By SOLDIER BURUKA of
DAL
Coconut is the tree
of life for rural communities in the coastal areas of Papua New Guinea
It provides for the
people's livelihood as well as cash income and is a major export earner for the
country.
In some areas,
especially the island communities, coconut trees are dying out and need to be
replanted.
On M'buke Island on the south coast of Manus ,
the community has rallied together and sought technical assistance to carry out
replanting and revitalising the coconut industry.
But their main priority is to
ensure that coconut continues to provide for their sustenance on a daily basis.
In these photos, Department of Agriculture and Livestock
regional director for Mamose, Masayan Moat, does the honor to replant a young
coconut plant to signal the start of the replanting exercise.
DAL in collaboration with the Manus provincial
administration is embarking on a programme to do replanting and redevelop the coconut
industry on the island and other communities.
How come the coconuts were dying out? Was it a disease, or did people stop growing them because of a lack of demand for copra?
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