Tanna farmers encouraged to shift from subsistence to commercial farming
April 13, 2025 9:41 pm | Posted in Business News | Share now TwitterFacebook
By Ezra Toara & Kizzy Kalsakau.
Over 80% of Tanna Island’s population depend on agriculture for their livelihood. While most still practice subsistence farming, there is a growing movement towards commercial farming. Farmers are being urged to improve and promote their farming practices to reach this new level.
Speaking on the Capital FM107 Agriculture Show, Sam Naliko, Senior Agriculture Development Officer for Tanna with the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD), said their role is to provide services and agricultural information to rural communities. He explained that they are working with the Department to decentralise agriculture services so that farmers across the island’s seven area councils can participate in agricultural development.
To support this effort, Agriculture Development Officers (ADOs) have been assigned to each area council. These officers are responsible for supporting, training, and guiding about 5,000 people in each area.
Naliko shared that on Tanna, they mainly work with crops like taro, coffee, and spices such as vanilla, turmeric, ginger, and pepper. In South Tanna, many farmers also grow vegetables, coconuts, and kava. He noted that crops like coffee, coconut, and cocoa are important because there are established markets for them. Local buyers, such as the Tanna Coffee Company and a supporting Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), regularly purchase these products, encouraging farmers to continue planting them.
“Coffee has been with us for a long time,” said Naliko. “Today, there are around 600 to 900 farmers with coffee plantations. Some have over 1,000 to 2,500 coffee plants.”
He also recalled that after the government introduced the Tanna Coffee Development Programme, a major challenge emerged in the form of Coffee Leaf Rust, a disease that damaged many plants. Thanks to the help of a foreign company, hybrid coffee varieties were introduced, and they have shown positive results. Farmers have since moved away from planting Arabica and Robusta and are now growing more resistant hybrid varieties.
Naliko also spoke about challenges with coconut farming. Farmers had been receiving seed nuts from Santo, but distribution stopped after the Rhinoceros Beetle outbreak. There is still a need for more seed nuts, and if they are not available from Santo, the department is considering sourcing them from Aneityum or Erromango.
He noted that although TAFEA Province includes five islands, all are receiving the same information and support from the Department of Agriculture.
Naliko urged all farmers in TAFEA, especially in Tanna, to take advantage of the agriculture officers available in their area. “There is a plan and funding in place to support agricultural development. Through decentralisation, the government can reach rural communities more effectively,” he said.
Mr. Naliko has worked with the DARD for 39 years, starting just after Vanuatu’s independence in 1980. He began as a field assistant and gradually moved up the ranks to become senior agriculture officer. Today, he oversees all agriculture officers working across the island of Tanna.
