EU-STREIT PNG

The Sepik region of Papua New Guinea has a favourable agro-ecological environment for vanilla cultivation and a longstanding tradition in vanilla production. Many rural households depend on vanilla for their income and well-being.

Under the European Union-funded project EU-STREIT PNG, FAO is supporting agribusiness and value chain development, including vanilla, in the Sepik region.

This is to foster farming households' resilience to climate change impacts.

This collaboration with the New Guinea Binatang Research Centre, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) under the EU-STREIT PNG Programme has rolled out a series of intensive capacity development workshops. The target is set on vanilla farmers in the Sepik Region of PNG to tackle increasing climate-change impacts on agriculture and food security.

The EU-funded United Nations Joint Programme for Support to Rural Entrepreneurship, Investment and Trade and in Papua New Guinea (EU-STREIT PNG) is specifically targeting women and youth.

Here, the programme extended technical assistance to a cooperative society in Turubu LLG of Wewak, East Sepik Province, with the help of a strong young woman.

The program is especially helping women and youth in rural areas to venture into agribusinesses.

The program focuses on increasing economic development of rural areas, is the largest European Union-funded grant in the Pacific region.

Program Coordinator for EU-STREIT PNG, Dr Xuebing Sun, highlighted how the program supports the Government in addressing the agribusiness development obstacles in the Sepik.

 "The root problem is lack of proper skills and knowledge in managing sustainable businesses," said Dr Sun.

EU-STREIT PNG in collaboration with the National Fisheries Authority and provincial divisions of Fisheries & Agriculture provides support to increase fish productivity and profitability, while also contributing to food security and nutrition in the Greater Sepik Region.

Fish is an essential part of the daily diet of riverine and coastal communities in the Greater Sepik Region. It is also a reliable source of regular income for smallholders in the area.

Being his sole income source, the money is stretched to cater for school fees, medicine and nutritious food for their family.

“One of my kids left school because we could not pay the school fees. The school fees for another studying in secondary school is still to be paid, and we need to settle it soon,” says Ray worriedly.

This collaboration was sealed after a recent signing between FAO and WSEP Centre under the European Union-funded Programme for Support to Rural Entrepreneurship, Investment and Trade in Papua New Guinea (EU-STREIT PNG).

EU-STREIT PNG supports WSEP Centre to conduct business management and corporate trainings for 1000 executives of agri-rural cooperatives and small businesses in the Sepik region, and empower them to lead their cooperatives and businesses to increase economic returns. 

The knowledge and skills received on tilapia fish farming, includes how to properly manage and clean fisheries facilities.

The Inland Fisheries farming training workshop was provided by the EU-STREIT PNG, as part of its Fisheries component in the province earlier this month.

Fifteen farmers, four of them women, from Numbo, Sasowia, East and West Yangoru LLGs attended the training held at the Catholic Mission Hall.

The training for Cocoa, Vanilla and Fish Farming Families in Wewak District, under the theme “Mainstreaming Gender Perspectives into Agri-food Value Chains”, pulled together 32 participants (3 women, 12 girls, 14 boys and 3 elderly men) in a mind-boggling 3-day training workshop on Tuesday 20 to Thursday 22 April 2021, at the Sepik Centre of Hope in Wewak town.