$1.53 million has been distributed to resource owners in Kadavu and Gau, including $570,000 to Muana Village, $457,000 to Solodamu Village and $39,000 to Namalata in Kadavu, and $464,000 to Narocaki Village in Gau.
These funds benefited around 1,500 individuals.
Minister for Fisheries and Forests, Alitia Bainivalu says the funds have been used to build homes, support education, start small businesses, and improve village infrastructure, all based on the priorities set by the communities themselves.
Bainivalu says the Maritime Pine Project is a living example of what can be achieved when the Government, the Vanua, and private sector partners and unite with a shared purpose to create sustainable opportunities for maritime communities that have long been constrained by distance and isolation.
She added that at the very heart of this initiative lies a powerful and enduring principle empowerment through collaboration.
Bainivalu says the project is directly transforming lives by putting real income into the hands of landowners, the rightful custodians of Fiji’s forests.
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