Sugar Minister Charan Jeath Singh disclosed in Parliament this week that the Government has allocated $15 million in working capital support to the Fiji Sugar Corporation (FSC) to help meet its loan obligations.
“This allocation ensures that FSC can meet its payment obligations for the EXIM Bank loan,” he stated. “The project undertaken with this loan was one of the several failures under previous regimes. We are now compelled to bail FSC out with this provision, a necessary measure to rectify past missteps and stabilize the sector.”
Minister Singh also noted that the Government has allocated $4 million for the sugar price stabilization fund, $4 million for cane planting, $1 million for farm incentives, $4 million for cane access roads, and $320,000 for the Fiji Corrections Service inmates to harvest cane.
“To address labor shortages affecting many sectors, we aim to mechanize the industry through the Sugarcane Farm Mechanization Programme with a $500,000 budget,” he said. “We will also increase support to farmers who harvest their cane manually by providing a subsidy of $3 per tonne, up from the previous $1 per tonne.
“To manage input costs, the Ministry will continue the Fertilizer Subsidy Programme of $20 million, charging farmers only $20 per bag of fertilizer. Additionally, we will provide $1 million to subsidize weedicide costs and $4.9 million for cartage costs for Penang farmers.
“To address land lease issues, the Government has set aside $1 million to assist growers whose leases are expiring or who wish to purchase land for cane farming by providing a subsidy of 30 percent or $7,500, whichever is lower.
“To mitigate the impacts of climate change, the Ministry will continue to invest $5.5 million in drainage for sugarcane farms, aiming to reduce the effects of flooding during the offseason.”