Veena Singh

Program Coordinator for Rise Up! Leadership Initiative in Asia Pacific (Fiji)

Veena Singh is a Fiji Islander, born and raised in a small rural town in Fiji and is of mixed ethnicity (her mum is an Indigenous Fijian woman and her dad is a Fiji Islander of Indian descent). She is a feminist development practitioner and is a strong advocate of ‘shifting powers to create positive change’ and in ‘building an economy of kindness’. Her work experience has largely been in the areas of Human Rights, Gender Equality and Social Inclusion, and she has more than 18 years of professional experience working specifically in women and children’s rights, Women, Peace and Security (UNSCR 1325), Human Security, Community Development and Community Media.

Veena has worked and volunteered for several Fiji and Regional based NGOs and agencies before joining the World YWCA- The Pacific Community (SPC), Fiji Women’s Rights Movement, FemLINKPacific, Fiji Red Cross and Save the Children (Fiji). Additionally, Veena has worked on a wide range of development areas and issues, including Access to Justice, Conflict Prevention and Peacebuilding, Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR), Women’s Political Participation, Leadership and in Decision Making, and more recently in the area of Gender Statistics. Outside of the office, she likes to work on promoting and protecting the environment; raising awareness on positive mental health and wellbeing; and spending time on writing.

She is a mum to 11 cats, proud wearer of sarees and a collector of postcards. Veena holds a Degree in Community Development with Murdoch University (Australia) and a Postgraduate Diploma in Social Policy with the Fiji National University.