FIFTY-EIGHT families of Bavu Village in Wai, Nadroga, became rice producers yesterday after their first crop harvests.
They are also the first to join the Ministry of Agriculture’s Communal Rice Program, which was launched in Bavu yesterday.
Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama said Fiji’s rice industry was a sector that had come a long way but had a great deal of room to grow.
He said despite the challenges brought by COVID-19, the people of Bavu had made use of their land.
“As farmers, because of the drop in visitors and their demand for Fijian produce, you may not fetch the same prices at the market that you did more than a year ago,” Mr Bainimarama said.
“But no matter the difficulty we face, we can always look to our land to sustain us and to provide for us.
“As I’ve said before, regardless of the adversity we face as a nation, we will always need hardworking farmers to feed our people.
“The Bavu Communal Rice Scheme is a first-of-its-kind initiative to help farmers cash-in on the growing demand for rice in Fiji. “We directly supply seeds and assistance with land preparation.
“As well as a platform called ‘We Rice Up’ to help you gain the technical know-how and machinery you need to become rice farmers.”
