UNICEF Response
Much of UNICEF’s response to the difficulties faced by young people in the Pacific has focused on two types of interventions:
Pacific Stars Life Skills project - currently being implemented in eight Pacific Island countries. In 2002, the Pacific Stars Life Skills project was initiated to address the various social and health issues confronting young people in the Pacific with a view to improve their health.
Life skills refer to the abilities for adaptive and positive behaviour that enable individuals to deal effectively with demands and challenges of everyday life. In particular, life skills are a group of psychosocial competencies and interpersonal skills that help people make informed decisions, communicate effectively, and develop coping and self-management skills to lead a healthy and productive life.
Ten Core Life Skills include:
I- Communication and Interpersonal Skills: 1) Interpersonal communication skills: Verbal/Nonverbal communication; Active listening; Expressing feelings; giving feedback (without blaming); and receiving feedback; 2) Negotiation/refusal skills: Negotiation and conflict management; Assertiveness skills; Refusal skills; 3) Empathy: Ability to listen and understand another's needs and circumstances and express that understanding; 4) Cooperation and Teamwork: Expressing respect for others' contributions and different styles; and Assessing one's own abilities and contributing to the group; 5) Advocacy Skills: Influencing skills & persuasion; Networking and motivation skills.
II- Decision-Making and Critical Thinking Skills: 6) Decision making / problem solving skills: Information gathering skills; Evaluating future consequences of present actions for self and others; Determining alternative solutions to problems; Analysis skills regarding the influence of values and attitudes of self and others on motivation; 7) Critical thinking skills: Analyzing peer and media influences; Analyzing attitudes, values, social norms and beliefs and factors affecting these; Identifying relevant information and information sources.
III- Coping and Self-Management Skills: 8) Skills for increasing internal locus of control: Self esteem/confidence building skills; Self awareness skills including awareness of rights, influences, values, attitudes, rights, strengths and weaknesses; Goal setting skills; Self evaluation / Self assessment / Self-monitoring skills; 9) Skills for managing feelings: Anger management, Dealing with grief and anxiety; Coping skills for dealing with loss, abuse, trauma; 10) Skills for managing stress: Time management; Positive thinking and Relaxation techniques.
The Pacific Stars Life Skills project aims to deliver accurate information, build and strengthen life skills, to provide opportunities for young people to apply those skills through real life examples and simulations, and to encourage them to utilize “youth-friendly services”.
The project includes three components: communication, life skills based education and peer education.
Increasing youth participation - providing an opportunity for young people to voice their concerns and exercise their rights and responsibilities:
- Youth Parliaments (Fiji, Tonga)
- Pacific youth participation in regional/global meetings: the East Asia and Pacific Ministerial Consultation on Children, Siem Reap, Cambodia 2005, Youth Vision for Island Living, Mauritius 2005, Youth Millennium Development Goals (MDG) Summit, Samoa, 2005 and providing input to the State of the Pacific Youth report which is used as an advocacy tool for policy makers.
