Supporting a new wave of leaders to rise in Solomon Islands

09.06.26

Rebekah Maeniuta believes in a different kind of leadership than the approach often present in today’s halls of power.

“Women’s leadership doesn’t look like one person in the front,” she says. “It looks like a group of women sitting together, sharing ideas, challenging each other and making decisions collectively.”

Rebekah is the Executive Director of West ‘Are’Are Rokotanikeni Association (WARA), an IWDA partner organisation in Solomon Islands. WARA supports rural women in Malaita Province through savings clubs, leadership training and advocacy – ensuring they have the opportunity to influence decisions affecting their own lives.

Rebekah began her journey with WARA as a volunteer and within a short time she progressed to Sustainability Officer and then Executive Director, demonstrating WARA’s commitment to nurturing local women leaders.

But she didn’t become the leader she is today by accident. She was mentored by WARA co-founder and widely respected leader Dr Alice Pollard. Alice led WARA with accountability and care, empowering the next generation of leaders in her community.

“Alice is a visionary leader, and she always encourages me to not focus on today but to look to the future,” Rebekah says.

“She looks outside the box and thinks of new ideas and new approaches…I am very inspired by her resilience and her passion to empower rural women.”

For Rebekah, sharing knowledge is key to empowering women to lead.

“Knowledge is power. And that’s what we offer women in our communities – information about their rights, their finances, their health. Without this knowledge, they are excluded. With this knowledge, they stand up and they speak.”

Thanks to the crucial knowledge WARA is sharing through savings clubs, women in rural communities are building the financial skills they need to lead their household finances – creating independence, stability and opportunity for themselves and their children. 
Equipped with a newfound confidence, these women are stepping up to other leadership roles in their communities – in schools, clinics, churches and community committees.

In fact, thanks to the tireless advocacy of Alice, Rebekah and WARA, women are now officially represented on House of Chiefs committees in West ‘Are’Are – influential community decision-making bodies once dominated by male voices. Through these important forums, women are increasingly able to voice their priorities and influence local governance.

As Alice says: “Without women, nothing can progress. Women cannot be left behind.”