Govt adopts five‑year plan to address CEDAW concerns

Cabinet has approved a five – year implementation plan for the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) Concluding Observations.

The CEDAW Concluding Observations provided comprehensive recommendations for Fiji to enhance its implementation of CEDAW.

CEDAW key priorities include raising awareness of women’s rights across diverse communities, strengthening legislative frameworks to address all forms of discrimination, and improving women’s access to justice through capacity building and removing barriers.

The five-year implementation plan is designed to mainstream gender across sectors and to promote inter-agency coordination, accountability, and shared ownership.

Implementation will be monitored through the Steering Committee, with mid-term reviews and an integrated reporting framework developed to ensure timely progress and submission of future State reports.

To ensure accountability for international human rights commitments (CEDAW, CRC, and CRPD), a new Implementation and Reporting Steering Committee has been formed.

Key functions include:

• Coordination: Improving inter-agency collaboration and ownership.
• Monitoring: Overseeing mid-term reviews and an integrated reporting framework.
• Compliance: Ensuring Fiji meets international reporting deadlines.
• Impact: Translating legal obligations into practical safety and dignity for women and girls.

Feedback: laiseana.nasiga@fijisun.com.fj