After Fiji's Flood: Livestock Rehab Done for March

FIJI - The Ministry of Primary Industries is working hard to complete its flood rehabilitation assistance to affected livestock farmers by the end of March.

5 March 2009

3 minute read

Oceania

Director for Animal Health & Production Division Mr. Shiu Chand said that the Division had already provided $43,000 worth assistance to 45 dairy farmers in the Central Division.

"This is to assist these dairy farmers with supplementary feeds to enable their animals to recover quickly from the effects of the floods and start producing milk", Mr. Chand said.

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"Supplementary feed supplies to dairy cattle are essential at this stage"

Director for Animal Health & Production Division Mr. Shiu Chand

"We are currently working with the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) on a $213,000 donation by the AusAid to assist livestock farmers who were affected by this year's flood in the Central and Western Divisions with drugs and supplementary feeds.

"In addition, we have already submitted our rehabilitation programme to the Ministry of Finance and are waiting the release of funds to begin work," Mr Chand said.

According to Mr. Chand damages to the livestock sector by the January floods were estimated at $4.0 million but when the survey was completed the damages amounted to $3.9 million. Most of the damages were sustained by farmers in the Western Division which has been estimated at $2.3 million followed by the Western Division at $1.6 million.

Mr. Chand added the overall assessment of his officers in the Northern Division indicated that there was little flood impact on both supervised and unsupervised livestock farms.

"Based on this assessment, we drew up our rehabilitation programme that is worth about $2.3 million of which $1.56 million is for the Central Division and about $800,000 will be for the Western Division", he added.

Mr. Chand explained that the $2.3 million that would be used in the rehabilitation programme will be sourced from within the Agriculture Ministry Capital Projects for 2009. He said that this will affect some of the Ministry's projects that have been earmarked for this year and asked for farmers' understanding as government was trying to assist those who were affected by the January floods.

"We have already submitted our requirements and are now awaiting the release of funds to begin work and we plan to complete our rehabilitation activities by the first quarter of this year, with any left over to be completed early in the second quarter," Mr Chand said.

Mr. Chand stressed that the rehab programme will focus on pasture improvement, veterinary drugs and chemicals, supplementary feeds, fencing, improving drainage, pig sheds and farm roads and assisting with bee hives.

He pointed out that these activities need to be carried out immediately to avoid production losses due to the impact of the flood.

"Supplementary feed supplies to dairy cattle are essential at this stage for the maintenance and production requirements of the animals affected by the impact of the flood," he explained.