lose their jobs. They also cited the difficulty of coping with bad roads and the absence of ships or vehicles to transport their produce to the market.

Most communities consulted said that hardship has worsened over the last five years, while a smaller number said it has improved (see Figure 1). The reasons cited were higher prices of goods and services. Those who perceived that life has improved cited the installation of much needed power lines, telephone facilities, and better roads in their communities as reasons for improvement. This was particularly true in Tanna in Tafea Province and South Ambae in Penama Province. Women’s situations were seen to be slowly improving. This was mainly due to recognition of women’s involvement and increasing role in community and church activities as well as improved access to education and, therefore, improved job opportunities.

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