Fiji

Country News and Stories

Nurturing Pacific and Indigenous aquaculture
A session on aquaculture development by Pacific Islanders and Indigenous Australians is being sponsored by ACIAR at the Australasian Aquaculture 2012 conference in Melbourne on Thursday 3 May 2012.

ACIAR'S forestry research in Pacific island countries
Forests and trees have great cultural significance for Pacific island people and provide many benefits for subsistence and livelihoods. In some of the Pacific island countries, such as Solomon Islands, Vanuatu and Fiji, forests have also been commercially exploited and forest industries are important contributors to the national economies. Forests are held under custom landownership, but governments regulate commercial forestry operations. While timber is important, there are many non-timber forest products, which provide significant cash incomes for people in remote locations.

New technique means more profit for Fiji's cabbage farmers
Cabbage farmers in Fiji’s Sigatoka Valley have seen their incomes increase by 20–30 per cent since adopting the integrated pest management (IPM) farming technique. The farmers are part of an ACIAR-funded project that is testing this effective and environmentally friendly approach to pest management that relies on a combination of common-sense practices.

PNG and Pacific Nuis
Get the latest on ACIAR-supported initiatives in Papua New Guinea and the Pacific in the recent issue of PNG and Pacific Nuis produced by ACIAR’s PNG Country office.

Fiji papaya gets a boost
Fijian papaya producers expect to increase their export competitiveness following a successful trial of sea freighting fruit to New Zealand through an industry-led ACIAR initiative.

Pacific island pearls
An ACIAR program supporting development of the cultured pearl industries in Fiji and Tonga is helping communities develop the skills they need to participate in this lucrative industry.

Giant freshwater prawns for Fiji
A highly productive strain of giant freshwater prawn handed over to the Fiji Department of Fisheries in Suva on 14 June 2011 will help revitalise Fiji’s local prawn aquaculture industry.


Floristry workshops for Indigenous women
Indigenous women were introduced to floristry at workshops in Darwin and surrounding areas in May- June 2011 as part of an ACIAR project that is using floriculture to improve livelihoods in indigenous Australian and Pacific island communities.

Pacific lessons for Indigenous Australians
A group of people from Indigenous communities in north Western Australia are further down the track to developing a new mariculture industry following a course recently supported by ACIAR.

International Year of Forests
To raise awareness of the importance of forests and to strengthen efforts for their sustainable development, the United Nations has declared 2011 the International Year of Forests. Together with Governments, organisations and major forest stakeholder groups around the world, the United Nations is promoting four Global Objectives for the improved management, conservation and sustainable development of the world’s forests.

Sea cucumber aquaculture symposium
A research symposium in Nouméa on 15-18 February 2011 has been organised by ACIAR and Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) to support the development of sustainable tropical sea cucumber aquaculture.

New life for old palms
An ACIAR funded research project has worked to extend the life cycle of the coconut palm. This joint Australia- Fiji-Samoa project is helping transform non-productive senile palms into quality building materials, suitable for flooring, bench tops and furniture. This opportunity provides a new income for farmers and frees up land for more productive agricultural uses.

$10 million to boost agribusiness in the Pacific
Australia will provide $10 million over four years to improve marketing opportunities and boost agribusiness in the Pacific through the Pacific Agribusiness Research for Development Initiative.

Pacific urged to develop niche markets
A new economic report has warned that the 14 Pacific Island nations and East Timor need to develop niche markets for quality agricultural products to help build economic resilience.