A landowning unit in Sadro Village in the Province of Serua has given 400 acres of their land to the Ministry for Forestry in support of the 4 Million Trees in 4 Years Initiative.
Mataqali Nasamita headman, Seveci Batirerega met with the Minister for Forestry, Osea Naiqamu during his recent visit to the Province of Serua and described that the tree planting initiative is a great project.
Batirerega says the mataqali owns about 32,000 acres of land with 800 acres being utilized by Fiji Hardwood for mahogany trees while the rest are still left idle.
He says this initiative is another great way where they could properly utilize their land and also a way for them to contribute towards combatting climate change and ensuring their future generation gets to live in a healthier environment in years to come.
He further says giving away their land for tree planting is just a start and they will consider giving more land once the tree planting project has been implemented on the 400 acres.
Batirerega added the tree planting initiative is a more worthwhile project to take part in.
Reforestation of Degraded Forest Officer, Maleli Nakasava says the 400 acres of land will see 40,000 trees being planted depending on the spacing required for the growth of a tree species.
Nakasava says this is a great move by the mataqali, stating that they may not see the benefits now but in years to come as this shows that communities can work together with Government.
