Bris Kanda Incorporated

Martin Pewa, a smallholder cocoa farmer living in a remote rural area of PNG in Morobe Province was excited when informed that he was nominated to represent his fellow farmers of Huon Gulf District at the Trade Pacifica Expo in Fiji.

The Trade Pasifika Expo held from 25th-27th June 2012, at Denarau in Nadi, Fiji was organised by Pacific Island Private Sector Organisation (PIPSO).   PIPSO is the regional peak private sector organization of the 14 Forum Island Countries (FICs) with membership in all of the 14 FICS through the net work of National Private Sector Organisations.

The Expo is a traditional event held every bi-annually which essentially marks the progress that has made delivery on its members’ requests and provides an excellent opportunity for the region’s businesses to participate and promote their products and services to potential customers within and outside the region.

The Lae Chamber of Commerce, through its network membership with PIPSO has recommended Bris Kanda (BK) to attend the Expo.

The community is beginning to see the importance and potential value in floriculture as an industry worth developing in terms of beautifying homes, work places and to an extent even city, while generating a source of income for families as a whole. This awareness can be attributed to like minded promoters of the floriculture industry, such as; Mary Saun of the Mary Elz Orchid in Bloom Company which is based in Port Moresby and who conducted a week’s Floriculture Training in August 2012 at the Forest Research Institute in Lae.  Mary is also the President of the PNG Cut Flower Association.

The purpose of the training was to provide the participants with some basic skills and understanding:

• Establishing Anthurium garden plots in the proper way;
• Maintaining and producing quality Anthurium Cut Flowers;
• Making different flower arrangements, corsages, leis, wreaths, bouquets and hairpins as income generating

acitivity;

• Having self confidence and basic personal hygiene;
• The role of the PNG Cut Flower Association and its objectives; and
• To be aware of the Gender Development Programme.

The recently staged Oriatz Women’s Cooperative Society was launched at Wampar Chamber outside Lae, on 16th October 2012 marks yet another milestone for the women of Papua New Guinea, especially the Wampar women as they gathered in their colorful attire to witness the inauguration of a Women’s Cooperative Society in the Morobe Province.   This event commemorated World Food Day themed “Agriculture Cooperatives - Key to feeding the World”.

The Oriatz Rural Women’s Cooperative Society, then known as Oriatz Rural Women in Agriculture (ORWIA) was established in January 2008.   It is made up of women from the Wampar Local Level Government, aiming to empower women to be actively engaged in sustainable agricultural activities so they can improve and maintain their families and communities and to contribute meaningfully to the development of this nation.

ORWIA was in fact the first ever organized women’s group identified by Bris Kanda back in 2008 when the concept of incorporating Gender as a cross cutting issue was introduced.  A number of Gender, related activities with the support of various stakeholders were performed in terms of various training exercises, including gender mainstreaming, participation in public exposure, and improved technical knowledge in farming skills for the women.