21 October 2011: The Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) and the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) convened a capacity building workshop to assist Pacific Island Countries (PICs) access financial resources for agriculture.

The Pacific Regional Capacity Building Workshop on Enhancing Access to Finance for the Agricultural Sector convened in Suva, Fiji, from 20-21 October 2011. Representatives from governments, development banks, micro-financing institutions, commercial banks, farmers and agricultural processors from both the Pacific and Caribbean regions attended the event.

Participants shared agricultural commodity financing techniques and lessons learned, and worked to develop action plans for PICs to access funds.

Inoke Ratukalou, Acting Director of SPC’s Land Resources Division, told the workshop that the Pacific agriculture sector is dominated by small-holders using family labor. New technological inputs and machinery are required to improve productivity and competitiveness in the sector, and access to finance, in turn, is critical for acquiring such inputs. [SPC Press Release]