Project Name：Tropical Vegetable and Fruit Cultivation and Extension Project (Fiji)

Project status：Completed projects

Cooperating Country：Asia-Pacific, Fiji

Project Description：

Fiji’s Sigatoka river valley forms a large area suitable for the production of fruits and vegetables. Since cultivation techniques are insufficient to produce high-quality produce that satisfies the demand of local hotels and the export market, smallholders need guidance in order to promote productivity and quality, as well as to commercialize vegetable production through the enhancement of marketing techniques.

To upgrade productivity, quality and marketing techniques, a range of varieties of fruits and vegetables will be selected and introduced as part of this project, improving on-farm cultivation and management techniques by way of demonstration, promotion and marketing.

Overall, the project will:
1. Establish a multifunctional demonstration farm and conduct trials and research, training, demonstration and seed propagation.
2. Expand a papaya exporting project by guiding papaya production and marketing groups in renewing the cultivation of papaya, raising business management skills and arranging contracts with exporters.
3. Reduce imports and supply hotels with locally produced fruits and vegetables by guiding papaya production and marketing groups in planting lettuce, sweet pepper, tomato, eggplant, cabbage, sweet corn and watermelon; provide guidance on the establishment of small-scale packing and distribution centers so as to expand sales to hotels and supermarkets.
4. Build the capacity of project-related human resources, raising in particular extension officers’ and farmers’ marketing techniques.

Project No：TCD-2011-E03-01

Implementation Start Date：2011-01-01

Implementation End Date：2014-12-31

Project Objectives：

1. Develop the demonstration farm into a single multifunctional center: Conduct varietal evaluation activities and promote the cultivation of 20 improved types of vegetable that are well adapted to local conditions; produce and supply 800,000 vegetable seedlings, 75,000 papaya seedlings and 15 kg of papaya seeds; research and produce 180 m3 of compost.
2. Organize and assist 15 established papaya farming groups to re-plant 43 hectares of papaya.
3. Organize eight vegetable farming groups and assist them to plant 32 hectares of vegetables for an expected yield of 158 tons. Establish three small scale collection centers.
4. Develop nine demonstration plots on farmers’ land; provide training to 80 DOA personnel and 300 farmers; coordinate seven field days and provide on-farm consulting services.

Executing Agency：

Taiwan Technical Mission in the Republic of Fiji /  Ministry of Primary Industry (Republic of Fiji) / Sigatoka Research Station (Republic of Fiji)

Current Progress：To the end of December 2014, the following activities have been completed: 

In 2011:
1. Establish a multifunctional demonstration farm and conduct trials and research, training, demonstration and seed propagation:
(1) Conducted trials into sweet pepper and melon cultivation techniques;
(2) Produced 206,950 vegetable seedlings and 45,000 papaya seedlings.
2. Expand the papaya exporting project:
(1) Established two papaya production and marketing teams and replanted 8.22 hectares of papaya;
(2) Provided guidance to one of the papaya production and marketing teams as to the replanting of 8.22 hectares of papaya;
(3) Produced a total of 756.35 tons of papaya.
3. Reduce imports and supply hotels with locally produced fruits and vegetables: Provided guidance to eight core farmers in planting lettuce, yielding 3.74 tons over 1.96 hectares.
4. Build the capacity of project-related human resources: Held 50 team meetings with two extension officers.

In 2012:
1. Establish a multifunctional demonstration farm and conduct trials and research, training, demonstration and seed propagation:
(1) Conducted trials into tomato and eggplant yields and adaptation;
(2) Produced 286,015 vegetable seedlings and 72,476 papaya seedlings;
(3) Produced 57 cubic meters of compost.
2. Expand the papaya exporting project:
(1) Established 11 papaya production and marketing teams and replanted 25.31 hectares of papaya;
(2) Produced a total of 126.76 tons of papaya.
3. Reduce imports and supply hotels with locally produced fruits and vegetables: Established and provided guidance to three production and marketing teams in planting high-quality vegetables, yielding 66.86 tons over 11.03 hectares.
4. Build the capacity of project-related human resources:
(1) Established three demonstration plots;
(2) Held one workshop for two extension officers;
(3) Held 11 workshops for 199 farmers;
(4) Held two demonstration field days.

In 2013:
1. Establish a multifunctional demonstration farm and conduct trials and research, training, demonstration and seed propagation:
(1) Conducted trials into cucumber, watermelon, cherry tomato and tomato yields and adaptation;
(2) Produced 263,340 vegetable seedlings and 190,318 papaya seedlings;
(3) Produced 85.54 cubic meters of compost.
2. Expand the papaya exporting project:
(1) Guided 11 papaya production and marketing teams in replanting 26.3 hectares of papaya;
(2) Produced a total of 1,345.15 tons of papaya.
3. Reduce imports and supply hotels with locally produced fruits and vegetables: Established and provided guidance to three production and marketing teams in planting high-quality vegetables, yielding 170.79 tons over 32.19 hectares.
4. Build the capacity of project-related human resources:
(1) Established three demonstration plots and trained four core farmers serving as farm managers;
(2) Held one workshop for 25 extension officers;
(3) Held workshops for 116 farmers;
(4) Held two demonstration field days.

In 2014:
1. Establish a multifunctional demonstration farm and conduct trials and research, training, demonstration and seed propagation:
(1) Finished sweet pepper and watermelon yields and adaptation trials;
(2) Finished the bulletin of Tomato cultivation;
(3) Produced 356,200 vegetable seedlings;
(4) Produced 103 cubic meters of compost.
2. Expand the papaya exporting project:
(1) Produced 131,216 papaya seedlings;
(2) Guided eight papaya production and marketing teams in replanting 16.37 hectares of papaya, yielding a total of 775 tons of papaya.
3. Reduce imports and supply hotels with locally produced fruits and vegetables: Established and provided guidance to three production and marketing teams in planting high-quality vegetables, yielding 142.04 tons over 17.2 hectares.
4. Build the capacity of project-related human resources:
(1) Established three demonstration plots and trained four core farmers serving as farm managers;
(2) Held workshops for 143 farmers;
(3) Held two demonstration field day.

Projected Benefits：

1. Develop the current demonstration farm into the Fiji Vegetable Research and Development Center.
2. Increase the value of agricultural production by US$300,000 annually.
3. Increase production of high-value vegetables by 150 tons, thereby reducing equivalent imports by 10 percent.
4. Establish vegetable production and marketing systems.
5. Support the sustainable development of the agriculture sector by capacity building for 20 professional and highly qualified technicians.
6. Improve vegetable cultivation and management technologies by conducting capacity building activities with nine seed farmers.

Mission：Taiwan Technical Mission in the Republic of Fiji