When Kosrae passed a landmark bill granting 12 weeks of paid maternity leave for female state government employees in 2022, it marked a turning point for workplace gender equality in the Federated States of Micronesia. But for the Utwe Women Organization (UWO), it was also just the beginning.
“There cannot be equality at home when only one parent is given the time to care,” noted Krystle Melander, Project Manager at UWO.
With support from the Pacific People Advancing Change (PPAC) programme, and funding through the Pacific Women Lead (PWL) programme at SPC, UWO set out to address a critical gap: the absence of paternity leave for fathers in Kosrae's public sector.
Their message was simple but bold: Paternity leave is of equal importance to maternity leave.
Under Kosrae’s amended maternity leave law, women working for the state government, regardless of contract type, were entitled to three months of paid maternity leave.
However, no such provision existed for fathers. The result? Women shouldered the early months of caregiving alone, often while navigating recovery and household responsibilities, while their partners returned to work immediately.
UWO’s proposal highlighted the consequences of weakened early bonding between father and child, reinforced gendered caregiving roles, and missed opportunities to strengthen family relationships. Their solution was clear: to introduce a bill that grants paid paternity leave for male state employees to bridge that gap.
Supported by PPAC’s training and mentoring, UWO designed an advocacy strategy grounded in community engagement. They conducted leadership workshops, mobilised youth groups, and trained men in advocacy skills. These weren’t just one-off token consultations; they were intergenerational dialogues that built trust, surfaced real-life stories, and amplified public support for the proposed paternity leave bill.
Despite a packed local calendar in 2024 for the State of Kosrae and the FSM national government, including the FSM Expo, FestPac, and Kosrae’s own Women’s Conference, UWO adapted.
While formal sessions with the legislature were delayed, UWO members personally met with state senators to discuss the draft bill, share community feedback, and gather commitments of support.
In parallel, UWO invested in storytelling.
Young members of the Utwe Youth Group were trained to use video equipment to document community voices. These videos captured the perspectives of fathers, traditional leaders, and youth who saw paternity leave not as a “women’s issue” but as a shared responsibility.
“When fathers take leave, it’s not just about rest. It’s about bonding, caregiving, and saying that both parents matter,” shared one workshop participant.
By June 2024, UWO had achieved what many saw as ambitious: a draft paternity leave bill had been introduced to the Kosrae State Legislature, with 11 senators already expressing support, which was the majority needed for passage.
More than 40 men, double the original target, had participated in UWO’s workshops, reinforcing that conversations about equity, care, and fatherhood are being embraced at the grassroots level.
This success is a clear continuation of Kosrae’s growing commitment to gender-responsive policy.
UWO is already laying the groundwork for its next campaign and looking at addressing the age of consent under Kosrae’s state code and plans on using the same formula: grassroots voices, strategic advocacy, and community leadership.
The Pacific Women Lead at SPC, funded by Australia, continues to support this work, recognising that policy shifts, especially when driven by local leaders and grassroots communities like UWO, are more likely to be inclusive, lasting, and relevant, and the Kosrae maternity law and paternity bill are a testament to this.
