Hundreds of farmers from across the country will gather today at the FMF Gymnasium to take part in the Fiji Farmers Economic Summit 2025.
Fiji Crop and Livestock Council Director Jiu Daunivalu says the summit will bring together non-sugar farmers, government officials, stakeholders, buyers and exporters in one place, where they can learn from each other the challenges in the non-sugar sector.
Daunivalu says the main challenges for farmers are accessing finance, markets and land, which they will try to resolve during the 2-day summit.
She says when she joined the council in 2016, they had only 1,300 farmers, but now it's grown to about 8,000 farmers, and they are targeting the 10,000 mark by the end of the summit.
She adds there are 23 commodities that their farmers are producing, such as dalo, kava, turmeric, ginger and many more.
The Director is inviting everyone who loves farming to attend the summit as farmers will also be holding live demonstrations.
According to the Farmers Economic Summit manual, the objectives of the summit are to empower farmers by providing knowledge and resources to improve productivity and profitability, strengthen market linkages by connecting farmers with buyers, processors and exporters to boost local and international market access, promote innovation and technology by showcasing advancements in climate-smart agriculture, mechanization and digital platforms, enhance financial inclusion by discussing access to credit, insurance, and investment opportunities for smallholder farmers and advocate for policy change by engaging with government stakeholders to develop, review and implement policies that support agriculture, including funding mechanisms and infrastructure development.
The summit will be opened by the Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka.
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