FIJIAN women have skills of their own when it comes to weaving palm leaves.
Minister for Women, Children and Poverty Alleviation Mereseini Vuniwaqa highlighted this while thanking the Government of the Peoples Republic of China for the wonderful opportunity it has yet again provided to the women of Fiji.
This week the Chinese Cultural centre in collaboration with the Ministry of Women, Culture and Poverty Alleviation officiated in a training program which will see Fijian women learn palm weaving skills which is an ancient art of the Chinese people.
“I am very grateful to the People’s Republic of China for providing the expert and the palm leaves weaving program so that the women of Noco can be trained in this art. This is a real show of the close friendship that our two Governments share,” Mrs Vuniwaqa said.
“ I can only express our heartfelt thanks to the People’s Republic of China through the Chinese Cultural Centre in Fiji for this huge commitment to share your ancient art of palm leaves weaving right here,” she said.
“For us locally, weaving the coconut palm leaves dates way back to our ancestors when the leaves were used as walls for our homes, during traditional ceremonies as baskets to carry food and in particular for the women as back-carry for gathering food from the plantations and as waist baskets for fishing.”
