Kiki's Story

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I was born in Chuuk  in the Federated States of Micronesia. I was raised by my mother who was the Chief Nurse at our State Hospital, and I grew up wanting to be a nurse, too, and to help others.  My family was dominated by strong, hard working women who taught me cultural values and influenced my views of life, the world I live in and the importance of helping others.

The biggest challenge for women in Chuuk is access to education. Unfortunately, in many Chuukese households, girls are overlooked by parents when it comes to education decisions, meaning that they may do whatever it takes to educate their sons, often at the expense of their daughters’ education.  

In some cases, it is because they may fear losing their daughter to the outside world or feel that women do not need education in order to run a household. Some feel that education will only contribute to the decline of Chuukese culture and traditions. 

My mother was one of the original founders of the Chuuk Women’s Council . Back in 1984, a few civic- minded women realized that in order to be more successful and bring about significant change, individual community groups needed to join forces, communicate better and share resources.  From their efforts, the Chuuk Women’s Advisory Council was born, which later became the Chuuk Women’s Council. A primary focus for us is to promote education for all of our children regardless of gender.

Many of the classes and trainings we provide are mostly for the advancement of women who have not completed school. It has been inspiring to see the courage that they now demonstrate in taking so many small steps toward their dreams.

Our education and prevention work  on chronic, non-communicable diseases has resulted in significant life changes in the behavior of the women, and these influences are very noticeable in families and communities. We’ve been successful in getting laws passed that protect women and girls from domestic violence and other abuse.

One of my favorite phrases that we have here is “Keep It Local,” meaning that we are run by and for the community, and everything – from the design of our programs, to the staff who volunteer with us, to the products we use – reflects and maintains Chuukese culture and values.  We are grandmothers, mothers and sisters who care and are very committed to a healthier and safer Chuuk for everyone.

Kiki Stinnett is President of the Chuuk Women’s Council. In 2011, the CWC partnered with the Office of Minority Health Resource Center’s Pacific Project to provide training to community based health organizations and launch a nationwide HIV/STD/TB and diabetes education and awareness campaign. That same year, Kiki was honored by the U.S. State Department’s 100 Women Initiative, an international exchange program for women leaders, celebrated by Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Vital Stats
Federated States of Mirconesia (medium HDI)		United States (very high HDI)
Human Development Index	0.640	Human Development Index	0.915
Life expectancy at birth	69.1 years	Life expectancy at birth	79.1 years
Expected schooling	11.7 years	Expected schooling	16.5 years
Mean schooling	9.7 years	Mean schooling	12.9 years
Gross National Income (GNI) per capita	$3,432.1	Gross National Income (GNI) per capita	$52,946.5
Sources: Human Development Report 2015. Micronesia (Federated States of). United Nations Development Programme. Human Development Report 2015. United States. United Nations Development Programme.