THE MINISTER FOR YOUTH AND SPORTS
HONOURABLE PARVEEN KUMAR BALA
Address at the Handover of the Nasau Youth Club Farming Initiative,
Thursday 17th September, 2020 at 11:30AM
Nakabuta Village- Nadroga
• Village elders
• Church leaders
• Youth members
• Ministry staff and Members of the media
• Ladies and Gentlemen
Bula Vinaka and a very good-day to you all,
I am delighted to be here with you all today to officially handover the assistance under the Youth Club Farming Initiative to the three youth clubs. At the outset, I wish to thank the village elders for a kind welcome and would like to say vinaka-vakalevu.
These are our successful recipients who have been approved to be assisted with land preparation, seeds and farming tools.
Yesterday, I had the privilege to meet and engage in dialogue with several young Fijians in Nacilau, Lautoka. During the talanoa sessions, they told me that the COVID-19 pandemic really poses a risk and has affected many. So I asked them to turn this risk into an opportunity and be innovative and think of ideas in helping the communities and families with the help of the government off-course. These youths have given me their word that they will change the way they had been living before COVID-19 and would engage themselves to see how they can assist the community at large so that nobody goes hungry. I have challenged them to do this and in a few months’ time I will visit them.
Today I am very pleased to handover to these well-deserved youths ;farming tools and equipment such as knapsack sprayers, files, shylon shades for a greenhouse along with vegetable seedlings and fertilizers .The Ministry is also providing assistance to these youth clubs in cleaning and preparing their land for their farming project.
Ladies and Gentlemen, since the launch of these youth farm projects a month ago we have seen huge success. It involved the utilization of vacant land in rural areas for families. We also work closely with the Ministry of Agriculture in getting these projects off the ground and here I would like to thank the staff of the Ministry of Agriculture in partnering with the Ministry of Youth and Sports for these framing projects.
Most importantly, this has also been a success through the active participation of our youth groups. Just like what witnessed here today. The Fijian Government has given them the confidence in the roll-out of grants for their initiatives in their local area. We have also found their families and the wider communities.
The Ministry of Youth and Sports wishes to encourage youth clubs to utilise unused land for agricultural purposes. I must acknowledge the landowners for providing consent to these youth clubs to utilise the land for farming.
The Brand new equipment and seedlings that I will handover today will assist these youths involved in farming for domestic consumption, food security and even serve as a source of income for them. The Ministry’s tractor will help plough the land at the Youth Training Centre in Nasau and shall be used for these three youth clubs to utilize in piloting their Youth Farm Project.
My Ministry is happy to be part of your community development. I wish to encourage all young Fijians to take a pro-active approach in dealing with any of your current circumstances during this pandemic.
As a Ministry, we wish to see the growth and success of our assistance and to see youths leading the way in community development activities.
Finally ladies and Gentlemen, I would like to extend my appreciation and acknowledgement of other stakeholders who have provided seedlings to help these youths as well.
We have also opened a new office in Sigatoka town and we have got three senior and two youth officers who are stationed there where major focus is to identify and support youth needs and create awareness regarding the ministry’s programs and activities .So please , do visit them.
With these few words I now launch the Nasau Youth Club Farming Initiative.
Vinaka-vakalevu!