If farmers continue to be victimized due to land lease issues, I do not know when they will be able to contribute to the economic development of the country and towards the GDP.
This has been highlighted by a farmer in Nakasi during the budget consultation with the Minister for Economy.
Minister for Economy Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum says tourism contributes 40% towards the GDP and has a huge impact on the economy.
He says however, the focus is also on the agriculture sector, business processes outsourcing and sports.
He further says he had a meeting on Saturday in Kuku where a man had said that there is too much cassava now and they are not getting the right price and asked how can they be helped.
Sayed-Khaiyum says he heard a politician that they will solve the inflation problem by growing more cassava and dalo.
He says if everybody grows dalo and cassava, farmers will complain they are only getting 5 cents a kilogram.
People’s Alliance Leader, Sitiveni Rabuka had earlier said that Fiji’s poverty rate can be much lower if we get more people in the rural areas including villages to go into farming to earn more.
He says that is the party’s answer to reduce poverty levels as people can get a lot of money by planting crops like cassava and dalo as calculations show these crops earn more money per tonne compared to sugar. He says unfortunately many of the former rural dwellers have moved to the urban centres where you must be earning daily to be able to maintain a respectable and acceptable way of living.
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