BY JOY OFASIA
NEROLYN Lori, a farmer in a coastal rural village in the western province of the Solomon Islands, is praising a new women-led community-based program initiative, “Building Climate Resilience through Women-Led Community Sea Grape Enterprise Development,” that aims to train farmers in sea grape production.
Nerolyn from Sairagi village praised the value-adding training for boosting income and sustainability across the respective communities in Western Province. Her community has been working to add value to their sea grapes by transforming them into other products, including soap and lotion.
“Sea grapes are a high-value crop that can fetch a good price in the market,” Nerolyn explained to SOLOMON WOMEN. “By learning how to grow them, I am not only expanding my knowledge and skills as a farmer, but I am also creating a new source of income for myself, my family, and the community.”
Nerolyn, who recently signed up for the training program held at the Honiara Hotel in Honiara, said that learning to grow sea grapes has been an eye-opening experience, and she is excited about the potential economic benefits it could bring to her community.
“This project has helped my community a lot by supporting sea grape farmers, as sea grapes are one of the important sources of income in my community,” she said. “It has taught us how to transform our harvested sea grapes into useful products, which has added value to the sea grapes and mostly improved income for our communities.”
The training was organized by the World-Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Solomon Islands and funded through support from Australian Government aid, is an initiative that aims to bolster economic opportunities for rural populations by harnessing the potential of sea grapes and to improve community management of marine resources.
The four communities in the Western province that benefited from the initiative are Kongulavata, Sairagi, Boboe, and Pusiju, which have been actively engaged in developing sustainable management plans for their local reefs, sea grapes, and mangrove ecosystems. These efforts have included integrating traditional practices with scientific data to ensure the health and sustainability of their marine resources.
The women from the four communities in the Western Province have recently launched and showcased in Honiara a new line of sea grape management and eco-friendly products like body lotion and soap made from sustainably harvested sea grapes through an 18-month project supported by Climate Resilient by Nature (CRxN) and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Australia.
Nerolyn expressed gratitude to the Australian Government for its assistance in educating locals about the process of turning their own sea grapes into products.
“I would like to thank Australia for assisting us in this project. We are very happy and proud to be able to produce useful and marketable products that can be sold out in our markets,” she said happily.
This project, which has been in development for the past few months, aims to improve the management of sea grape ecosystems and also enhance the livelihoods of local women.
Henry Kaniki, WWF-Solomon Island’s Conservation Program Manager, highlighted the importance of this initiative, stating, “This project not only promotes sustainable harvesting practices but also empowers women to generate substantial household income. By improving the management of sea grapes and related ecosystems such as mangroves, we are enhancing climate resilience and supporting the economic stability of these communities.”
