New Zealand Supports Women Leaders

THE PERMANENT SECRETARY of a government ministry, the national general secretary of an international NGO, and a member of parliament were among six women leaders from the South Pacific who participated in the 2006 Leaders in Development (LID) executive education program, which brings together senior officials from around the world to discuss decisions they face in countries undergoing economic and political change.

Their attendance was made possible by NZAID, New Zealand’Äôs international aid and development agency, which will fund six women each year from the Pacific Islands to attend the program through 2008. NZAID and the Council of Women World Leaders (CWWL), a network of current and former heads of state, which recommended the Kennedy School program, collaborated to support this program.

’ÄúNZAID wants to provide these women with an opportunity for professional growth and development and to encourage them to stay in some form of public service,’Äù says Patricia Deyton KSGEE 1998, former executive director and now senior consultant to CWWL. ’ÄúThey are very proud to be selected for this program. It’Äôs a huge honor.’Äù

’ÄúI was impressed by the fact that the NZAID fellows were strong contributors in the classroom despite the fact that they represent small island countries. They were prepared to speak out and share their views’Äù said John Thomas MPA 1964, faculty cochair. ’ÄúThese women had a valuable impact on the makeup and dynamic of the class.’Äù

One of the NZAID fellows, Emma Kruse Vaai, deputy vice chancellor of the National University of Samoa, wrote after attending the program in June: ’ÄúAlthough we came from different walks of life, we found much in common in our own aspirations for the development of our countries and people.’Äù The experience taught her, she added, that her part of the world is not so different from many other places. It’Äôs a lesson that she, as well as her fellow Pacific Islanders, taught to other participants as well.

Support from organizations such as NZAID enables executive education to attract a rich and diverse group of participants to attend its programs, individuals who may otherwise not have the funding or support to attend.