COASTAL communities and families in Gao-Bugotu Constituency (GBC) on Isabel Province will benefit from a $486,000 small-scale fishing and transportation project.
This was after the constituency office (GBC) signed legal documents for delivery with the local boat builder and supplier, Ocean Fibreglass Company on Friday 11th August 2023.
Funded by the Solomon Islands Government (SIG) through the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) programme, the project consignment includes 10×21 feet fibreglass round cabin boats and 20 fibre paddle canoes.
The aim of the project is to enable communities and families to engage in income-generating activities like fishing as well as transportation services.
Constituency Project Officer (CPO) Francis Pilau said the boats will be distributed to communities within ward 9, ward 10, ward 11 and ward 12 in GBC.
Mr Pilau said most of the boat recipients are community groups while canoes are for individual families.
He explained that these projects are what these community groups and families have been requested through their proposals submitted to the constituency office. “The boats and canoes are procured with the constituency CDF allocation for this year (2023).”
Mr Pilau said this is not the first time that the constituency office under the leadership of Honourable Samuel Manetoali provided this kind of support. “Its an ongoing support as aligned to GBC yearly development plan towards improving social and economic livelihood of families.”
Apart from other sectors, fishery sector is one of the priorities of the constituency over the years as it funded the establishment of fisheries centres in various communities within GBC purposely for constituents and communities to involve in economic activities. These fishery centres are located at Lepi, Nagolau and Tataba.
“This is the constituency’s ongoing commitment towards boosting small-scale fishing ventures especially for communities and families to engage in economic activities by supplying fish to GBC Fishery Project centres with the determination to addressing rural economic development in the constituency.
“…such initiative would also contribute to the National Development Strategy (NDS) vision which is: “Improving the Social and Economic Livelihoods of all Solomon Islanders”, targets objectives 1, 2. And in the long term increase economic growth (NDS1), improve private sector and increase opportunities (NDS2) and encourage development in rural areas (NDS4).
“Resilient and environmentally sustainable development, the creation of employment, economic growth, and poverty alleviation remain top priorities of the constituency office and the successful implementation of such project would contribute to the achievement of the country’s overall national development plan,” Mr Pilau emphasized.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Rural Development is pleased with the ongoing support that GBC continue to render to its constituents and at the same time encourages recipients to take good care of the assets and use them for its intended purpose to improve their livelihood.
