Australia will support Vanuatu for as long as it needs, Julie Bishop says, as the cyclone-devastated nation recovers from the biggest disaster it has faced.
The foreign minister made a flying visit to Vanuatu from Brisbane in a military aircraft on Sunday, to see the effects of cyclone Pam first-hand.
She will return to Canberra later on Sunday for the final parliamentary sitting week before the May budget.
"The people of Vanuatu have been through a very devastating experience," she told the Nine Network.
"But they are resilient and they are stoic."
During her tour Ms Bishop met with government staff and volunteers, and Australia's medical team operating in the Port Vila hospital.
Ms Bishop was also briefed by Vanuatu's National Disaster Management Office, and held meetings with the country's Prime Minister Joe Natuman and Foreign Minister Sato Kilman.
"We will be here for as long as it takes to respond to short term needs," she said.
"And we will also be here for the long term recovery."
Severe Tropical Cyclone Pam barrelled into the South Pacific island nation on March 13, bringing sustained winds of some 250km/h which devastated entire communities.
Australia is providing more than $10 million in relief funding to help Vanuatu recover.
Women's rights groups welcomed Ms Bishop's visit to Vanuatu, describing the situation as dire.
Senior program and policy coordinator at ActionAid Australia, Carol Angir, said the cyclone's aftermath was heavily impacting on women and issues of family violence resulting from food and water shortages had been largely overlooked.
"Pregnant women are sleeping on thin mats on the ground," Ms Angir said in a statement on Sunday.
"Evacuation centres have little, if any, light in the night time, and the women have told us they don't sleep because they're afraid of violence at night."
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