Picture: Minister for Agriculture, Waterways and Environment, Hon. Dr Mahendra Reddy addresses farmers in Belego, Wailevu West, Cakaudrove on Saturday (26.2.22)

Government is urging communal landowners to allow their youths or youth groups to undertake commercial farming on their land as everyone in the mataqali will benefit. 

The call was made by Minister for Agriculture, Waterways and Environment, Hon. Dr Mahendra Reddy in Tukavesi, Saqani, Cakaudrove yesterday (26.2.22).

“If you have youths or youth groups in your mataqali who are interested and willing to undertake commercial agriculture on the mataqali land or the Reserve land in your mataqali, we urge you to support them. Lease it to them formally so they can farm.

“When you do, you will see that all members of the mataqali will benefit in terms of food security where the mataqali becomes just one of the markets, and their produce is also sold at other markets, or maybe even exported; your youths become laborers and are engaged in economic generation; your youths generate income for their families and are able to improve their livelihood,” the Hon. Minister explained.

Dr Reddy added that basic economics meant that for the economy to grow, surplus must be created. 

“There are three components of surplus. Saving, spending, and investing. Unfortunately, in Fiji in rural agriculture when surplus is created, two components are missing. Saving and investing. Almost all the money is spent on consumption. The absence of these two components is hindering growth in rural agriculture.”

He explained slow economic growth in rural agriculture meant families, villages, and the mataqali could not grow economically as well. 

“When there is no savings and natural disasters like tsunamis, cyclones, or flooding occur, you are not able to bounce back quickly because you do not have the money to quickly repair damages done to your farm or buy the implements lost. But if you have savings, you can immediately bounce back.”

The Minister said an important component of resilience, or the ability to bounce back quickly from shocks like natural disasters was to have savings. 

“Government and external resources will come in. But it will take time. However, you need to bounce back immediately. Delayed investment, delayed savings in agriculture is a cost to the national economy.”

 -ENDS-

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