Heads of Agriculture and Forestry Services Nadi, Fiji Islands September 2010 ACIAR The Pacific Agribusiness Research-for- Development Initiative (PARDI) Increasing the competitiveness of market chains for high-value products of agriculture, forestry and fisheries Steven Underhill, University of Queensland Siosiua Halavatau & Tim Martyn, SPC Dave Shearer, Richard Markham, Tony Bartlett, and Chris Barlow, ACIAR

Heads of Agriculture and Forestry Services Nadi, Fiji Islands September 2010 ACIAR Agribusiness in the Pacific Islands – a priority More effective production and marketing (at home and abroad) of high-value commodities, generated by agriculture (including horticulture), forestry and fisheries an important priority for –encouraging economic development, –correcting trade imbalances and –improving livelihoods

Heads of Agriculture and Forestry Services Nadi, Fiji Islands September 2010 ACIAR Agribusiness in the Pacific Islands – constraints Slow growth and low impacts in this sector due to: low productivity, inconsistent volumes of supply, high postharvest transition costs and associated wastage, market access and trade constraints, limited adoption of value add opportunities and lack of an enabling policy environment

Heads of Agriculture and Forestry Services Nadi, Fiji Islands September 2010 ACIAR PARDI – more competitive market chains Part of increased Australian government commitment to R&D in Pacific partner countries Through ACIAR, an additional Aus$12 million for Complements AusAID’s PHAMA (market access) and Market Development Facility projects

Heads of Agriculture and Forestry Services Nadi, Fiji Islands September 2010 ACIAR Target Countries Fiji Islands Vanuatu Samoa Tonga Kiribati Solomon Islands

Heads of Agriculture and Forestry Services Nadi, Fiji Islands September 2010 ACIAR A commitment to collaboration Active collaboration with other domestic and donor-funded projects –A more holistic approach –Avoid overwhelming regional capacity Focus on high-value products with the capacity to return benefit to small holder farmers

Heads of Agriculture and Forestry Services Nadi, Fiji Islands September 2010 ACIAR PARDI partners Secretariat of the Pacific Community University of the South Pacific –Business and Economics, Horticulture Australian collaborators The University of Queensland University of Adelaide Rural Solutions, SA (PIRSA) Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation (Queensland Government) University of the Sunshine Coast James Cook University Southern Cross University

Heads of Agriculture and Forestry Services Nadi, Fiji Islands September 2010 ACIAR PARDI strategy and objectives Uses supply chain, market and business analyses with the objectives of: –identifying opportunities for high-value Pacific products based on sound market and supply chain analysis; –developing strategies to address researchable constraints through the identified intervention points; –focusing interventions at a value-adding level, where appropriate; –using interventions to improve chain competitiveness; and –applying lessons learnt on improving competitiveness to influence supply chains in other sectors.

Heads of Agriculture and Forestry Services Nadi, Fiji Islands September 2010 ACIAR Example of PARDI work on Canarium nut A possible future “macadamia nut” Active Pacific supply chain champions Processed product – semi-perishable & exportable Excellent value-adding opportunities Low-technology production (i.e. wild harvest) and processing Extensive new plantings in PNG – increasing regional supply volumes Small-holder and community-group harvesting

Heads of Agriculture and Forestry Services Nadi, Fiji Islands September 2010 ACIAR

Heads of Agriculture and Forestry Services Nadi, Fiji Islands September 2010 ACIAR Work with community- based farmers to incorporate better harvesting operations to increase percent whole- kernel yields based on adapting traditional techniques

Heads of Agriculture and Forestry Services Nadi, Fiji Islands September 2010 ACIAR Work with the local NGOs to improve production and in-community processing technical support Forge private-private sector partnerships i.e. Australian macadamia growers and relevant Pacific NGOs

Heads of Agriculture and Forestry Services Nadi, Fiji Islands September 2010 ACIAR Technology application to improve processing quality, reduce costs and extend shelf-life improve / create new value-add opportunities

Heads of Agriculture and Forestry Services Nadi, Fiji Islands September 2010 ACIAR Work with retailers to improve marketing & packaging

Heads of Agriculture and Forestry Services Nadi, Fiji Islands September 2010 ACIAR Consumer and market acceptance studies -Focus on identifying and developing export markets - High-value domestic market development - Tourists in Port Vila, Vanuatu - Hotels and local retail in Solomon’s

Heads of Agriculture and Forestry Services Nadi, Fiji Islands September 2010 ACIAR Link with local knowledge/experience and supply chain champion Link with other Donor-funded projects: Proposed new ACIAR canarium project Ongoing EU funded FACT project Current ACIAR review of Pacific industry organizations Link with private sector-led strategies EU is assisting the new Canarium industry to build a centralised pilot processing factory based at NARI Kerevat in PNG

Heads of Agriculture and Forestry Services Nadi, Fiji Islands September 2010 ACIAR PARDI progress to date Consultations in 2009 between ACIAR and its Pacific partners (public- and private-sector) PARDI launched at the beginning of –Stakeholder workshops –PARDI teams representing the project's five components (market chain analysis, forestry, fisheries, crops and capacity building) have consulted on specific priorities and are conducting market-oriented research. –Initial priorities have been identified in the component areas (pearls for the fisheries component, Canarium nuts for forestry, and breadfruit and taro for crops) –Projects under development and further scoping under way

Heads of Agriculture and Forestry Services Nadi, Fiji Islands September 2010 ACIAR Heads of Agriculture and Forestry Services are invited to: note the principles, R&D strategy and progress already made by PARDI; and endorse the further development of this initiative, in line with these principles.