A new Women's Centre in Buka Town

11 February 2014: posts going up on the new building. The roof of the market cane seen in the background.

HWC's parent organisation, the Bougainville Women's Federation (BWF)  has embarked on a pioneering project to build a Women's Centre in Buka Town, with funding from the PNG Commission of Law and Justice through the Autonomous Bougainville Government.

The project was devised to meet a number of pressing needs for:

• public facilities in Buka Town, such as public toilets, a safe place for women to sit down and rest, feed a baby, or change a nappy.
• a one-stop location for information, advice or support.
• space for community groups to hold meetings or run courses.
• a secure office space for BWF, paying its own way rather than relying on aid funding.

BWF approached the Buka Town Council for a place to build the Centre, and received great support, as the Council had also identified the need. A great location was found close to the market, and building has already begun, as you can see from the photo above.

The new building will hold office space, a reception area and information centre, toilets, meeting rooms and Buka's first cafe, which will also sell items such as postcards. The cafe, and renting of the meeting rooms, will provide income for ongoing costs and maintenance.

HWC strongly supports the centre, and will be closely involved in day-to-day running of the information centre and kiosk. The project will provide some much-needed services and community-building, and also a wonderful opportunity for women and girls to get work experience and develop business skills.

Click here for a list of the equipment they need. Many of the items are not obtainable in Buka!
If you are able to donate any of these items, or to donate money for the project, please contact us. The items don't need to be brand new, but we need them to be clean, undamaged, in good working order and suitable for heavy use.