A Busy 2025 sees V4C Program Expand its Reach and Impact

V4C EOY Wrap 2025

 

Another busy year draws to a close for the Vanuatu Volleyball Federation (VVF) with much good work done by the Volley4Change crew in the provinces, as well as in the main program centres of Port Vila and Luganville.

As with all of VVFs program work, there are constant ongoing challenges which are taken on with determination, and most often result in valuable lessons learned. One of the key learnings from the V4C program in recent years – and again this past year – has been the importance of partnerships, especially those relationships which are more about collaboration and support, based on common objectives and passions.

The Volley4Change program again reached an increasing number of island communities in the northern provinces, with a visit also to the south, exploring the program’s potential on Tanna Island, in TAFEA Province, as well as continuing to embrace the valuable provincial partnerships which enable VVF to pursue these development goals across its program range.

HELPR-1

A clear example of fruitful partnerships is the wonderful and productive relationship established over the past 3 years with the HELPR-1 initiative, as part of the Respond Global, which has enabled the V4C program to be delivered to some of the more remote islands and communities of Vanuatu.

V4C senior development officer Stanley Toa joined HELPR-1 on three separate trips in 2025.

In March, skirting around some of the more remote north, north-west coastal communities of Santo, in SANMA Province, where V4C, along with Vanuatu Cricket, visited communities in West Coast Santo, Nth West Santo and Big Bay Coast, before returning to Luganville.

Stanley Toa used this opportunity to not only deliver the V4C Awareness program, but to visit schools and speak with students about the importance of physical activity, particularly through sport, as well as also keeping a ‘talent ID’ eye on potential future stars, looking for students who showed interest in Beach Volleyball and people with disabilities for Sitting Volleyball.

In August, Stanley returned to be part of another HELPR-1 expedition, to some of the Santo communities around the Big Bay Coast region and North-West Santo, to again deliver V4C Awareness sessions to both mamas and students in the local villages and communities such as Pesena, Pealalup, Malao, Matantas and Olboi, receiving very positive feedback and requests for the V4C program to return – which will be happening in early 2026.

Following their last stop at Wusi Village, ending a couple of busy weeks at sea, the brilliant HELPR-1 crew brought the whole touring team back to base in Luganville.

As the year seemed to be winding up, HELPR-1 squeezed in one last trip north in late November, early December and of course, Volley4Change development leader Stanley Toa, along with VVF member Isaac Mael, were back on board for a 10-day trip to PENAMA Province, taking the V4C program to those regional communities.

The focus for this outreach would be delivering the V4C Awareness program; gathering important data as part of that; running volleyball activities for Youth participants (U18), and, of course supporting other members of the expedition – from NGO and government staff to medical teams with equipment assistance when needed. Being part of the HELPR-1 family means it’s always ‘all hands on deck’.

The first couple of days included quick stops in Sola and then Maewo, before heading to Pentecost.

Once on Pentecost, Stanley Toa conducted interviews with select members of the various remote communities, starting with those from Bay Barrier Village (East Pentecost Island), as part of some qualitative data gathering. He then created modified games which he and Isaac managed with participants, including local pikinini. Interestingly, with Bay Barrier Village being quite remote, located on the far side of Pentecost Island, the team discovered that no other sports federations had ever visited there.

Having delivered the Awareness sessions, again there was much positive feedback from local area leaders in most of the visited villages and communities, about the program and the prospects of V4C staff returning in the future to deliver the full program, with added coaching courses and referee training elements.

A notable point raised in these discussions was the fact that in this area, men and boys played sport (football), but women and girls did very little in terms of physical activityor sport; something V4C would look to address through the gender inclusion elements of the program.

With the tour winding up a full week into December, the main message from across the Pentecost communities, was a strong desire for the program to return in 2026, keen to see the development of volleyball on the island and the impact of the V4C messaging.

Again, it was with huge thanks to HELPR-1 and her crew as this final trip ended their busy year, with her then heading off for a much-deserved rest in dry-dock in Brisbane.

 

V4C to Tanna Island

Volley4Change also took the opportunity in May to head in the opposite direction, south to Tanna Island, where Stanley Toa took the V4C program to new territory in the TAFEA Province, delivering a 3-day V4C workshop. This marked an historic milestone for volleyball development in the southern province.

Delivering both V4C Awareness sessions and a Referee Refresher Training course, there was strong participation from across the island, with a couple of mamas from Aneityum Island also joining, and who would later request that the V4C Awareness program & Referee training could also be run on their home island.

 

V4C and the SANMA Sports Committee

The second half of the year shaped up to be as busy as the first, with Stanley heading to Ambae in July – a strong volleyball community – to conduct a 3-day Referee Refresher course and of course, Volley4Change Awareness sessions, across two village communities.

He also spent time across the following months joining with the SANMA Sports Committee in what has become a strong collaboration in supporting sporting development in the local communities. Included as part of this were visits to South Santo Area councils, to deliver sports awareness sessions, as well as supporting several Joint Area Council Games events happening in August, September and October.

The outcome of much of the early work was reflected in the delivery of the SANMA Joint Area Games 2025 pre-event workshop, which involved V4C conducting a coaching session to 17 local community participants/coaches who came from South Santo Areas 1 and 2.

In mid-October, Stanley was joined by VVF colleagues from Port Vila – Stivano Banga and Terry Newman – who helped coordinate and deliver volleyball activities at the Santo Area Games in Nampahuk Village, again pre-empted by a couple of days of coaching sessions for local coaches.

Stivano stayed on with Stanley into November when heading up the coast to North Santo, specifically visiting Olboi Village in the north-west of the island.

As has become the pattern, they delivered a 2-day V4C workshop which also included sessions on community coaching and even a Referee Refresher course for all the local referees from the West Coast and North West Santo Area council.

 

VSPD

One of Vanuatu Volleyball’s two key partners in the Volley4Change program, as part of the Australia Government-funded Team Up initiative, is the Vanuatu Society for People with Disability, where weekly V4C Sitting Volleyball sessions in Port Vila are delivered.

Throughout each year, this program has grown in participation, outputs and outcomes, with many of the regular participants joining VVF at special events, advocating for inclusion and raised awareness for people with disabilities from the community.

There were also some special highlights during the year, as regular V4C program development officer Stiv Banga was joined on one occasion by his new TeamVanuatu National Men’s team playing partner Fletcher Abel in delivering one of the weekly sessions, much to the delight of the VSPD regulars!

And in the same theme, after returning from their international duties, the National Beach Volleyball women joined a session at VSPD in Port Vila, which was led by development officer and their assistant coach Manu Maki, with support from development officer Alfonic Tao.

The support of V4C from the high performance athletes is something VVF management encourage, underlining the importance of these role models in advocating for development and inclusion through sport, and also looking to give the athletes.

 

Work4Life – Santo

When back at the V4C office in Luganville, Stanley Toa also facilitates what are referred to as Work4Life activities. During those weeks, he is joined by staff and management from various NGOs, CSOs and the business sector, including Red Cross, World Vision, Vodafone, Vanuatu Tourism and even SANMA Provincial government and Sports Council staff for volleyball activities, where these sessions underline the importance of physical activity and team work.

 

Special Events

Aside from the regular program elements in village communities across Vanuatu, VVF is also a keen and active participant when supporting major events and marking special days.

This year, we were again busy with annual events such as International Women’s Day, International Day of Sport for Development & Peace (IDSDP) and International Day of People with Disability (IDPD), but in addition to those, VVF supported VASANOC in its advocacy for Play Tru Day and National Health Week, underlining the importance of integrity in sport – promoting clean and fair sport – and the health benefits of sport.

As the year wrapped up, IDPD (3 December) was marked in both Port Vila and Santo, with the V4C crew in PV participating in the Vanuatu Ministry of Justice and Community Services (MOJ) event held at Pango Village, on the southern coastal edge of Port Vila.

VVF/V4C staff set up a Sitting Volleyball court for activities and competition as part of the broader event where the MOJ partnered with Vanuatu Society for People with Disability (VSPD – V4C program partner) and Vanuatu Disability Promotion & Advocacy (VDPAA) for this event, among others.

Up north, in SANMA Province, more specifically on Malo Island, Stanley Toa joined the SANMA Province (West Malo Area Council) and local community in celebrating IDPD, with people of ALL abilities participating in some Sitting Volleyball games, bringing the community together. It was a good test for people with disability and other participants to be part of the sitting volleyball, learning some of the basics about movement on the different court setup and some of the rules.

 

Capacity Building/Development

Another key aspect of the work being done by Vanuatu Volleyball is the dedication to ensuring staff, coaches and volunteers get capacity building opportunities, in both developing and enhancing skills needed for their work.

As an example, V4C coach Stivano Banga achieved his Sitting Volleyball Level 2 Coaching qualification from World ParaVolley, with which VVF has an MOU and increasing collaboration.

Stanley Toa also found time in his busy year to attend the 2025 ParaVolley Asia Oceania (PVAO) Sitting Volleyball Championships in June, in China, having been selected by the PVAO Board to officiate as a Jury member for the competition.

This invitation to again attend this event as an official, underlines the ongoing capacity building work being done by Stanley and the V4C staff, supported by regional and international partners.

In mid-November, a TEAM UP Workshop on Gender inclusivity was held in Port Vila.  There were some strong learnings and discussions for participants focussing on themes such as stereotypes, gender norms, inequalities, disabilities and other challenges that hinder participation and create stigma in sports.

 

ASP

One of the key elements over many years for VVF has been its dedication to bringing the sport of volleyball to the pikinini of Vanuatu.

This happens through the delivery of the After School Program (ASP), sponsored by Titan FX Vanuatu,  held each week during the school terms, with participation of up to 100 children most weeks.

Our coaches support the development of children aged from 10 to 16 years, with a special separate program for U18 Youth development.

Again, with the VVF focus on program interrelationships, one of the highlights is the additional involvement of senior national coaches and players, when available, in support of the program.

As highlighted in this wrap, partnerships have also played a key role in the ongoing efforts to achieve V4C objectives.

 

One of these newer partnerships is with the FIVB Foundation, which selected V4C in 2025 as 1 of 4 programs globally to receive support for its community development work.

It was indeed a very busy year for the Volley4Change program, with a lot of territory covered and a lot of V4C sessions delivered, as well as ongoing advocacy for the objectives of the program, which are inclusion in all its forms, for women and people with disabilities, in local villages and communities throughout Vanuatu.