Fiji has to access the US$1.8m provided by the Korean Government to the International Fund for Agricultural Development(IFAD) to assist in improving the livelihoods of our rural communities.

This was highlighted by the Assistant Minister for Agriculture Hon. Joeli Cawaki during a meeting with the Director General of International Cooperation Bureau of the Korean Ministry of Agriculture  Mr Kim Duk-ho.

Assistant Minister Cawaki met Mr Duk-ho at the margins of the 39th session of the IFAD Governing Council, which was held recently in Rome.

Assistant Minister Cawaki said it is critical that this Korean supplementary fund is released to fund relevant rural development projects appropriate for Fiji.

One of the projects that he is thinking of is the training and empowerment of rural communities using the ‘Saemaul Undong’ approach that has been proven to be successful in Korea.

Assistant Minister Cawaki said that one of the challenges in Fiji is changing the mindset of our rural communities and he is confident that the ‘Saemauel Undong’ approach will go a long way in changing the mindset of Fiji’s rural communities to use their land productively.