Program Overview

The Pacific Islands Training Initiative (PITI-VITI) was established in 1991 through an Interagency Agreement between the Graduate School's International Institute and the U.S. Department of Interior's Office of Insular Affairs (DOI/OIA). The program serves Pacific insular governments by providing training services designed to support efforts to implement and maintain sound financial management and program performance practices. Although funded primarily by DOI/OIA, insular governments provide funds targeting specific projects as well as extensive in-kind contributions.

Participating governments include American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia (including the four FSM states of Chuuk, Kosrae, Pohnpei and Yap), the Republic of the Marshall Islands and the Republic of Palau.

Pacific island nations and territories are experiencing increasingly rapid social and economic change. The Pacific Basin is challenged to find ways to participate in an emerging global economy that favors those who can effectively compete on a large scale or find a particular niche in the marketplace. Demands on governments to provide more and better services, often with a constrained resource base, are increasing. These pressures are forcing governments to implement reforms, increase public accountability and improve the responsiveness and results of program services. The goals of the PITI-VITI program are to assist the insular governments to:

• Improve leadership and management capacity to effectively perform.
• Improve financial management systems and practices.
• Increase effectiveness of program results.
• Institutionalize regional professional organizations and communities of practice.
• Improve capacity and capabilities of public sector work force in critical positions and functions.

In the Pacific, as elsewhere, a skilled and capable public sector workforce is government's greatest asset in meeting its development responsibilities and assisting society attain the quality of life it desires.

What We Do.

Training.

Since 1991, PITI-VITI has conducted over 1,000 training programs throughout the Pacific and Virgin Islands. Our course delivery covers a broad range of topics, including financial management, accounting, auditing, leadership and management, human resource management, and federal grants management, to name a few. PITI-VITI training not only addresses the learning needs of government employees, but assists in changing and improving individual and organization performance. Our training is demand-driven with courses tailored for delivery in the Pacific. Our instructors have extensive experience as practitioners in their fields.

Programs & Initiatives.

Through the years PITI-VITI has engaged in a variety of unique programs, often in support of initiatives of the United States Department of the Interior's Office of Insular Affairs. Ongoing regional projects include an Audit Improvement Program, the implementation of Financial Management Improvement Plans, and the development of financial Performeters®. Territory-specific projects have included such things as installation support to a new financial management system in the Federated States of Micronesia, the systematic financial reorganization of Guam's Department of Administration, Public School System, hospital and community college, as well as the development of economic reports for the Republic of the Marshall Islands and Federated States of Micronesia, to name a few.

Institutional Support.

In addition to core training and course delivery, PITI-VITI provides institutional support to two regional organizations: the Island Government Finance Officers' Association (IGFOA), and the Association of Pacific Islands Public Auditors (APIPA). IGFOA typically meets twice a year to share common challenges, best practices and solution strategies. Since 1991, PITI-VITI has worked through APIPA to provide auditors with the opportunity to attain up to forty hours of continuing professional education (CPE) units annually. APIPA hosts an annual conference which provides targeted training to each insular jurisdiction.