Vanua of Roko Tui Naibati,
Mataqali Koroitose,
Yavusa Nakelo,
Matainoco Village,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Yadra Vinaka to you all.
Thank you for the gracious welcome. I am very pleased and happy to be here to officiate the handover of the bee keeping project and co-operative registration certificate.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The true spirit of Fijian togetherness can be witnessed today, Mataqali Koroitose has combined its communal efforts in creating an income generating business venture and I applaud your efforts.
The Ministry is excited to partner with you and support your efforts in creating a sustainable living. This is critical to the recovery of the economy and exactly what Fiji needs right now.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The Apiculture Industry is one of the upcoming industries under the Agro-business sector. It is very encouraging and impressive to see communities such as Mataqali Koroitose taking apiculture as a business venture. Your efforts in utilising your existing resources and investing in this venture will definitely reap you the rewards of your hard work which will be as “sweet as honey”.
The total investment into the bee farming projects amounts to $34,000 to which Mataqali Koroitose has contributed $8,500 and the Government has contributed $25,500 to procure bees, bee hives, stands and bee farming suits. When the community contributes towards a project, there is ownership and increased responsibility to achieve the desired results — to have the project work. This is the level of commitment required for a successful project.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
What is more encouraging is that Mataqali Koroitose is now registered as a co-operative business. This formalisation will ensure operational structure, strengthen governance and better position itself to easily access more finance, technical expertise and trainings.
This will also give you the opportunity to enter into contracts, expand your operations to value-adding and hopefully one day – become exporters.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Honey and other beekeeping by-products are highly demanded worldwide, providing significant economic incentives for honey production. However, the benefits of honey production exceed purely economic goals as beekeeping offers significant potential for sustainable development and improved livelihoods for individuals in Fiji, and around the world.
On average Fiji imports 3,695 kg of honey annually amounting to- $38,312.50, the domestic market will be a great start for Mataqali Koroitose to commence its business.
I encourage the Mataqali Koroitose to take advantage of our “Fijian Made-Buy Fijian” campaign. Our Fijian brand is well recognised internationally, therefore access to overseas markets can be facilitated.
The initiative of the Fijian Government is to commercialise agriculture to expand our economic base to a more vibrant income generating and source of employment for young Fijians in the future.
Enhanced agricultural production for export and for food security and rural livelihoods is a key priority for Fiji.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The Mataqali Koroitose will involve youths in their clan to inspire and offer agriculture as a viable career and to change their mindset and attitude towards the bee industry. Modern agriculture is not only developing the knowledge & skills of youth or aged farmers but also require investing in the agriculture sector in order to provide sustainable and viable livelihoods for all future generations.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
One of the key responsibilities of the Ministry is to come up with ways to support and empower Fijians to make a living and grow. And it’s a very important one for Fiji and our economy.
Through Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), we’re creating jobs, generating income for families, and improving livelihoods. We will continue to support and empower Fijians to earn a sustainable living.
Before I conclude – I would also like to encourage and motivate the members of the Mataqali Koroitose to pursue diversification and elevate your knowledge through training and enterprise development. Strive to run this bee project as a successful business venture and create yourselves better opportunities.
With these few words, it gives me great pleasure to officially hand over the bee boxes, equipment and the co-operative registration certificate to the Chairperson.
Vinaka vakalevu.