Picture: PS Agriculture Ritesh Dass receives the Tablet from the Country Director for ADRA Mr Iliapi Tuwai.

The Ministry of Agriculture received 10 tablets from the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) to improve connectivity and help streamline information system processes within the Ministry's internal procedures.

Permanent Secretary for Agriculture, Ritesh Dass while receiving the donation said it would go a long way as current data collection systems in the Ministry required such tools to ensure efficiency and effective dissemination of collated information.

Mr Dass said this assistance will provide the necessary support to the Food Security Cluster secretariat and any future Disaster Damage Assessment operations in the event of natural disasters.

He thanked ADRA for the continuous support to the Ministry and assured that the equipment would be fully utilised to enhance service delivery.

“Thank you so much for your unceasing support to the Ministry in all our activities to develop Fiji's agriculture sector,” said Mr Dass.

Mr Dass also acknowledged ADRA for the assistance in the recent Cash for Cultivation programme which allowed the Ministry to reach out to 3,000 farmers who were impacted by the pandemic.

“The current COVID-19 pandemic exposed the importance of agriculture to providing food and nutrition security and enhancing our livelihoods. Therefore, we can only respond properly as a sector to this demand through collaboration and strong partnership. I believe engaging with your team during this trying times was critical for the Ministry, vinaka vakalevu.”

Meanwhile, Fiji Country Director for ADRA Mr. Iliapi Tuwai said ADRA would continue to provide support to Government to gather crucial information to fight the COVID-19 crisis.

He said the tablets will be used by the Food Security Cluster team of the Ministry to collect data to address food security in the country.

The assistance is funded by the USAID and jointly implemented by CARE Australia.

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