FEATURE 4
Solomon Islands
The position of Ombudsman in the Solomon Islands was established in 1978 under the Constitution of Solomon Islands. The current Ombudsman is Mr Joseph Poraiwai, who was appointed in 2008 after working in the office since 1991.
The Commonwealth Ombudsman began close interaction with the Solomon Islands Ombudsman in 2005, followed by several short–term support visits in 2006. This included a seven–week placement by Rohan Anderson of our office.
The immediate challenge facing the Solomon Islands Ombudsman office was to rebuild after an unsettling period following the retirement of the previous Ombudsman in 2006. There was a delay in appointing a new Ombudsman. One of the first actions of the new Ombudsman was to seek assistance from Australia to expand his office, and to make it better known to the wider Solomon Islands population.
The Commonwealth Ombudsman supported Rohan taking a year's leave without pay, so that he could take up the position of Technical Advisor to the Solomon Islands Ombudsman in the Machinery of Government Program within the Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands.
Since January 2009, Rohan has been working with the Solomon Islands Ombudsman to:
- reduce the office's backlog of complaints and finalise long–standing cases
- complete some systemic investigations focusing on different government agencies
- enhance coordination between the office and agencies
- improve the complaint intake processes for provincial citizens
- complete a three–year corporate plan or 'Strategic Ombudsplan'
- enhance the complaint–handling capacity and skills of investigation officers
- improve public understanding of the Ombudsman's role.
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