Workshop to upskill more than 50 farmers

MORE than 50 ginger farmers were part of a two-day training workshop focused on strengthening their capacity and equip them with the right knowledge, skills and tools to improve their business.

A statement from the Fiji Crop and Livestock Council (FCLC) said the ‘Ginger Value Chain Coordinating Agricultural Climate Smart Innovation Platform and Best Practices in Value Chain Finance’ workshop allowed farmers to share their best farming practices during a trip to a commercial ginger farm in Wainibuku, Naitasiri.

The workshop aimed at not only strengthening the capacity of the ginger farmers, their clusters or producer organisations and key stakeholders, but to equip them with the right knowledge, skills and tools which could be used to professionalise and improve individual and organisational performances and agri-business relations.

CEO of FCLC Jiu Daunivalu said this was so that farmers had a holistic overview of the ginger industry which cover other perspectives from production to the consumer end of the market.

She said there was a common goal to achieve sustainable production, meeting market requirements and support farming family’s livelihood, resilient to climate variability and at the same time, protecting the biodiversity.

“We hoped that we created the framework in the training so that the farmers will take away the technical knowledge and skills that will contribute towards becoming successful ginger farmers, including improved access to markets, stronger linkages with buyers, financiers and other key value chain actors, supporters and enablers,” said Mrs Daunivalu.

FCDCL stated MOA, BAF, FDB, and TLTB also presented information on related policies and applicable laws, from ginger production to the market end, and major players such as Pacific Grow, Kaiming (Fiji) Ltd and Frespac Ginger (Fiji) Ltd, but also met with the farmers to address issues raised during the workshop.

The workshop, held from December 2 to 3, was organised by the FCDCL in support of MOA and the Fiji Ginger Farmers

Association, in coordination with the Fiji Development Bank.

Ministry of Agriculture’s permanent secretary, Vinesh Kumar officially opened the workshop and was closed by sub-regional head of IFAD in the Pacific region based in Suva, Sakiusa Tubuna.

The workshop was funded by the EU and International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) under the Farmers Organizations for Asia Caribbean and Pacific (FO4ACP) Program, through the Pacific Islands Farmers Organization Network (PIFON).