Assistant Minister for Agriculture Inosi Kuridrani told Parliament this week the ministry is refocusing on practical delivery, modernisation and direct support for farmers as part of a drive to shore up rural incomes and climate resilience across Fiji.
In his right of reply to the presidential address, Kuridrani said agriculture remains central to national development — sustaining livelihoods, generating export earnings and underpinning small and medium enterprises — and outlined a push to broaden food security beyond the sugar sector. He named cocoa, copra, root crops, horticulture and livestock as priority areas to strengthen domestic supply and provide alternative income streams for rural communities.
Kuridrani set out a suite of climate-smart farming measures the ministry is promoting, including wider use of organic compost, soil conditioners, regenerative farming techniques and practices to improve water retention and protect crops from drought and heavy rainfall. The ministry is also expanding protected agriculture systems, he said, through increased provision of plastic houses, testing of resilient crop varieties and adoption of drone technology to support monitoring and pest management. He stressed the need for operational efficiency and transparency, saying “every dollar must directly benefit farmers and rural communities.”
Government MP Kalaveti Ravu, representing Lomaiviti, used the parliamentary debate to warn that future laws relating to fisheries, forestry, agriculture and environmental protection would face strict scrutiny to ensure transparency, accountability and sustainability. Ravu urged lawmakers to place national unity ahead of partisan considerations and recounted an acquittal earlier this year, thanking family, constituents and legal counsel for their support.
Ravu emphasised that agriculture, fisheries, tourism, forestry and micro, small and medium enterprises are the backbone of rural livelihoods, and he pressed for improved rural infrastructure — better roads, jetties, storage and market access — to allow producers to capitalise on domestic and tourism demand. He highlighted government initiatives aimed at sustainable resource management, including mangrove restoration, expansion of aquaculture projects, and efforts to raise forest cover under REDD+ targets. In fisheries, he pointed to innovations such as processing undersized catch to reduce waste.
Both ministers framed their remarks against a backdrop of existing grassroots and government programmes. Recent training in organic agriculture at the Navuso Learning Farm Centre and school-led vegetable nursery projects have underpinned community-level shifts to more sustainable production methods, while government relief for burnt-cane farmers last year highlighted the vulnerability of mono-crop dependence and the need for diversified rural incomes.
Kuridrani’s emphasis on protected agriculture, resilient seed varieties and technology adoption signals a push to modernise production systems to meet both local consumption and tourism-related demand. At the same time, Ravu’s call for strict legislative oversight and improved rural logistics underscores how policy, law and infrastructure will need to align for those measures to translate into tangible gains for farmers.
The government’s dual focus on on-farm climate-smart practices and off-farm infrastructure and governance sets out a blueprint for strengthening rural income security. How quickly the ministry can convert those commitments into funded programmes and visible improvements in remote areas such as Lomaiviti will be a key test for the new measures.
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