Our work in Vanuatu

Vanuatu

Since the 1980s Australia has supported police development in Vanuatu through a series of development projects. These projects have been implemented through a mix of managing contractors and Australian police personnel.

Our support to Vanuatu is delivered to the Vanuatu Police Force (VPF) through the Vanuatu Australia Policing and Justice Program (VAPJP). Our support is flexible and adaptive to enable us to be responsive to Vanuatu’s evolving law enforcement needs. 

We also engage through initiatives such as the:

• Pacific Faculty of Policing
• Pacific Centre for Law Enforcement Cooperation
• Cyber Safety Pasifika program
• Pacific Forensic Working Group
• Pacific Police Policy Network.

We engage with Australian Government stakeholders, including the Australian Defence Force (ADF) and the Australian Border Force, to coordinate and enhance efforts in-country. This includes working with the ADF on the ground to balance the law enforcement needs and aspirations of the VPF and the Vanuatu Mobile Force.

Vanuatu Australia Policing and Justice Program (VAPJP)

The VAPJP is a joint policing and justice program implemented by the AFP and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT). VAPJP works with the VPF, providing technical advice and assistance to all aspects of policing, including human resources and public financial management. There is also a focus on institutional reform and capacity development.

We engage with the VPF and other Vanuatu law enforcement agencies in Port Vila to detect, deter, prevent and disrupt crime and harm in the Pacific. We also support AFP Port Moresby by providing support to operations across the Solomon Islands, Guam, Palau, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the Marshall Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia.