Anna Ravendran (past volunteer) – Youth Worker on VSA's UniVol programme in Vanuatu

Before leaving New Zealand Anna was living in Lower Hutt and completing her degree in Development Studies and International Relations at Victoria University.

What Anna is doing in Vanuatu

Anna worked for Northern Care Youth Centre (NCYC), a sister organisation to Vanuatu NGO Wan Smolbag. The centre runs many activities and also a clinic which provides information about sexually transmitted infections (STIs), family planning and substance abuse. 

Anna worked closely with six peer educators and the nurse at the clinic to organise school programmes and target groups in communities. She also taught basic computer skills and helped the nurse enter client information.

Making a positive impact

Anna really enjoyed being part of a team that helped to raise awareness about issues that are generally avoided elsewhere in the Vanuatu community. She felt that the work she did to report on the day-to-day activities and success of the youth centre was really useful to secure ongoing funding.

Anna’s highlights

“I loveed working at NCYC. It’s nice not be constrained to an office and be able to meet so many local youth. It’s also been great to see how development works in practice instead of just reading about it in a text book!”

What Vanuatu has taught Anna

“It is possible to wear jerseys in a tropical country and to fall sick in ‘winter’.”

“Discovering that I stand out and am still called a ‘white woman’ even though I’m Sri Lankan!”

“I have definitely taken what I have in New Zealand for granted, for example, an education. This is especially so when I talk to young people at the centre who have had to leave school because their family can’t afford their school fees.”