A new book has just been launched in Solomon Islands documenting the history of women working in the prison system.
The book titled HerStory is the collected experiences of 24 women who have worked in correctional services throughout the Solomons since 1986.
The chair of the Correctional Services Solomon Islands Women's Network, Wendy Gebe, said there were many challenges in the male dominated workplace but she hoped the women's stories would encourage others to work in the area.
"I can see a lot of young women coming in and they see this work is very inspiring and they learn something from the older ones, they are so inspired."
Wendy Gebe said women had seen dramatic improvements in attitudes, management support, training and promotion opportunities, protection from harassment, and maternity leave over the past 30 years. Holistically, and as is the case in other socities, the concept of women working in the correctional work space is perceived negatively.
These conceptions range from women being less capable of disrupting inmate altercations due to their smaller size in comparison to men, and a general perception that they may not be able to handle hardships of the male-dominated correctional field.
The book documents how female correctional officers have different experiences working in correctional prison facilities.
With radionz.co.nz