Community
initiative has paid off for Foe women in the Kutubu area of Southern Highlands.
Through sheer interest and determination for rice production, the Kutubu Foe
Women’s Association has been fortunate in acquiring two rice milling machines
that will be launched tomorrow at the Pimaga government station.
This
is a result of the association’s initiative in taking up modern agriculture for
food and income on a sustainable basis.
Among
others, the group is pursuing rice to supplement daily diets and as well supply
surplus to possible market opportunities created by the boom in oil and gas
developments in the Kutubu area.
Led
by women leader Naomi Samuel, rural women have already mastered the basic
techniques of rice production.
Interested
rice farmers from the Faso area have also picked up rice farming, spreading the
interest to the entire Kutubu region and even the Moran area.
The
National Agricultural Research Institute (NARI) and PNG Women in Agriculture
Development Foundation (PNGWiADF), both based in Lae, have been in the Kutubu
area since 2009, providing technical assistance.
This
initiative has been supported by Kutubu’s community development initiative and
Oil Search Ltd.
NARI’s
senior scientist Dr Peter Gendua and PNGWiADF president, Maria Linibi have been
on site this week providing hands-on training and technical advice to about 100
interested rice farmers across Pimaga, Orokana, Waro, Tiriabo, Tugiri, Soro and
Inu villages.
NARI
has so far provided two upland rice varieties (NARI Rice One or NR 1 and NR 15)
suitable for the environment with two rounds of training on land preparation,
seed sowing, transplanting, field management, harvesting, threshing and milling
to major villages in Kutubu.
 |
| Pictured are women at Pimaga having hands-on training in seed sowing of a NARI released rice variety, NR 1, on Monday |
However,
a major hurdle faced by farmers was proper milling of their farm harvests.
Many
expressed the need to have rice milling machines.
Members
of the Kutubu Foe Women’s Association have harvested tonnes of rice but milling
has also been a constraint.
After
knocking on doors of various organisations, Oil Search Limited and the
Department of Agriculture and Livestock have come good in providing a rice
milling machine each for the association.
The
support has come along due to the association’s own desire and determination to
pursue agriculture for development, particularly in rice cultivation.
During tomorrow’s launch, the two rice milling
machines will be officially handed over to the Kutubu Foe Women’s Association.
The
operations of the machines will also be demonstrated to the farmers and those
with harvests will have the opportunity to mill their produce.
The initiative has demonstrated public-private
partnership of all stakeholders in community development.
When I arrived in Maprik in 1968 there was a flourishing rice industry in that area with a rice mill at Bainyik. That went by the way as the colonial power of the day wanted to make sure that rice was imported into their colony from the the colonial power's rice industry.
ReplyDeleteVince Ohlinger