Vanuatu’s Ministry of Agriculture has embarked on a reform programme to modernise its agricultural extension and rural advisory services to empower farmers and build resilient communities for sustainable development.
Director of agriculture, Antoine Ravo told about 40 investors from New Caledonia of a number of projects underway in the department.
One of the initiatives is the setting up of the Vanuatu Farmers Associations (VFA) to facilitate and assist farmers to access market information, provide logistical support, coordinate farmer activities in order to improve, strengthen and sustain the supply side and also to provide support to farmers’ organisations to increase production.
Ravo said seed and machinery centres for mass production of agriculture have been established.
There is also replanting of coconut plantations, rehabilitation of cocoa plantations and restocking of noble kava varieties.
The investors heard of warehouses and cool rooms established within the provinces for use by the agriculture producers.
Ravo said establishing these facilities will certainly increase the production of agriculture produces in the provinces and islands as well as advocate for more support to research and development in crop improvements and new crops.
Over 40 investors from New Caledonia met with their counterparts from Vanuatu in Port Vila last week.
There were exchanges of ideas and propositions in attempt to develop relations between the two countries.
Photo by Government of Vanuatu Media. Caption: Vanuatu and New Caledonia investors