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Gloria Nema’s upbringing was influenced by her parents’ careers in anthropology and agriculture, steering her towards a career of engaging with Pacific peoples and communities.
Hailing from Goroka, Eastern Highlands Province of Papua New Guinea, Ms Nema’s passion for working in the development sector has been fuelled by the relationships and connections she has built working with people from diverse communities and backgrounds.
“It has humbled my family and me, and seeing that input, whether small or big, actually makes a positive difference in another person’s life. It gives me so much satisfaction.”
Ms Nema is the Pacific Women Lead (PWL) at the Pacific Community’s (SPC) Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) Officer. She contributes to the ongoing improvement of the programme’s monitoring and reporting to ensure efficient and effective data collection and analysis of progress towards outcomes.
“Day-to-day, my work involves capacitating PWL staff and partners on MEL systems and tools while coordinating with the PWL whole-of-portfolio MEL team and the Human Rights and Social Development Division’s MEL-KMC (Knowledge Management and Communications) Unit to ensure alignment of strategic documents and collaborations between teams,” she said.
Initially joining the division’s MEL-KMC Unit in 2022, she transitioned to PWL at SPC this year to deeply apply her skills to SPC’s gender programming.
“I had experience, and I knew I would enjoy working with the team. I felt that my contributions would be valued because I am working with a programme that specifically aims to appease gender inequality and better the lives of diverse women and girls.”
Ms Nema had not always envisioned a career in the development sector. In childhood, she had set her sights on becoming a veterinarian
“My dream job was to be a vet. From a very early age, I had my sight set on a pathway towards attaining my certification in veterinarian science,” she said.
“This was until year 12, when I didn’t make it into the medical faculty of science at the university I was aiming for. I know now God had other plans for me because I would not trade the world for where I am and what I’ve gained in the last 10-plus years of my career."
She is now encouraging young social science graduates to join the development sector. Ms Nema believes that it is an excellent starting point for anyone looking to learn and start to pave the way forward for their own career path.
“The fact that there are organisations with effective systems and processes in place and amazing professionals who support you and help you learn as you go, recognise your potential, to progress at different stages, is great for motivation and growth.”
Ms Nema lives by the sentiment "wanem samting yu mekim long narapela man/meri, ol ba bekim na mekim wankain long yu"
This means that how you treat others will affect how others treat you, so if you do good to someone, they will repay the good deed.
“This is something I live by, to do good always without expecting anything in return as I believe in one way or another, directly or indirectly, my good deed will be repaid in some form or way,” she said.
About Pacific Women Lead
Pacific Women Lead is one of the largest global commitments to gender equality, Pacific Women Lead aims to promote women’s leadership, realise women’s rights, and increase the effectiveness of regional gender equality efforts.
The Pacific Women Lead (PWL) programme at the Pacific Community (SPC), termed PWL at SPC, has more than AUD 55 million dedicated to its work under the Australian Government’s AUD 170 million Pacific Women Lead portfolio. This partnership with the Australian Government commits SPC to deliver the PWL programme, as the cornerstone for the portfolio.
