Reaching Out, Reaching Women

Reaching
Out,
Reaching
Women
Assessing the impact and
effectiveness of FWRM’s
citizenship rights
awareness training.

This publication has been produced with the assistance of the
European Union. The contents of this publication are the sole
responsibility of the Fiji Women’s Rights Movement and can in
no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union.

Reaching Out,
ReachingWomen
Assessing the impact and effectiveness
of FWRM’s citizenship rights
awareness training.

2 | R e ac h i n g O ut, R e ac h i n g W ome n
TABLE OF CONTENTS
FOREWORD....................................................................................................................................................................................... 4
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY..................................................................................................................................................................... 5
INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................................................................................ 7
“ENHANCING THE POLITICAL PARTICIPATION OF MARGINALISED WOMEN VOTERS”PROJECT....................................................................7
SCOPING STUDY..........................................................................................................................................................................................................................8
FWRM media campaigns...................................................................................................................................................................................................9
FWRM Trainings.....................................................................................................................................................................................................................9
Phase 1.....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................9
Phase 2.....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................9
THE RESEARCH................................................................................................................................................................................ 11
RESEARCH METHODS............................................................................................................................................................................................................ 11
RESEARCH TEAM...................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 11
PARTICIPANTS........................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 11
Face-to-Face Participants............................................................................................................................................................................................... 12
Focus Group Discussions................................................................................................................................................................................................ 12
Key informant Interviews............................................................................................................................................................................................... 12
RESEARCH AREAS.................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 13
QUESTIONNAIRE SURVEY..................................................................................................................................................................................................... 14
DATA ENTRY AND ANALYSIS................................................................................................................................................................................................ 15
LIMITATIONS AND CHALLENGES........................................................................................................................................................................................ 15
RESULTS........................................................................................................................................................................................... 16
PRE-ELECTIONS – REGISTRATION PROCESS................................................................................................................................................................... 16
Face-to-Face Interviews.................................................................................................................................................................................................. 16
Register to Vote.................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 16
Motivations to Register................................................................................................................................................................................................... 17
ELECTORAL TRAININGS AND WORKSHOPS FOR WOMEN......................................................................................................................................... 18
Usefulness of FWRM training........................................................................................................................................................................................ 18
Usefulness Of FWRM Training Materials.................................................................................................................................................................... 19
Other Voter Education Training Workshops............................................................................................................................................................. 20
Random Participants........................................................................................................................................................................................................ 21
Impact of Training/Workshop on Decision to Particpate in the Electoral Processes................................................................................ 21
Where did you hear about the registration process............................................................................................................................................. 22
Focus Group Results......................................................................................................................................................................................................... 24
POLITICAL CAMPAIGNING.................................................................................................................................................................................................... 24
Face-To-Face Results......................................................................................................................................................................................................... 24
Attending Campaign Meetings.................................................................................................................................................................................... 24
Reading Political Party Manifestos.............................................................................................................................................................................. 26
Focus Group Results and Key Informant Interviews............................................................................................................................................. 28
ENABLING FACTORS....................................................................................................................................................................... 30
How to Vote......................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 30
Importance of Voting....................................................................................................................................................................................................... 31
To decide on a Candidate to vote for......................................................................................................................................................................... 32
Information that assisted women participate in the process............................................................................................................................ 33
DISABLING MECHANISMS.................................................................................................................................................................................................... 34
INTENTION TO VOTE IN THE ELECTIONS.......................................................................................................................................................................... 35
VOTING DAY.................................................................................................................................................................................... 36
Face-to-Face Results......................................................................................................................................................................................................... 36
Voted in the 2014 elections........................................................................................................................................................................................... 36

R e ac h i n g O ut, R e ac h i n g W ome n | 3
Voted for a Female Candidate............................................................................................................................................................................................
37
Reasons for not voting for a female candidate............................................................................................................................................................
38
Experiences on Election Day......................................................................................................................................................................................39
Perception of Women Elected as Member’s of Parliament.............................................................................................................................40
Focus Group Results and Key Informant Interviews..........................................................................................................................................42
RECOMMENDATIONS....................................................................................................................................................................44
BIBLIOGRAPHY.............................................................................................................................................................................44
Figure 1 Distribution of participants...................................................................................................................................................................................11
Figure 2: Research Participants by age group..................................................................................................................................................................12
Figure 3: Breakdown of Participants by Area...................................................................................................................................................................13
Figure 4 Breakdown of participants by education level...............................................................................................................................................14
Figure 5: Initial Number of Participants to be interviewed.........................................................................................................................................15
Figure 6: Did you register to vote in the 2014 elections?.............................................................................................................................................16
Figure 7 Responses to Motivations to Register...............................................................................................................................................................17
Figure 8 Usefulness of FWRM Training...............................................................................................................................................................................18
Figure 9: Usefulness of FWRM training Materials............................................................................................................................................................19
Figure 10: Participating in other electoral related workshops and/or trainings.................................................................................................20
Figure 11 Other Voter Education Training/Workshops by Age..................................................................................................................................20
Figure 12: Usefulness of these Trainings/Workshops....................................................................................................................................................21
Figure 13: Where did you hear about the registration process.................................................................................................................................22
Figure 14: Did you attend any political party campaign meetings?........................................................................................................................24
Figure 15 Attending Campaign Meetings by Age Group............................................................................................................................................25
Figure 16 Reason for not attending Campaign Meetings by Age Group..............................................................................................................25
Figure 17: Did you read Political Party manifesto’s?.......................................................................................................................................................26
Figure 18: Why did you not read any political party manifestos?.............................................................................................................................27
Figure 19 Read Political Party Manifesto’s by Age Group............................................................................................................................................28
Figure 20: Source of manifestos............................................................................................................................................................................................28
Figure 21: How to Vote.............................................................................................................................................................................................................30
Figure 22: Importance of Voting...........................................................................................................................................................................................31
Figure 23: Choosing a Candidate..........................................................................................................................................................................................32
Figure 24 Enabling factors - To decide on a Candidate................................................................................................................................................33
Figure 25: Source of Information that assisted participation in the process........................................................................................................33
Figure 26: Intention to Vote in the 2014 Elections.........................................................................................................................................................35
Figure 27: Intention to Vote in the 2014 Elections by Age Group.............................................................................................................................35
Figure 28: Voted in the 2014 Elections...............................................................................................................................................................................36
Figure 29 Voted in the 2014 Elections................................................................................................................................................................................37
Figure 30: Voted for a Female Candidate...........................................................................................................................................................................37
Figure 31 Voted for a Female Candidate by Age Group...............................................................................................................................................38
Figure 32: Reasons for not voting for a female candidate...........................................................................................................................................38
Figure 33: Experiences on voting day.................................................................................................................................................................................39
Figure 34: Perception of Females as elected as MPs......................................................................................................................................................40
Figure 35: Satisfaction with the number of females elected as Members of Parliament.................................................................................41
Figure 36: Perception of women who were not satisfied with the number of females elected....................................................................42
Table 1: Breakdown of Phase 1 Participants.....................................................................................................................................................................10
Table 2: Breakdown by Organization of Trainings/Workshops attended by participants................................................................................10
Table 3: Disabling Mechanisms.............................................................................................................................................................................................34
Table 4: Disabling Mechanisms by Age Group................................................................................................................................................................34

Published by the Fiji Women’s Rights Movement, 2015
This research was funded by the European Union and the International Women’s Development
Agency. The research was supervised by Consultant Romitesh Kant, who also wrote this report.
The Research team included: Research Officer Menka Goundan, Field Assistants Jalesi Korotini,
Tupou Kata and Rachna Kumari and Data Entry Intern Anushka Maharaj.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Fiji had its first democratic elections in September 2014, after eight years of military rule that began with a coup d’état in
December 2006. The election was fought on the basis of a new open list proportional representation (PR) system. Candidates
were identified by a number on the ballot paper, and party affiliations were not listed on the ballot paper nor the official National
Candidates  list. In accordance with the 2013 Constitution, the voting age was reduced from 21 to 18 years. With this change,
and the length of time since the last elections, close to 30% of voters were first time voters and approximately 47% of the
voting population was below the age of 35. There were over half a million (591,101) eligible voters registered for the elections
signalling the eagerness of Fijians to return to parliamentary rule. Contesting the elections were 249 candidates, including two
independent candidates, and 7 registered political parties. There were a total of 44 female candidates.
As early preparations began for the elections, in 2012 the Fiji Women’s Rights Movement was awarded a European Union (EIDHR)
grant for the a project called“Enhancing the Political Participation of Marginalised Women Voters”. The overall objective of the
project was enhanced political participation of women, particularly women from minority and marginalised groups, in national
democratic processes.
The project focused on two groups: Indo-Fijian women and diverse young women. Indo-Fijian women, or Fijian women of Indian
descent, are part of the Indo-Fijian ethnic minority that forms 37.48% of the total 837,271 of Fiji’s population (Fiji Islands Bureau
of Statistics 2012). Indo-Fijians have faced long-term discrimination, particularly in the political arena. Since the last military
coup d’état in 2006, FWRM, which is a feminist multicultural human rights-based organisation, noticed a steady decline in the
participation of Indo-Fijian women in its activities, such as workshops and campaigns, as well as at the national decision-making
level. Young women have been similarly marginalised over the history of Fiji as a nation state. They face multiple discriminations
at the intersection of race, age, sexuality, place of origin and socio-economic status. However, with the growing importance of
young voters and the national voting age lowered to18 years, the democratisation process was an opportunity for young women
to become more politically engaged and influential citizens.
FWRM conducted initial scoping research in mid-July 2013 and the resulting recommendations were used as a planning tool
for the development of the project. Specifically, the scoping research helped FWRM design a media campaign and training
programme to enhance the political participation of Indo-Fijian and young women. The media campaign and training were
conducted in two phases over a period of several months prior to the election.
At the conclusion of the elections, FWRM developed monitoring and evaluation research that used a mixed method approach
in collecting data, conducting face-to-face interviews with 348 women, seven focus group discussions involving 44 women,
and nine key informant interviews. Respondents were chosen from three groups: firstly, the direct recipients of FWRM training;
secondly, participants that attended further training organised by the direct recipients; finally, there were also non-recipient,
randomly selected respondents.
This research has found that most recipients of FWRM training thought the training was useful or very useful, that is 81% of direct
and indirect recipients. FWRM had produced two publications to accompany the two phases of training, and 69% of all training
recipients also found these materials to be useful or very useful. However, the materials were particularly helpful for those
receiving training indirectly, with close to 90% of those respondents finding the publications useful or very useful.
One of the objectives of the non-partisan FWRM media campaign and training was to empower women to attend campaign
meetings as a means of making informed voting choices. The research showed FWRM made a significant impact here, as there
was a higher percentage of women who received FWRM training directly that also reported attending campaign meetings,
as compared to the indirect participants and those from the random selection. The survey showed 64% of direct participants
attended campaign meetings, with only 42% attending such meetings from among indirect participants and down to 35% from
the random selection. Thus the FWRM training programmes were useful as a mechanism to politically empower women.
Despite the training, however, the majority of respondents did not vote for women. Only 27% of training recipients (both direct
and indirect) voted for women, while 32% of the random respondents gave women their vote. This goes against expectations,
and indicates that there are many barriers remaining to the full recognition of women’s leadership.
This research focused on the training and not the media component of the project, as the media campaign was monitored
through different methodologies throughout the two years of the project. However, this research does confirm the findings
of the initial FWRM scoping study from 2013: that radio remains a prime medium for reaching women. This finding had been
incorporated into the design of the media campaign, that included multi-lingual radio advertisements and talk-back radio
advocacy.

Overall, FWRM’s work with marginalised women voters had a strong positive impact on these women citizens, and also raised
FWRM’s profile in their communities around the country.
The research team made six recommendations following the analysis of all the data:
1. Training needs to be frequent to further development of knowledge and empower women to actively engage in
political processes.
2. The ad-hoc cascaded approach was effective and needs to be strengthened and institutionalized for future
projects like this. This could be in the form of building a network of trained community facilitators, who undergo
comprehensive training-of-trainers.
3. FWRM should intensify its media campaign. However, cost constraints and legislative barriers remain a challenge.
4. FWRM trainers continue to conduct evaluations of their training, including stronger follow-up. For example,
interviews with the women, particularly indirect participants, on the quality of the training.
5. FWRM and other women’s organizations, either independently or in collaboration, to intensify efforts to promote
women candidates. This could include the distribution of women candidates’information to the wider public to
ensure that female candidates’profiles gets more attention during the campaigning. However, their ability to do this
may be constrained by current legislation.
6. Further develop gender-sensitive voter and civic education messages that highlight the capacities of women as
candidates and political leaders.

INTRODUCTION
Fiji’s 2014 election took place in the aftermath of eight years of arbitrary, undemocratic rule. Since the Bainimarama government
assumed office in the wake of the December 2006 coup, there has been media censorship that prevented a free expression of
political views, particularly after the abrogation of the 1997 Constitution in April 2009, allegations of heavy-handed crackdown of
opposition and pro-democracy supporters, violation of human rights and lack of accountability and transparency in the affairs of
the country.
The election was fought on the basis of a new open list proportional representation (PR) system where voters were required
to endorse only one candidate on the ballot paper. Party affiliations were not listed either on the ballot paper nor the National
Candidates list. Also, in accordance with the 2013 Constitution, the voting age was reduced from 21 to 18. Since there had been
no elections for eight years, close to 30% of voters participated in elections for the first time, while 47% of the voting population
was below the age of 35.
The Electoral Decree, released on 27th
March 2014, stipulated the rules and conduct of the elections. Of particular concern to
CSO’s was Section 115 of the Decree which restricted them from carrying out electoral education and outreach activities (Fiji
Government, 2014). CSO representatives met with the Minister responsible for Elections and with the Electoral Commission to
raise their concerns with section 115 (Fiji Live, 2014) (Fiji One, 2014). Following these meetings, CSO’s were informed that anyone
wishing to carry out electoral education activities must have all their materials examined by the Supervisor of Elections (Radio
New Zealand International, 2014). Eleven CSO’s subsequently applied for and received approval from the Electoral Commission
to carry out electoral education and outreach including FWRM (Fijian Elections Office, 2014).
591101 eligible voters registered for the elections signalling the eagerness of Fijians to return to parliamentary rule. 249
candidates contested the elections under 7 registered political parties including 2 independent candidates out of which 44
female candidates contested the elections.
“ENHANCING THE POLITICAL PARTICIPATION OF MARGINALISED WOMEN VOTERS”PROJECT
In 2012 Fiji Women’s Rights Movement was awarded a European Union (European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights)
grant for the action“Enhancing the political participation of Marginalised Women Voters”. The overall objective of the project
was enhanced political participation of women, particularly women from minority and marginalised groups, in national democratic
processes.
The two target groups identified for the purpose of this project were Indo-Fijian women and young women. Indo-Fijian
women, or Fijian women of Indian descent, are part of the Indo-Fijian ethnic minority that forms 37.48% of the total 837,271
of Fiji’s population (Fiji Islands Bureau of Statistics 2012). Indo-Fijians have faced long-term discrimination, particularly in the
political arena. FWRM, which is a multi-ethnic, multicultural human rights-based organisation, had noticed a steady decline in
the participation of Indo-Fijian women in its workshops/campaigns/initiatives as well as at the national decision-making level,
particularly since the last military coup d’état in 2006. This was likely due to community reactions to the pre-democratic political
crisis, leading to disengagement from political activities. There was a serious concern that the needs and concerns of Indo-Fijian
women were not taken into account during the constitution-making and electoral processes.
Young women are part of the vibrant and growing youth population in Fiji, which was close to a quarter of a million people
in 2009 (aged 15-30 years, Fiji Bureau of Statistics). This group, which overlaps with Indo-Fijian women, has been similarly
marginalised over the history of Fiji as a nation state. They face multiple discriminations at the intersection of race, age, sexuality,
place of origin and socio-economic status. However, with the growing importance of young voters and the national voting age at
18 years, the democratisation process was an opportunity for young women to become more politically engaged and influential
citizens.
Three interlinked objectives to achieve under this project were:
1. Increased awareness of citizenship rights amongst women, particularly among Indo-Fijian women and young women;
2. Increased effective participation of marginalised and minority women voters in local and national democratic
processes, including constitution making and electoral reforms, in the lead up to and during proposed national
elections in 2014; and
3. Fostering of an enabling media environment for women’s political participation, through the provisions of gender and
political training to journalists.
This research was developed to measure the level of citizenship awareness amongst the target groups following FWRM’s media
campaign and training awareness.

SCOPING STUDY
The results from the scoping study conducted under this project provided a guiding benchmark for this research. The scoping
research released internally in July 2013 revealed the current level of citizenship rights awareness and also identified effective
mediums through which to provide accessible information on citizenship rights. Relevant to this report are the findings on the
level of citizenship rights awareness prior to FWRM media campaign and trainings.
The general findings reveal that younger women in the Central/Eastern Division were the least aware of citizenship rights
compared to the other two divisions, Northern and Western. A large proportion of women when asked on the voting age,
responded incorrectly or said they did not know. The change in the voting age from 21 to 18 years had been covered extensively
by the media.
Specifically with young women, in the Central/Eastern Division, only 28% of the young women knew the voting age; compared
to 50% in the Western and 65 % in the Northern Division.
More young women in the Central/Eastern Division had registered to vote, compared to the Northern and followed by the
Western Division. The ones that had not registered to vote indicated they were not interested, whereas some mentioned they
were turned away by the Elections office because they were still 17 years of age. This was contrary to media coverage which
stated that anyone that is going to turn 18 years in 2014 could register to vote now1
.
Around 42% of all the young women interviewed were not eligible to vote in the last elections held in 2006.
More young women in the Northern and Western Divisions thought it was not important to vote compared to the Central/
Eastern Division where 93% of young women thought it was important. Interestingly, more women in the Western and Northern
Division thought it was important for women to vote than the young women in the Central/Eastern Division.
In terms of national political interest, 65% of the young women in the Northern Division said they took an interest in politics2
,
followed by 62% in the Western, and 59% in the Central/Eastern Division. The same trend was prevalent with the number of
young women that followed the 2012 Constitution making process – however, in all the divisions less than 50% of young women
followed this process. 83% of young women in the Central/Eastern Division said that they follow the news regularly in the mass
media, with 76% in the Western Division and 59% in the Northern Division.
Overall, young women in the Northern Division appear to be more aware of their citizenship rights followed by the Western
Division and then the Central/Eastern Division with the least amount of awareness on citizenship rights.
With Indo-Fijian women 36 years+ there was a mix of awareness on citizenship rights across the divisions, however 50% of
women in the Northern Division were aware that the new minimum voting age is 18 years old, compared to 38% in the Western
Division and 30% in the Central/Eastern Division. All the Indo-Fijian women respondents 36years+ had registered to vote in all
the divisions. In the Northern Division, only half of the Indo-Fijian women 36years+ knew that the new minimum voting age
was 18 years, and compared to the other divisions this was the highest. The Western Division was the lowest with 30% and the
Central/Eastern Division at 38%.
10% of the women in the Western Division had not voted in the previous election. And 80% of the women in this Division also
thought that it was not important to vote. When asked why, women mentioned the continuous coups and that it made“no
difference”to vote.
In the Western and Central/Eastern Divisions all the respondents had voted in the previous election. In the Central/Eastern
Division all the respondents thought it was important for people to vote but only 85% thought it was important for women to
vote. There was no indication of why it wasn’t important for women to vote. In the Northern Division 83% of women thought it
important to vote and also for women to vote.
Indo-Fijian women 36years+ in the Northern Division indicated a greater interest in politics than the Indo Fijian Women 36years+
in the Western and Central/Eastern Divisions. The percentage of women that were interested in politics in the Western Division
was generally consistent with the number of women being aware of the new minimum voting age. The least interest in politics
was indicated by the Indo-Fijian women 36 years+ in the Western Division.
90% of women in the Western Division followed the news regularly, followed by 85% in the Central/Eastern Division, and then
50% in the Northern Division. This trend would assume that more women would have been aware of the voting age.
Only 17% of women in the Northern Division followed the 2012 Constitution making process, compared to 40% in the Western
Division and 54% of women in the Central/Eastern Division.
1 http://www.ifes.org/~/media/Files/Publications/White%20PaperReport/2014/Fiji%20FAQ%20Final%202.pdf
2 If respondents sought clarification on what politics was they were informed by the researchers that it was the decisions made by the government and the way that the government operated.
The explanation was kept simple to avoid confusing the respondents and to ensure a consistent response by the researchers when clarifying the query.

The qualitative results findings revealed that there was confusion among both the target groups on the electoral system and on
how to vote in the new system. The women appeared concerned about how to vote for the right person or leader. There was a
general sense of apathy among both the target groups in relation to elections and voting, however for different reasons.
Unanimously, across all the three divisions, women expressed that the information they received on election and voting in the
mass media was limited and created more confusion.
The scoping research results and insights informed the recommendations which was used as a planning tool for the
development of an effective campaign, to enhance the political participation of Indo-Fijian and young women. The different
phases of the media campaign and the training workshops were conducted over a period of several months prior to the election.
FWRM media campaigns
The FWRM media campaign was designed to encourage women from the target groups to vote and to independently decide
whom to vote for. The media campaign consisted of radio and television advertisements, radio talk back shows and online
advocacy via FWRM’s website and social advocacy pages on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. The media campaign consisted of
two phases and ran simultaneously with the trainings.
Phase 1 of the campaign on television and radio ran from October 28, 2013 to January 15, 2014. The online advocacy has been
ongoing since October.
Phase 2 of the media campaign on television and radio ran from July to August 2014. The online advocacy was ongoing till
September 2014.
Television Advertisements
FWRM had produced two 60-second commercials, which were aired on Fiji Television and Fiji Broadcasting Corporation Television
over four months. One in simple English, targeted at young women, ran from October 28, 2013 till January 15, 2014. The other,
in Fiji Hindi targeted at Indo-Fijian women who were 36 years and over, ran from mid November, 2013 till January 15, 2014. The
commercials focused on why it’s important for women to vote and how to make the decision to vote (with a focus on leadership
qualities). Both commercials were also aired during July to August 2014.
The commercials targeted at young women features one Indo-fijian young woman (who is a member of FWRM’s Emerging
Leaders Forum Alumni or ELFA); two indigenous Fijian or iTaukei young women (an ELFA and a woman from the Young
Women’s Christian Association YWCA Fiji); one young woman with disabilities and one young person from the lesbian, gay,
bisexual, transgender, queer and intersex (LGBTQI) community. These were Benjamin Patel, Grace Cagilaba, Avisake Veitata,
Rachna Kumari and Eleanoa Lavetiviti. After joining the Fijian Elections Office as staff, Elenoa Lavetiviti had to be removed
from the advertisement to comply with her new role. FWRM amended the commercial to include another young woman
living with disability, Luisa Miracle, before the advertisements were re-aired. Sadly, Eleanoa Lavetiviti passed away in 2014.
Radio
Radio outreach was done in two phases which included radio commercials and radio talk back shows. Phase 1 started on October
21, 2013 and ended in January 2014 whilst Phase 2 took place from July to August 2014.
A total of 30 thirty-second radio commercials aired on English, Hindi and iTaukei language stations of the Fiji Broadcasting
Corporation and Communications Fiji Limited on the topics:
- Importance of Voting  
- Why its particularly important for women/young women to vote  
- How women/young women access information to vote  
- Choosing good leaders 
Apart from the commercials, FWRM staff also went on 8 talkback shows hosted on Hindi radio stations during the media
campaign.
FWRM Trainings
Phase 1
The first phase of the FWRM voter education training was to focus on: elections, its importance, leaders, manifestos and
accountability. It was a training of trainers with the intention that the women attending the trainings will disseminate the
information to their wider networks. Phase 1 included 8 trainings conducted in the Eastern, Central, Western and Northern

Divisions with a total of 218 Indo-Fijian women, young women, older women, iTaukei women and women from outer islands. The
Phase 1 training utilised the“Citizenship Rights Guidebook for Women in Fiji”,which was developed using the recommendations
of the scoping study . The Guidebook was divided into two modules:
Module 1: Women and Elections
• What are elections and Why Elections?
• Who is a good leader?
• Characteristics of good and bad leaders
• Manifestos
Module 2: Women and Voting.
• Why women should vote?
• How to make decisions on whom to vote for?
• Holding leaders accountable
Division
PARTICIPANTS
Indo-Fijian Women (36+ years) Other women (36+ years) Young Women Total
Central 30 - 27 57
Northern 25 - 27 52
Western 29 - 25 54
Eastern - 30 25 55
Total 84 30 104 218
Table 1: Breakdown of Phase 1 Participants
Phase 2
The second phase of the training was on leadership qualities, manifestos, electoral system and mock voting exercises. The
trainings were organized by the direct participants of the phase one trainings but conducted by FWRM Training Officers.
These trainings took place in their communities. Some trainings were also organized through FWRM’s existing community
networks. Due to the demand and the lack of time before elections, the FWRM Gender and Transitional Justice Team conducted
simultaneous trainings in two to three communities at a time.
A total of 81 trainings were conducted in phase two in the four divisions of Fiji. 2110 people including men and iTaukei women
participated in the trainings. This also included 1187 Indo-Fijian women and young women (target group) who were trained in
phase two.
During phase two, FWRM produced a second guidebook for participants which was called:“Elections Toolkit: Women Voters in
Fiji”. The aim of the toolkit was to provide practical activities on how to vote vote and familiarize women in the communities and
first time voters on the voting process in Fiji’s 2014 elections.
The toolkit looked into the following topics:
• The new electoral system in Fiji
• How to vote in 2014 elections including mock voting
• How will your votes be counted
• How will your votes lead to the formation of government?
Division
PARTICIPANTS
Indo-Fijian Women (36+ years) Other women (36+ years) Young Women Total
Central 233 58 140 431
Northern 185 60 186 431
Western 192 88 134 414
Eastern 3 249 121 373
Total 613 455 581 1, 649
Table 2: Breakdown of Phase 1 Participants

THE RESEARCH
RESEARCH METHODS
Research methods were developed keeping in mind the time and resources available, utilizing both quantitative (administered
questionnaires) and qualitative (focus groups) methods.
RESEARCH TEAM
A local Consultant Research Adviser led the research, who developed the research tools in collaboration with FWRM’s Research
Officers. A team of 4 (both iTaukei and Hindi speaking) research assistants was recruited by FWRM to administer face-to-face
questionnaires and data entry. The research assistants were recruited after verbal and written interviews to ensure quality of
the research since the research topic was sensitive and of public interest during the time. FWRM’s Research Officers facilitated
the focus group discussions with one research assistant documenting the discussion. Where necessary the research assistants
administered the questionnaire in the vernacular. For focus groups, documenting research assistant carried out transcription.
Women political candidates and polling day workers were also interviewed by FWRM’s Research Officers. These interviews were
recorded and transcribed by FWRM’s Research Officers themselves.
PARTICIPANTS
The main target groups for FWRM’s ‘Enhancing the political participation of marginalized voters’ project were young women (18-35
years) of all ethnicities and Indo-Fijian women (36+ years). Therefore, the selection of direct and indirect participants was based
on this logic.
Figure 1 Distribution of participants

Face-to-Face Participants
For face-to-face questionnaires, two target groups were chosen based on FWRM’s work:
1. Direct Participants
These were women who were selected from women’s networks and trained by FWRM on elections and voting. These
participants were part of both phase one and phase two of the FWRM trainings. 55 women who attended Phase 1 training
were selected for the purposes of this research.
2. Indirect Participants
This group included women in the communities who were either trained by direct participants who were part of Phase
1 of the FWRM trainings or by FWRM Training Officers in their communities. 64 women were selected to participate in
this research. Direct participants who attended Phase 1 trainings organized community based workshop for indirect
participants.
3. Random Participants
229 women were randomly selected throughout the target areas. The rationale for randomly selecting participants in target
areas was to gauge the impact and effectiveness of FWRM advocacy and outreach activities.
Figure 2: Research Participants by age group
The sample size of younger women aged 18-35 years was 161, out of which 126 random young women responded; 20 young
women indirect participants while 15 were direct participants. The sample size of older women aged 36+ was 180, out of which
103 were women selected randomly; 29 women were from the indirect participant group and 48 women from direct particpant
group.
Focus Group Discussions (FGD)
7 focus group discussions were conducted involving 44 women across the four research locations. Participants were recruited via
the FWRM’s networks in the fieldwork locations. Each FGD aimed at 5 to 10 participants.
Of the 44 participants, 21 were from Direct and Indirect target groups while 23 were random. 12 participants were first time
voters.
Key Informant Interviews
9 key informant interviews were also conducted that included female candidates from the 2014 elections and female polling-day
officials. All focus group and key informant interviews were recorded with the permission of the participants. These recordings
were later transcribed verbatim by the FWRM Research Officers. A content and thematic analysis was carried out later.

RESEARCH AREAS
The research areas were chosen based on FWRM’s project activities. 25 villages and settlements were chosen in 11 major centres
– on Viti Levu, Vanua Levu, Levuka and Lakeba (Lau Group).
Figure 3: Breakdown of Participants by Area
31 of the respondents were from the Eastern Division and included 6 respondents from the FWRM network, 12 from the
community networks and 13 from random selection. 166 of the respondents were from the Central Division with 132 randomly
selected, 13 from the community networks and 21 from FWRM network. The Western Division had a total of 82 respondents,
with 53 selected randomly, 20 participating from FWRM networks and 9 from the community networks. The Northern Division
had 11 respondents from FWRM network, 21 from the community network and 30 selected randomly making it a total of 62
respondents from this division.

Figure 4: Breakdown of participants by education level
The highest level of education achieved among the respondents in the FWRM network was high school at 67%, followed by
primary school at 16% and only 9% had done some form of tertiary education. Among the community network, the highest
level of education is high school at 53%, with 20% having done some form of tertiary education with 16% reaching only to
primary school. In the random sample, 50% had reached to tertiary level as their highest form of education, 41% reaching high
school followed by 7% reaching primary school as their highest level of education.
QUESTIONNAIRE SURVEY
The questionnaire was developed in consultation with the FWRM. The intention was to ascertain whether the level of awareness
of citizenship rights amongst FWRM’s target groups had changed after FWRM’s activities.
The questions therefore mainly focused on the following areas:
1. Pre-election
a. Registration process
b. Training and workshops around elections and voting
c. Actively following political party campaigns
d. Enabling and disabling mechanisms that either facilitated or hindered participation of young women and Indo-
Fijian women in the electoral processes
2. Election day
a. Previous voting history
b. 2014 Elections – features and obstacles
c. Voting for female candidates
3. Post-Elections
a. Satisfaction with the number of female candidates elected

Initially, half of the questions in the questionnaire were open ended. After some discussions with FWRM Research Officers, all
questions were made closed ended with options in check boxes to make it easier for research assistants, participants and for data
entry purposes. The research assistants said that the questionnaire took about half an hour to administer.
A consent form detailing the purpose of the research was administered by the research assistants to seek permission from
participants to participate in the research.
DATA ENTRY AND ANALYSIS
A trained research assistant carried out data entry using Microsoft Excel. Data analysis was carried out on Excel using pivot tables.
LIMITATIONS AND CHALLENGES
The design of the study had the following limitations: firstly, the use of purposive and targeted groups in the cases of the focus
group discussions and face-to-face interviews limit the generalization of the findings to more diverse voter population of the
country.
Another limitation to the research was timing. The data collection started a week after the September elections. Also related to
timing of the research was the preparations for Diwali celebrations, in which many Indo-Fijians began preparations a month or
so in advance; taking note of the fact that since many respondents (mainly 36 years and over) were Indo-Fijian women. Another
limitation regarding timing of the data collection coincided with the cane cutting season in the Northern and Western Divisions.
Most women were either out in the field or busy tending to kitchen duties so they were unavailable or did not have time to take
part in the research.
Thirdly, given that data collection started a week after elections and the sensitive political climate that existed before and after
elections, many participants in the research were not willing to answer questions they deem to be contentious and/or politically
sensitive.
Another problem was identifying and locating direct and indirect participants to be interviewed. Initially, 71 Direct and 142
indirect participants were to be interviewed for this study. However, there were difficulties in finding these participants and
getting their consent for the research. This figure was then revised and 55 Direct and 64 Indirect participants were interviewed.
The numbers of Random participants were subsequently increased to 229 to offset the shortfall in the other two target groups.
The decision to increase the number of random participants was made because research interns were already out in the field and
logistical arrangements had already been made.
Area Direct Indirect Random Total
Nausori 10 20 20 50
Suva 10 20 20 50
Navua 5 10 10 25
Sigatoka 4 8 8 20
Nadi 5 10 10 25
Lautoka 5 10 10 25
Ba 5 10 10 25
Rakiraki 3 6 6 15
Levuka 3 6 6 15
Lakeba 6 12 12 30
Labasa 15 30 30 75
Total 71 142 142 355
Figure 5: Initial Number of Participants to be interviewed

RESULTS
PRE-ELECTIONS – REGISTRATION PROCESS
Face-to-Face Interviews
20 younger women aged 18-35 years and 35 women aged 36 years and over, from the direct participants participated in the
research; 9 younger women aged 18-35 and 55 women aged 36 years and over, from the indirect participants participated; and
126 younger women and 103 women aged 36years and over from the random sample participated in this research. From hereon
we will refer to the age group 18-35 years as“younger women”, and women aged 36 years and over as“women aged 36+”
Register to Vote
Figure 6: Did you register to vote in the 2014 elections?
100% of the participants that participated in the
FWRM trainings registered
to vote however, 2% of the
random participants did
not register to vote. The 2%
that did not register to vote
they were from both the
age groups indicating to an
extent that age was no barrier
for this sample of women in
registering.

Motivations to Register
Figure 7 Responses to Motivations to Register
Direct Participants
87.5% of the respondents from the direct participants said they were motivated to register because they wanted to participate in
the political process and around 8% said they thought the registration was compulsory. The rest of them registered motivated by
the Elections Office (EO) voter registration campaign or they wanted a EVR card or everyone was registering. 70% of the younger
women and 80% of the women aged 36+ wanted to register to partcipate in the political process.
Indirect Participants
76% of the respondents from the indirect participants said they wanted to participate in the political process, whilst 13%
registered because everyone was registering, and 9.1% thought the registration was compulsory. The rest registered through the
elections office campaigns. 89% younger women and 88% women aged 36+ wanted to participate in the political process. The
high levels of interest being shown by women from both the age categories
Random Participants
81% random respondents registered to vote because they wanted to participate in the political process. 9.2% thought that the
registration was compulsory; 5% women registered because everyone else was registering. The rest registered because of the
Elections office campaign and they wanted a EVR card. Only one respondent from the random selection said they registered
because of influence by FWRM voter campaign. 83% of both younger women and women aged 36+ registered because they
wanted to participate in the political process.3
Women’s motivation to register to participate in the political process indicates that women are politically active and demonstrate
political interest.
3 This question did not specifically ask participants about FWRM’s media campaigns on elections but rather was a general question trying to ascertain what or who motivated women to
register for elections.

ELECTORAL TRAININGS AND WORKSHOPS FOR WOMEN
Usefulness of FWRM training
Figure 8 Usefulness of FWRM Training
Direct Participants
38% (n=21) of the respondents from the direct participants said they found the FWRM training very useful whereas 22% (n=12)
said they found it useful while 38% (n=21) refused to answer. 60% of the younger women and 60% of the women aged 36+
found the training useful/very useful. These respondents were all directly part of the FWRM trainings and training of trainers.
All respondents from the indirect participants had attended workshop/trainings organised by direct participants and conducted
by FWRM training officers, 56% (n=36) found the training very useful, 42% (n=27) found it only useful while 1 respondent chose
not to respond. 100% of the younger women found the training very useful/useful whereas 98% of the women aged 36+ found
it very useful/useful. The training with the indirect participants was carried out by the women that were trained by FWRM and
are reflected as direct participants in this research.
It is interesting to note that 38% of direct participants refused to answer the question. Why they chose not to answer the
question has implications for making an assessment on the relevancy of the trainings by FWRM.
However, the contrast between responses from direct and indirect participants is rather interesting and has many implications.
As mentioned earlier, the quality of training delivered by FWRM trainers and the relevancy of the materials for the direct
participants is important to consider. The women that were trained by FWRM as direct participants also came from other FWRM
programs and events, and could have had higher expectations or were already versed or became versed with the content of the
training materials during the pre election phase. Language accessibility or understanding by the women could have also been a
barrier.
Indirect women who were also trained by FWRM in their communities found the training and the materials far more useful.
These women were from FWRM’s community networks. The delivery of the training could have been a factor. Another factor
could have been that these women (indirect participants) from the community networks are not exposed to trainings or had not
had access to much information hence they appreciated or found this information and training useful given their existing level of
knowledge.

Usefulness Of FWRM Training Materials
Figure 9: Usefulness of FWRM training Materials
Direct Participants- “Citizenship Rights Guidebook for Women in Fiji”
31% (n=17) of the direct respondents that attended FWRM trainings found it very useful, 16% (n=9) found it useful, while 9%
(n=5) did not find the trainings either useful or not useful (neutral)and 7% (n=4) said it was not useful. 36% (n=20) of direct
participants refused to answer the question. 100% of the younger women found the training materials useful/very useful and
87% of the women aged 36+ found the training materials useful/very useful.
Respondents who found the training materials very useful and useful qualified their responses by stating that the training
materials“really explained the process of elections and how relevant women votes are in determining parliamentarians”(Young
Woman, Levuka). Another young woman from Tubou, Lakeba, pointed out that “As a first time voter it helped me by providing vital
information regarding my right and the importance of voting”. An elderly woman from Labasa who had voted in previous elections
stated that, “They [the trainers] thoroughly explained the voting system, especially with the number system. Also, I understood how
important it was to vote”.
Indirect Participants- “Elections Toolkit: Women Voters in Fiji”
The training materials were available to the indirect participants through the community workshop/training. The training
materials produced by FWRM was found very useful by half (n=32) the respondents with 39% (n=25) finding it useful, 5% (n=3)
did not find it very useful, 3% (n=2) did not find it useful at all and 1.5% said it was neutral and the same number also didn’t
respond. Interestingly, 50% of the younger women found the FWRM materials very useful/useful, and 46% of the women aged
36+ found the materials very useful/useful. This could be as a reflection of either the relevancy of the content, the quality of the
training delivery or the level of exposure that these women already had as a result of being part of various FWRM trainings and
events in the past.
A young woman from Ba expressed that the workshop and outreach materials were empowering and informative stating that
“[the workshop and outreach materials] were very useful and empowering… [It] gave me the confidence to
lead the other women in my village. It also gave me confidence as I saw myself as a leader amongst my peers in
the village. The material equipped me well. We knew what to do when we went to vote. Because it allowed me
to educate the other ladies in my village, I just referred to it when I was sharing with the ladies in my village.”
A respondent (36+ over) from Labasa said that she “took it [the booklet] home”.. where her “husband also read
the book”. Another respondent from Labasa “also shared [the booklet] in the women’s group and at home with
family”.
However some elder women (Indo-Fijian) from Lautoka pointed out that the booklets were not useful as they were illiterate.

Other Voter Education Training Workshops
Figure 10: Participating in other electoral related workshops and/or trainings
36% of the respondents from the direct participants; 86% from the indirect participants and 6% from the random selection said
they have attended other community trainings/workshops.
Participating in other trainings and/or workshops by age
Figure 11 Other Voter Education Training/Workshops by Age
Direct Participants
30% younger women and 40% women aged 36+ from the direct participants have attended other trainings and workshops apart
from the FWRM training.

78% of younger women and 80% of women aged 36+ from the indirect participants said they had attended a“FWRM training”–
these trainings were conducted in their communities by either direct participants from phase one or by FWRM Training Officers
in phase two.
Random Participants
From the random respondents, 6% of younger women and 5% of women aged 36+ had attended a training/workshop on voter
education/civic awareness. None of them had attended any FWRM trainings.
Who conducted these trainings/workshops?
Fiji Elections Office NCW FWRM CCF Other No TOTAL
DIRECT 5 0 11 0 3 36 55
INDIRECT 3 0 51 0 0 10 64
RANDOM 8 0 0 0 5 216 229
16 0 62 0 8 262 348
Table 2: Breakdown by Organization of Trainings/Workshops attended by participants
When asked which other training workshops they attended, 74% did not wish to answer the question. The 26% who did attend
trainings either attended workshops organised by the Fiji Women’s Rights Movement (78%, n=62) or the Elections Office (16%,
n=16) or other organizations (6%, n= 8).
Impact of Training/Workshop on Decision to Participate in the Electoral Processes
Figure 12: Usefulness of these Trainings/Workshops

Direct Participants
Of those who did participate in voter education/awareness activities, 44% of direct participants strongly agreed and 48% agreed
that the trainings/workshops they attended influenced their decision to participate in the electoral process while 8% were not
sure. 30 respondents did not answer the question from this target group. 35% younger women and 46% women aged 36+ said
they strongly agreed or agreed that the FWRM training influenced them to participate in the political process.
Of all the indirect participants who answered this question, 44% strongly agreed and 56% agreed that their participation in
the election was influenced by the trainings/workshop they attended. 10 respondents chose not to answer this question. 89%
younger women and 84% of women aged 36+ said they strongly agreed or agreed that they were influenced by the training they
attended.
The usefulness of the training and the training materials is consistent with the impact of the training on women’s decision to
participate in the political process. Indirect participants found community workshops (carried out by Direct participants) and
FWRM training materials more useful than the direct participants.4
This in turn influenced indirect participants to participate in
the electoral processes.
Random Participants
In the random target group, 57% and 36% respondents that answered the question strongly agreed and agreed respectively, that
they were influenced. 215 respondents did not answer the question.
Where did you hear about the registration process
Radio was the primary medium of information for most women followed by television. FWRM in its media campaign used
these two mediums to raise awareness of the importance of women’s voting rights. The FWRM campaigns were useful since
paid advertisements by the Elections Office did not cover women as voters during the registration process. The Movement had
infomercials in three languages- Hindi, iTaukei and English. In its media monitoring, FWRM also concluded that women received
minimal or zero coverage as potential voters during registration.
Figure 13: Where did you hear about the registration process
4 This may be attributed to the fact that many Direct participants chose not to answer questions relating to usefulness of trainings and training materials.

Direct participants
67% of direct participants identified the mass media (newspapers, radio and television) where they heard about the registration
process whereas the rest identified by village/community head, family members, Elections Office and NGO’s.
Indirect participants
72% of indirect participants identified the mass media (newspapers, radio and television) where they heard about the
registration process.
It could very well be that direct and indirect participants heard FWRM media campaigns on the radio but were unable to link the
media adverts and outreach activities to FWRM.
Focus Group Results
Almost all the focus group results indicated that the voter registration process was easy, accessible, free and fair. Young women,
mostly first time voters revealed their enthusiasm about the whole transition process and taking part in it for the fist time. Some
older participants expressed happiness that the registration exercise took place in their communities instead of them going to
the town centers to register. However, some raised concerns about the conduct of voter registration workers who sometimes
came off as rude making the process bitter especially for first time voters (19 year old, Young Women Focus Group, Suva, 3rd
December, 2014). It was also noted that voter registration workers were not fully aware of processes like lost EVR cards, this
added to confusion and frustration for potential voters. (53 year old, Mixed Focus Group, Nausori, 21st
October. 2014)

POLITICAL CAMPAIGNING
Face-To-Face Results
Attending Campaign Meetings
On 23 March 2014 the government announced that the elections were going to take place on 17 September of that year, a day
to be set as a national holiday. Political parties unofficially started campaigning. The writ for elections was issued on the 4th
of
August. It was not until August 23rd
, when the official National Candidates List was released with each candidate allocated a
number, that official campaigning began.
Political parties and candidates held community meetings, rallies,and youth forums to reach out to voters, Social media was also
used as means to canvass votes by many candidates and parties.
Figure 14: Did you attend any political party campaign meetings?
One of the objectives of the FWRM media campaign and trainings/workshop was to empower women to attend campaign
meetings as a means of making informed voting choices.
There was a higher percentage of women from the direct participants attending campaign meetings compared to the women
from the indirect participants and random selection. In fact, 64% of women from the direct participants attended campaign
meetings, followed by 42% from the indirect participants and 35% from the random selection. This finding directly links to the
result that the FWRM trainings were useful as a mechanism to politically empower women.

Figure 15 Attending Campaign Meetings by Age Group
65% younger women and 63% women aged 36+ from the direct participants attended the campaign meetings, 44% younger
women and 42% women aged 36+ attended campaign meetings from the indirect participants, and 34% younger women and
36% women aged 36+ from the random respondents attended campaign meetings.
Women that were involved in FWRM trainings and meetings showed more active participation in campaign meetings, indicating
that the level of political ownership and increased mobilisation with the level of exposure and empowerment.
Figure 16 Reason for not attending Campaign Meetings by Age Group
Women that did not attend campaign meetings were asked the reason and majority in all the three sample groups said they did
not have time followed by not interested and there was no campaign meeting in their areas. 48% (n=166) chose not to answer
the question. 20% younger women and 17% women aged 36+ from the direct participants said they did not have time, followed
by 36% younger women and 26% women aged 36+ in the random group saying they did not have time, 33% younger women
and 35% women aged 36+ from the indirect participants said they did not have time. More younger women in the direct
participants and random group said they did not have time, compared to women aged 36+ in the same groups. This could be
that younger women are pursuing education full time, started careers or have young family to look after.

With the indirect participants, more women aged 36+ said they did not have time but there was not much of a difference
with the younger women. Another reason for women choosing not to attend campaign meetings could be attributed to the
politically charged climate in which elections took place. There was fear of election violence hence skepticism of establishing
political position pre-election. Many people felt uncomfortable in tacitly expressing their choices and attending meetings that
could have sent a message on which political party they were supporting. Data indicates that FWRM trainings were successful
in encouraging women to attend political party meetings to make informed voting choices regardless of pre-existing fear and
social prejudice.
Reading Political Party Manifestos
There was confusion among random participants on what a manifesto was. The question intended to find out if the
respondents read the manifesto booklets that was being circulated by the different political parties. Upon further questioning,
the respondents had read one page flyers and information sheets that may have identified the different manifesto areas but
generally contained information on the party and its principles. As such, the respondents did have somewhat knowledge of
manifestos or at least the principles encompassing the party manifestos.
Figure 17: Did you read Political Party manifesto’s?
72% respondents from the indirect participants said they have read a manifesto; 64% from the direct participants and 55%
from the random selection said they have read a manifesto. The respondents that did not read a manifesto said they were not
interested or they did not have access to a copy.
The FWRM trainings/workshop and training materials had a section on what manifestos are and how to analyse manifestos. The
high frequency of respondents from the direct and indirect participants reading political party manifestos can be attributed to
this.

Figure 18: Why did you not read any political party manifestos?
65% younger women and 63% women aged 36+ from the direct participants had read a manifesto whereas 67% younger
women and 73% women aged 36+ from the indirect participants said they had read the manifesto. 57% younger women and
53% women aged 36+ from the random group said they had read a manifesto. There was not much difference in the percentage
of younger women and women aged 36+ that had read a manifesto. Both the age categories appeared to generally have read
the manifesto, however in the community network the difference was much higher and indicated more women aged 36+ had
read the manifesto.
More younger women from the random sample said that they were not interested or did not have access to a copy of the
manifesto.
Interestingly a very small percentage of women, 3%, in the random selection said they had already made up their mind hence
did not need to see a manifesto and 2% said they did not know how to acquire the manifesto. From the direct participants, 2%
respondent said they did not read a manifesto as they were afraid that keeping a manifesto will indicate that they support that
party.

Figure 19 Read Political Party Manifesto’s by Age Group
It was also evident from the data collected that most of the respondents read the manifestos when directly given to them by the
political parties (41%, n=146)5
. Less than 10% in all the target groups read the manifestos brought home by a relative or accessed
the manifesto through the media.
Figure 20: Source of manifestos
Focus Group Results and Key Informant Interviews
Majority of the focus group participants did not receive any training on voting and elections which all of them felt would have
enabled them to make more informed choices on election day.
One focus group with young women who attended the Fiji Young Women’s Forum6
felt that the Forum provided them with the
knowledge and skills to effectively participate in the electoral processes.
In terms of attending political party and candidate meetings, many women, young and old, attended the meetings as the timing
was convenient to them. Many of them also received party manifestos at these meetings. However, many participants felt that
women candidates were not given enough time and space to reach out to voters.
5 40% (n=22) of direct, 64% (n=41) of indirect and 41% (n=86) of random participants said that they had received political party manifestos directly from the political parties themselves
6 The Fiji Young Women’s Forum is convened by Diverse Voices and Action for Equality (DIVA), Emerging Leaders Forum Alumni (ELFA), Young Women Producers and Broadcasters – FemLINK
Pacific and the Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA)

Polling day workers who were interviewed expressed disappointment with the Elections Office on how they were recruited and
trained. One Presiding Officer shared her experience stating that:
“I think the recruitment process was not handled well since during the interview I was told that they will text and
notify me but I was only texted at 6:30p.m the day before training- it was a very short notice. The short notice was very
challenging since I am the sole breadwinner of my family. Financial concerns motivated me to become a polling day
worker.” (Presiding-Officer-LC, 2014)
All polling day workers suggested that more time should have been allocated for training as they felt they had important role to
play in the smooth running of elections in a polling station. They particularly raised concerns around counting of ballots. Only
presiding officers were trained on how to count the votes who were then supposed to train other polling day workers. Those
interviewed stated that when they were trained, the presiding officers seemed confused on counting the ballots themselves,
thereby confusing the polling day workers.
One polling day worker had not signed the contract until the polling day.
“I had not signed a contract until the day of the elections. The divisional co-ordinator only got the contract at
about 1p.m on Election Day and because of this we did not have a copy because they had only one copy for EO. We
proceeded on what we had to do because people were lining up for elections we did not want to disappoint the
people.” (Polling-Day-Worker-D, 2014)

ENABLING FACTORS
How to Vote
Figure 21: How to Vote
Direct Particpants
29% of the direct respondents said it was NGOs and 22% said it was media, 15% family and 13% community, 4% said the current
political situation, 2% said religious groups and the rest had no response or said others.
83% of the indirect respondents said that NGOs helped them understand how to vote, followed by 6% family and 5% media. The
rest didn’t respond or said other factors without elaborating.
These results were unexpected as direct participants had undergone comprehensive training on the electoral system, leadership
skills, manifestos, how to vote and mock voting, as such one would expect them to cite NGOs as enabling factor at a higher rate.
Random Participants
On the other hand, only 1 respondent from the random selection identified NGOs as an an enabling factor in helping them
understand how to vote. In fact 31% cited media, 25% said family and 11% said community, 5% said the current political
situation, 1% said religion and the rest said others or did not respond. It is interesting to note that while no random participant
identified the NGO’s as an enabling factor, apart from the Elections Office and the political parties, the FWRM had advertisements
in the media around elections and voting.

From the random respondents, 38% young women said the media whereas 23% women aged 36+ said the media was an
enabling factor to understand how to vote.
Importance of Voting
Figure 22: Importance of Voting
Direct Participants
The importance of voting for 27% of the respondents with the direct participants was realised through NGOs, 22% through the
media, 18% via family, 11% through the community and 4% from the current political situation. The rest said others or did not
respond.
64% of the respondents from the indirect participants said they realised the importance of voting through NGOs, 13% said the
media, 9% said family, 2% said community and the rest said others or did not respond.
Random Participants
In the random selection, 27% said it was family that made them realise the importance of voting, 20% said it was the media, 14%
said the community, 10% said it was because of the current political situation they realised and only 3% said it was NGOs. The
rest did not respond or said others.
29% younger women and 24% women aged 36+ said it was family that was an enabling factor for them to understand the
importance of voting.

To decide on a Candidate to vote for
Figure 23: Choosing a Candidate
The respondents were asked what or who determined their choice of candidates and 39% (n=136) of the respondents in all the
samples refused to answer.
Direct Participants
22% said family, 11% said the current political situation, 9% said the community, 5% said it was the media and 2% said NGOs and
2% said religion. 5% said others whereas the rest refused to answer. 40% were younger women and 11% women aged 36+ that
said family was an enabling factor in choosing a candidate. 15% younger women and 9% women aged 36+ said the political
situation was an enabling factor. It is assumed that when women chose these factors, it was seen as a positive factor.

Figure 24 Enabling factors - To decide on a Candidate
Within the indirect selection, 20% said it was NGOs that enabled them to make the decision whom to vote for, 13% said family,
6% said media, 5% said community, 3% said the current political situation and 6% said others, with the rest of the respondents
refusing to answer. From this, 33% younger women and 9% women aged 36+ found family as an enabling factor whereas 22%
younger women and 20% women aged 36+ found NGOs as an enabling factor to decide whom to vote for.
Random Participants
In the random selection, 31% of the respondents said it was family, 14% said it was the current political situation, 8% said it was
the community, 7% said it was the media, 1% said it was religion, with 3% saying other factors and the rest refusing to answer.
Out of which 33% younger women and 28% women aged 36+ that said it was family that was an enabling factor.
Overall, 26% of the respondents said it was family, followed by 11% saying it was the current political situation.
More younger women were identifying enabling factors than women aged 36+. This could be a reflection of most of the younger
women being first time voters. Interestingly women aged 36+ (n=26) declined to respond to this question at a much larger
number than younger women (n=15), only within the FWRM and community networks. This could indicate that women 36+ were
more inclined to keep secret their candidate or the person that they intend to vote for and how they made this decision. This
could also be attributed to the fact that older women had voted previously and were more privy to post electoral coup culture,
therefore they did not want to disclose any political position.
Information that assisted women participate in the process
Figure 25: Source of Information that assisted participation in the process

The respondents were also asked what information did they find enabling for voting and overall from all the groups, 32% said
information on the electoral system and another 32% said information on how to vote. Only 11% said information on why to
vote was enabling, 7% said information on the constitution and the rest said other issues or gave no responses. 32% younger
women and 31% women aged 36+ said it was the electoral system, 34% younger women and 31% women aged 36+ said it
was information on how to vote that assisted them in making a decision and casting their vote. 12% younger women and 11%
said information on why to vote assisted them. 10% younger women and 5% women aged 36+ said it was information on the
constitution that assisted them. It appears that information on how to vote and the electoral system were the major deciding
factors that assisted women to vote.
DISABLING MECHANISMS
It was interesting to note when asked what the respondents found disabling to participate in the process a considerable majority
said they did not want to respond.
Family Community Religion Current Political Situation NGOS Media Others No barriers
Indirect 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 63
Direct 1 2 1 5 0 1 3 42
Random 2 3 1 4 0 1 6 212
Table 3: Disabling Mechanisms
Family Community Religion
Current
Political
Situation
NGOS Media Others
No
barriers
Indirect 18-35 0 1 0 2 0 0 1 16
Direct 18-35 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 9
Random 18-35 1 3 0 3 0 1 4 114
TOTAL 18-35 1 4 0 5 0 1 5 139
Indirect 36+ 1 1 1 3 0 1 2 26
Direct 36+ 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 54
Random 36+ 1 0 1 1 0 0 2 98
TOTAL 36+ 2 1 2 4 0 1 5 178
Table 4: Disabling Mechanisms by Age Group
It is important to break down the disabling factors into the different groups because 98% of indirect respondents did not face
any hindrance/barriers to their participation in the electoral processes.
76% of the direct respondents did not face any hindrance/barriers to their participation in the electoral processes, 9% said the
current political situation, 4% said the community, 2% said family, 2% said the media and 5% said others. 10% younger women
and 9% women aged 36+ from the direct respondents said it was the political situation that hindered their participation.
91% of the respondents from the random selection did not face any hindrance/barriers to their participation in the electoral
processes with 3% saying the current political situation and 1% each for the media, family, community, religion and 3% for
others. 2% younger women and nearly 1% women aged 36+ said it was the political situation that hindered their participation.
Based on observation made by research assistants, most women did not identify any barriers since the elections were deemed to
be successful by the Elections Office and the Multinational Observer Group.

INTENTION TO VOTE IN THE ELECTIONS
Figure 26: Intention to Vote in the 2014 Elections
Only 77% of the random respondents said they intended to vote in the 2014 elections compared to 96% direct respondents
and 97% indirect respondents. The respondents that did not intend to vote were further probed as to why and 70% random
participants said they had no faith in the electoral system, 16% said not sure who to vote for and 12% said the voting process was
too cumbersome. The respondents that did not intend to vote from the direct and indirect respondents said they did not have
faith in the system.
Figure 27: Intention to Vote in the 2014 Elections by Age Group
29% younger women and 13% women aged 36+ from the random selection said they were not intending to vote in the
elections. Out of which 20% younger women and 10% women aged 36+ said it was because they had no faith in the electoral
system, 5% younger women and 2% women aged 36+ said they did not know whom to vote for and 4% younger women and 1%
women aged 36+ said the voting process was too cumbersome.
Women from the direct and indirect participants appeared firmly resolved to vote in the elections and the trainings and materials
they had access to could have influenced their decision to vote compared to the women in the random selection that did not
attend or have access to voting materials.

VOTING DAY
Face-to-Face Results
Voted in the 2014 elections
Figure 28: Voted in the 2014 Elections
The respondents were asked after voting whether they voted and 97% of the indirect respondents had voted, 93% of the direct
respondents had and 92% of the random selection respondents had. Considerable majority of the respondents that voted felt
that it was their opportunity to exercise their citizenry rights to vote and a small minority voted only because they thought it was
compulsory to vote.

Figure 29 Voted in the 2014 Elections
95% younger women and 91% women aged 36+ from the direct participants voted in the 2014 elections, compared to 100%
younger women and 96% women aged 36+ from the indirect participants, 91% younger women and 93% women aged 36+ from
the random sample.
Even though women in the random sample said they didn’t intend to vote, a larger block of women did eventually vote.
Voted for a Female Candidate
Figure 30: Voted for a Female Candidate
The majority of the respondents did not vote for women. From the direct participants only 27% voted for women compared
to 27% indirect respondents and 32% random respondents. Given the level of involvement by the direct participants, it was
expected that the number of people voting for women would be higher, at least relative to the respondents from the random
selection who had not been part of any FWRM training or awareness campaigns or events.
A high percentage of women did not vote for a woman candidate in the 2014 elections - 78% younger women and 65% women
aged 36+ from the indirect participants, 55% younger women and 65% women aged 36+ from the direct participants and 55%
younger women and 68% women aged 36+ from the random selection.

Figure 31 Voted for a Female Candidate by Age Group
Reasons for not voting for a female candidate
Figure 32: Reasons for not voting for a female candidate

The respondents that did not vote for women were asked why they didn’t vote for a woman and majority refrained from
answering this question or said they did not wish to specify the reason. A smaller number said that none of the female
candidates campaign appealed to them which was predominately the reason given by all the respondents, followed by
respondents stating that women are not good leaders, women’s competing roles makes them less competent leaders and that
politics is reserved for men.
There was no substantial difference between the age groups in the reasons that women did not vote for a female candidate.
From the respondents that did vote for women, majority said they did because it was“time more women were at the helm”.
Experiences on Election Day
The women were also asked of their voting experiences and a substantial majority of the women in all the groups said they had
very good or good experiences. Women were also asked if they experienced any obstacles on voting day with overall 14% of the
women saying they did, and majority said they experienced challenges regrading logistical arrangements on the day. There was
no substantial difference in the age groups.
Figure 33: Experiences on voting day

Perception of Women Elected as Member’s of Parliament
Figure 34: Perception of Females as elected as MPs
Even though only 16% of women have been elected to the parliament, 88% from the indirect participants said they were
satisfied with that number, 73% from the direct participants said they were satisfied and 74% from the random selection.
When asked why were they satisfied majority of all the respondents said at least women are represented and that these women
candidates will make a difference. Considerable number of respondents said it was a good representation.

Figure 35: Satisfaction with the number of females elected as Members of Parliament
The respondents that were not satisfied were asked why they were not and majority of them said there could have been more
women elected and a minority said that more women should have been elected based on the ratio of women voters – no
respondent from the community network said this however. A small number of respondents said that women were not provided
with equal campaign opportunities, though no respondents from the community network said this.

Figure 36: Perception of women who were not satisfied with the number of females elected
Focus Group Results and Key Informant Interviews
All participants especially first time voters in the focus groups demonstrated satisfaction with voting. They felt that voting ran
smoothly with only minor hiccups being encountered such as inability of polling day workers to find names on the electoral roll,
no special arrangements for the elderly etc.
Some women raised concerns with regards to the ballot paper and locating the numbers of the candidate they wanted to vote
for in the voter information booklet. It was suggested by them that the names on the voter information booklet could have been
in alphabetical order which would have made it easier for voters to locate the numbers of their preferred candidate. While some
also suggested that the voter information booklet should also have contained political party symbols.
Some young women stated that they were told by their family members on whom to vote for while some voted for candidates
and parties without much information on what the candidate or the party stood for.
Polling day workers stated that the mood at the polling stations on polling day was at times chaotic. Polling stations were not set
up, there were no tarpaulin provided to shade people from the sun during the day. One presiding officer admitted that:
“The venue was a shed. There was no tarpaulin provided to shield the place from wind and rain- I thought it was
cold and inconvenient. I had to look for tarpaulin from the neighbours to shelter from the wind. I had been at the
venue at 12:00p.m. on 16th
September, we were told that the place would be set up then. By 4:00p.m. my other team
members arrived but nothing was set up. I decided to go the that national office to find out- they said they were
on their way. By 7:30p.m. we had only received ballot boxes. I checked the venue at 11:00p.m. again there was no
set up done. By 4:00a.m. when I arrived at the polling station on 17th
September only desks and chairs were there.”
(Presiding-Officer-LC, 2014)

Another polling day worker stated that:
“The Presiding Officer was not very familiar with all the polling day workers in his team since the list that was given
to him by EO and the one advertised on the newspaper was different. There was a lack in manpower in the venue-
so polling day workers had to swap in the different venues to fill in. There was no time for lunch but since the crowd
died out we could have lunch… meal allowance was not given- they mentioned that the package included the
meal allowance. We were paid almost a month later” (Polling-Day-Worker-D, 2014)
They concluded by acknowledging while they value and savour the experience of being part of the process, the process in future
could be better organized.
In terms of voting for female candidates, many participants
noted that they were unaware of how many female
candidates were standing for elections because either
these female candidates were being overshadowed by
their party leaders or the media did not provide female
candidates with the appropriate coverage they needed
to be recognized. Overall all the participants were
content and pleased to note that despite the challenges
faced by female candidates a good number of women
parliamentarians were elected. They expressed hope
that these women parliamentarians would now raise
the issues women face in the parliament ensuring that
policies and laws are more responsive to their needs.
Female candidates who were unsuccessful in the 2014
elections also raised concerns on why women did not
vote for women candidates. They examined the role
of the Fiji Women’s Forum and what the Forum could
have done to raise the profile of female candidates
whilst also providing more support to them. They
pointed out that more education and advocacy is
required if the status of political participation of
women is to improve in Fiji.

RECOMMENDATIONS
1. The study clearly shows that women who attended the FWRM trainings and community workshops (direct and indirect
participants) of all age groups were more motivated to participate and did participate in the electoral processes. Trainings
and workshops need to be frequent to further development of knowledge and empower them to actively engage in
political processes.
2. The researchers faced logistical problems in identifying direct and indirect participants, which suggests that FWRM could
better structure its community training. The ad-hoc cascaded approach was effective, but needs to be strengthened
and institutionalized for future projects like this. This could be in the form of building a network of trained community
facilitators, who undergo a comprehensive training-of-trainers (content and methodology). These community facilitators
then become volunteers for FWRM on the ground and can be mobilized at any time FWRM needs their assistance. It would
also enhance the capacity of FWRM to effectively reach out to communities.
3. There were some questions where participants were either reticent or found it difficult to answer for unknown reasons.
FWRM, while inviting participants for training, must impress upon them the importance of taking part in monitoring and
evaluations.
4. Many randomly selected women overwhelmingly identified the media as an enabling factor when it came information
on how to vote and importance of voting. Their answers also show radio is still the best medium of sharing information.
Therefore, FWRM should maintain this strategy and further intensify its media campaigns.
5. Indirect participants found that the training and training materials particularly useful, and felt that they were enabled them
to effectively participate in the electoral processes. This could be for a variety of reasons. It is recommended that evaluations
from FWRM trainers continue to be conducted and diligently followed, with a stronger emphasis on follow up. This could
include interviews with the women in the community networks on the quality of the training. This will help improve FWRM
training and the collection of relevant information for monitoring and evaluation research.
6. In order to increase women’s political participation it will be useful for FWRM and other women’s organizations (either
independently or in collaboration) to intensify the campaign for women’s leadership. This could include the distribution of
women candidates’information to the wider public to ensure that women candidates profiles gets more attention during
the campaigning period. In doing so, FWRM and the Fiji Women’s Forum could:
a. Develop cross-party networks of women;
b. Continue to advocate improved media coverage of women’s issues and women candidates, as begun with the gender
and media toolkit developed under this project;
However, restrictive legislation may limit organisations’abilities to implement this recommendation.
7. Further develop gender-sensitive voter and civic education messages that highlight the capacities of women as candidates
and political leaders
a. To increase the chances of women voting for women candidates, media messages and training materials should more
clearly address how having more women in parliament benefits them.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Fiji Government. (2014, March 28). Electoral Decree 2014. Suva: Government Printer.
Fiji Live. (2014, March 19). Electoral Commission Meets with NGOs. Retrieved September 19, 2014, from Fiji Live: http://fijilive.com/
news/2014/03/electoral-commission-meets-with-ngos/56929.Fijilive
Fiji One. (2014, March 19). Electoral Commission meets NGO’s on voter education. Retrieved September 19, 2014, from Fiji One:
http://fijione.tv/electoral-commission-meets-ngos-on-voter-education/
Fijian Elections Office. (2014, August 3). Retrieved September 30, 2014, from Fijian Elections Office: http://www.electionsfiji.gov.fj/
one-fiji-party-registered-as-political-party/
Polling-Day-Worker-D. (2014, November 20). Interview with polling day Worker. (M. Goundan, Interviewer)
Presiding-Officer-LC. (2014, November 19). Interview with a Polling Day Worker. (M. Goundan, Interviewer)
Radio New Zealand International. (2014, April 2). NGOs in Fiji requesting removal of Electoral Decree provision. Retrieved September
19, 2014, from Radio New Zealand International: http://www.radionz.co.nz/international/programmes/datelinepacific/
audio/2591184/ngos-in-fiji-requesting-removal-of-electoral-decree-provision

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