PCRIC Interns Receive the Fruits of their Labor

The interns of the Pacific Catastrophe Risk Insurance Company (PCRIC) were all smiles as they proudly received their certificates of completion and awards from the CEO, Mr. Aholotu Palu.

Also, in attendance at the presentation was the University of the South Pacific Student Association Deputy Secretary General, Mr. Aneet Kumar.

The PCRIC internship program was launched last year in cooperation with The University of the South Pacific. The program was designed to provide capacity building, training and research opportunities pertaining to disaster risk financing in order to strengthen future generations of Pacific Island countries.

The purpose of the program was to raise the students’ understanding about disaster risk management and financing instruments to support the Pacific region within a global movement of multi-country cooperation programs.

Remarking on its success, Mr. Palu shared that “last year, with no dedicated funding, we launched this internship program across the region with the USP, aimed at graduate and undergraduate students interested in disaster risk management and finance.”

“More than 20 students from different academic disciplines, our future Pacific leaders, participated in training, research, and writing programs aimed at future public and private leaders in the region.”

He concluded with emphasis saying that, “we want more young people to become interested and involved with PCRIC learning and capacity-building programs. They will help the region develop solutions for its economic and social development priorities for the future.”

Adding onto the CEO’s comments, Mr. Kumar explained that “this internship program with PCRIC, although it started informally, has created a lot of impact on the students who participated. This impactful work needs to continue especially when we’re so much in need and the region needs to come together in terms of adaptation and climate financing.”

“It is very important that we need to continue to deliver such programs through such organisations so that our future leaders are well equipped. I look forward to PCRIC’s further collaborations with the university and its students so that they’re trained into these areas under the leadership of PCRIC staff, using their accumulated theoretical knowledge into practice when it comes to climate financing, mitigation and adaptation in the region.”

“This was an excellent way to kickstart the training of our future leaders who are going to walk ahead and lead the region in the very near future. So, it’s very important to understand what risks we’re facing in the region and how they can be addressed through like-minded partners and regional organisations.”

After receiving their certificates and awards, some of the interns expressed their thanks and gratitude for such a program.

Brenda Ann Williams: “It was a privilege for me to work with the PCRIC team, even though we worked remotely with COVID in place. We learnt a lot through the training because now we have many issues arising because of climate change that leads to disaster. These types of training will help our nations as a whole to be prepared in times of disaster. As we can’t see the future, it’s better to start preparing now.”

Lucy Sidal: “I would like to thank the PCRIC team for the wonderful opportunity that they have provided to the students of USP. This internship has been an exciting and amazing journey.”

Ratu Mosese Vamarasi Volavola: “In phase 1, we were asked to put together a few ideas on how we can better our disaster risk management strategies and policies in our individual countries. It was a good opportunity for me to learn what Fiji is doing about disaster risk management and how I can possibly put forth something based on my experiences. I used a lot of experiences from back in the village. A lot of family and friends have villages in outer islands who suffer a lot from tropical cyclones.”

“In phase 2, I was fortunate to team up with another intern based in Samoa, and we were also able to share experiences and put forth ideas and come up with ways where we can help our disaster risk management efforts for both of our countries. I’m excited and I look forward to the next phase and I’m grateful for what I’ve learnt so far.”

The PCRIC internship program was launched last year in cooperation with The University of the South Pacific. The program was designed to provide capacity building, training and research opportunities pertaining to disaster risk financing in order to strengthen future generations of Pacific Island countries.

The purpose of the program was to raise the students’ understanding about disaster risk management and financing instruments to support the Pacific region within a global movement of multi-country cooperation programs.

These initiatives are designed to leverage insurance and financial markets to strengthen country preparation and responses to natural disasters and to provide increased financial support to vulnerable populations especially affected by climate change.

The program was designed in collaboration with GP3 Institute, a research organization that supports SDG-17 partnerships impacting more than 100 countries.