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Taiwan Technical Mission in Palau assisted Palau’s women’s organizations in successfully applying for grants from the Global Environment Facility (GEF) Small Grants Programme to replant taro in their hamlets for sustainable livelihoods.
Taro is an indispensable part of Palauan culture, particularly for the matrilineal society, where taro not only means food but often determines the status and wealth of Palauan females. With the increase in population density and the development of urbanization in Koror State, Palau in recent years, the area of traditional taro fields has been declining, and there are problems such as obstruction of irrigation channels and pollution from household wastewater. At the same time, it is also facing the dilemma of an aging population. Ngara Maiberel Women’s Organization desired to address and resolve these problems and revive traditional taro field planting and cultivation techniques in the 10 villages where the organization members lived, so as to continue the cultural significance of taro in Palau.
Taiwan Technical Mission in Palau, the Bureau of Agriculture, and the Koror State women’s association jointly conducted a site visit to develop methods for dredging irrigation channels and improving soil to optimize taro cultivation. The women’s association was awarded a US$ 45,000 grant from the Global Environment Facility Small Grants Programme with the assistance of Taiwan Technical Mission to implement the Food Security through Sustainable Land Management project. By the end of the project, the number of taro patches is expected to increase from 12 to 36.
After the case in Koror State became a successful model in Palau, Taiwan Technical Mission assisted another women’s association in Ngaraard State in being awarded a US$ 45,000 grant from the Global Environment Facility Small Grants Programme. The women’s association in Ngaraard State anticipates that by the end of the project, they can increase the number of taro patches from 9 to 34.
Taiwan Technical Mission in Palau will continue to provide Palauan farmers with high-quality taro seedlings and professional technical advisory services in assisting women’s organizations to restore taro patches, so as to maintain local traditional food production and cultural preservation.
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- Update: 2020/08/03
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