An insurance scheme by the Pacific Insurance and Climate Adaptation Programme (PICAP) has allowed a woman in Ba to use her talents to earn money.

Sainiana Tinai, 60, is a florist but recently discovered her talent for tailoring.

However, she did not have the money to buy the necessities for screen printing and sewing.

The money she earned from previous years were often used to restart her business from scratch after a heavy downpour.

“I can be learning everything but I need the equipment,” she said.

“I even have to pay for the person who gets me soil for my flowers.

“There are sunny days and there are rainy days.”

Last month, she received $250 as a payout from the insurance programme, after her business suffered losses brought on by heavy rain.

She signed up for a $100 microinsurance plan, which pays out a maximum of $1000.

The insurance scheme insures against excessive rainfall and is offered by private firm, Fiji Care Insurance.

“We need to find a way to get money to buy some more buckets and things like that again,” she said.

“I used the payout money to buy sponges to make pillows because there were a lot of weddings.

“I also used the money to buy the roller and paint for my screen printing business.”

The Governments of New Zealand, Australia, India and Luxembourg fund PICAP.

Story by: josefa.babitu@fijisun.com.fj