Assistant Minister for Agriculture, Viam Pillay says the Ministry has provided more than 470,000 individual seed packs to households when the pandemic began last year.
While speaking in support of the 2021-2022 National Budget, Pillay says this activity was ramped up in the April this year where in three months alone, the Ministry has managed to achieve a distribution of 27,000 seed packages.
He says during the 2020-2021 financial year, the Ministry continued to expand its planned activities and undertake several initiatives to cushion the effect of the pandemic and minimise multiple vulnerabilities by ensuring direct access to diverse nutritious rich foods, increasing purchasing power from savings on food bills, provide a substitute for important food products and employment opportunities.
The Assistant Minister has also highlighted that the ongoing cash for cultivation initiative to date has assisted 1,000 farmers across Fiji with a total cash incentive of $200 per farmer.
He says the Ministry will be assisting an additional 3,000 farmers in its second phase.
Pillay says this assistance will enable a farmer to clear and prepare land procure planting material to establish a one acre plot and a total of $800,000 will be distributed to farmers through this scheme.
The Assistant Minister says since the Fiji Day celebration last year, the Ministry introduced the fruit tree initiative, whereby 50 Villagers were identified and supplied with 50 fruit tree seedlings to plant around their communities.
He says the success of this programme enables its continuation into the current financial year, ensuring the provision of fruit tree seedlings to villages and communities throughout Fiji.
Pillay adds he supports the intent of the budget that promotes the Ministry’s responses to COVID-19 and once again, reminding them of the importance of food security, promotion of locally grown fruits and vegetables and limiting reliance on imported food.
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