Rain or shine, Western women brave weather to sell mangoes

The rainy weather in Suva City failed to stop three women from the Western Division from selling mangoes.

In order to feed their families and pay bills, they have been braving the wet conditions for the past few weeks to sell mangoes.

Anaise Gucake, 55, Sereima Sabeta, 52, and Laisiana Tinaitukana, 52, each have different stories when this masthead caught up with them.

For Ms Gucake, transporting mangoes from Vadravadra Village in Ba to Suva had to be done at night so she could start selling the fruit early the next morning.

“We are grateful to the owner of Integrated Restaurant for allowing us to set up our table outside the restaurant to sell mangoes and for letting us use the restroom,” Ms Gucake said.

She has been selling mangoes in front of the restaurant at Walu Bay for three weeks now. Despite the hefty expenses, she is undeterred.

“I pay $45 for bus fare to transport my three buckets and one bag to Suva, and from one sale, I could earn about $300. The more bags I bring, the more money I make,” she said.

Ms Sabeta, the sole breadwinner in her family, shares similar sentiments. She noted that her sugarcane cutting job has slowed down, so she has turned to mango selling to support her family.

“When my sugarcane cutting drops, my husband rests, and I find ways like these to earn money for our family,” Ms Sabeta said.

“If we were to transport our produce in large quantities by carrier, we’d pay $400 alone for transportation. Right now, we’ve decided to sell here because the Suva Municipal Market is crowded with mango sellers. But even here, people have been buying.”

One thing they haven’t complained about is the weather.

Ms Tinaitukana, who lives in Naivicula Village in Tailevu, also has a table at the Nausori Market. However, since Wednesday morning, she has joined the other two women at the same spot selling mangoes.

“When mango season came, I took a trip down to my son’s village in Ba, packed mangoes in cartons and buckets, and came straight to Suva to sell because this is one place you don’t see a lot of mangoes,” she said.

“Sales are good, and since the season is dying down again, I’m glad I’ve been able to earn good money to help my family. This is the first time I’m doing this because I usually sell root crops and vegetables in Nausori.”

Despite facing many hurdles, these women have proven that there is nothing a woman can’t do. They will return home happy and content because of the good money they’ve earned just by selling mangoes.

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