Not only cocoa, coffee production also driving changes in ENB

Papua New Guinea (PNG)’s Lasul-Baining remains remote and undeveloped in East New Britain (ENB). Its vast economic potential in agriculture remains untapped.
Senior Writer MALUM NALU ventured into the Baining Mountains with a World Bank (WB) team to see how the Productive Partnerships in Agriculture Project (PPAP) is impacting cocoa farmers.

THE Baining people are among the earliest inhabitants of ENB’s Gazelle Peninsula.
They currently inhabit the Baining Mountains where they are thought to have been driven away by the Tolai tribes who migrated to the coastal areas.
Another factor that might have influenced their migration inland are the regular volcanic eruptions over the centuries, and even now.
This makes Lasul-Baining remain remote and undeveloped, but its vast economic potential in agriculture had remained untapped.

Tseng … looking after 1,000 coffee growers
At Kabakual in Kokopo, ENB, a K3.5 million coffee factory, set up with the help of the PPAP, has triggered a transformation of the economic landscape of the New Guinea Islands (NGI) Region.
Known for its cocoa and coconuts, but many are not aware that high-grade coffee beans are cultivated in parts of WNB, ENB, New Ireland and Bougainville.
The factory is 51 per cent owned by the ENB government and 49 per cent by Taiwanese company New Britain Resources Development Ltd (NBRDL).
The PPAP assisted with a K300,000 funding for the purchase of machinery.
NBRDL president and chief executive officer Eugene Tseng was proud and eager to show a visiting WB team around the factory on Aug 10.
“This (coffee) production line is 4,000kg per hour. If our parchment is clean, it can go up five to six tonnes without any problem.
“With four tonnes every hour, we can fill up a 20-foot container for export every five hours,” he added.
“This is why we needed WB’s funding assistance for coffee growers in NGI to boost production and exports. I can understand how difficult it is for people in the bush with no roads.
“That is why we hope that the WB can really focus on progressing these people through the PPAP. Really good coffee is their bright future,” he said, adding that “we are already looking after 1,000 coffee growers”.
“We are hopeful that this high-production facility will forward our people positively with quality coffee bean production.

“I know we have good quality, but before, we did not have any factory. I am making it happening here in NGI.
“By my estimation, this factory can raise the region’s coffee production, thus increasing the farmers’ income.”
Tseng said a three-hectare garden of either Arabica or Robusta coffee would yield a harvest worth up to K30,000 a year.
“I already have 80 coffee importers organised in Australia, the US, European Union, Taiwan and China.
“I can go into the Chinese market just like this. However, I need high-grade quality coffee to meet export demands. The farmers, thus, need proper and professional training,” he added.

Kiteni … dealing with farmers is no easy task
PPAP women and youth assistant project manager Kiteni Kurika says the people in remote areas like Lasul-Baining need services to help them progress.
“Agriculture extension officers also find it extremely difficult to venture into Baining because of (poor) logistics,” she added.
Kiteni, who is in charge of a project in Laan Village, on the foothills of the Baining Mountain, told a WB visiting team that she contacted PPAP Cocoa Component manager Dr John Moxon for help.
“The people were never the same after PPAP stepped in with their assistance,” Kiteni said.
“They loved cocoa, and once we obtained a vehicle, we were able to visit them regularly. This is the least-developed Local Level Government with no services.
“The government offices are empty, thus there is absolutely no service. That is how sad things are here. It is the aim of this project to really serve these forgotten rural people, to reach and mobilise them. These included young people, young couples, whom we wanted to reach out to.
“This group is now the highest-producing cocoa group in the area. We are mobilising all the PPAP farmers who are already on another level, higher than ordinary farmers,” she added.
Kiteni said: “We are looking for markets, we are looking for ways to make real business, we are looking at ways to improve cooperatives.
“Dealing with farmers is not an easy task. Dealing with low literacy, getting them to think like we think is really hard, but that’s our job.
“We have to come down to their level, be committed and have a heart for them to create something special and make an impact or a difference. This WB-supported project is certainly impacting the lives of the rural folk,” she added.

Sowut … unfortunate for so long, we now have cooperatives
Linus Sowut, from Dawut Village in Lasul-Baining, is a lead farmer with the PPAP and extols its virtues in promoting rural development.
A cocoa nursery, drier and resource centre are being set up in Dawut to help boost cocoa production.
“We have been unfortunate for so long. But, today, we have cooperatives registered through the PPAP. Individual farmers are also registered with the PPAP.
“We, being from a very remote area, have never benefitted from such a development scheme before. We were not very interested in cocoa after the cocoa pod borer infestation several years ago.
“The PPAP has rejuvenated our interest in growing cocoa again. Cocoa is now sustaining us and we are now enjoying significant benefits in income and social development,” he added.

Lempo … with the PPAP since 2013
Simon Lempo, a Bougainvillean who fled his home during the crisis on the island, is now settled into growing cocoa in the remote Lasul-Baining of ENB.
One of the many farmers who had benefitted from the PPAP, Lempo said: “It has changed our lives for the better.”
The farmers live in areas without roads and still carry out their cocoa to main roads through the rugged terrain. Lempo is a member of a local cooperative with 500 members who have benefitted from PPAP’s guidance and advice.
“We are very happy with the project, especially its distribution of clonal seedlings to replace the old hybrid cocoa. It is now very easy to look after our cocoa plants, the source of our income.
“We have occasional problems with the cocoa pod borer. But we are able to overcome the challenges,” said Lempo who has been associated with the PPAP since 2013.
“The project has helped the people to have a better livelihood. We were given tools that helped us maintain and cultivate our cocoa blocks. I now have 2,500 cocoa trees.
“I am from South Bougainville’s Siwai but because of the crisis, I fled the island, married a local woman and settled here,” he said.

Tangir … cocoa cultivation has given me a new lease of life
Richard Tangir, a young man from remote Laan Village in ENB’s Lasul-Baining, says cocoa cultivation had given him a new lease of life.
“My life before this project was completely different. In the past, I would not be able to stand in front of all of you like this and address you.
“The project has raised my confidence and self-esteem. I am now assured of a prosperous future through cocoa cultivation because of what I have learned from PPAP,” he said, describing the impact on his life, family and communities.
Tangir said there were now more than 40 farmers, all young people, registered with PPAP in his area.
“They include both young men and women,” he added.

Hombunaka … coffee factory in Kokopo will be the catalyst for the industry
PPAP coffee manager Potaisa Hombunaka says the new coffee factory in Kokopo will be the catalyst for the coffee industry for the New Guinea Islands Region.
“We are going to have coffee coming from New Ireland, Autonomous Region of Bougainville, WNB and of course ENB.
“With the factory in place, it is now incumbent on the Coffee Industry Corporation (CIC) and the responsible provincial governments to go all out on a huge drive to train farmers, rehabilitate gardens to produce quality coffee, and provide the appropriate tools and materials like what we do in PPAP.
“This factory, in the next four to five years, will not be fully utilised. But, with concerted efforts, we will get this factory operating at full capacity.
“This is the beginning of the coffee industry in this province and region. CIC inspectors have inspected the coffee factory and will shortly be issuing a processing licence,” he added.

Quick facts on the PPAP and its cocoa production drive

THE US$94 million(K317.7 million) PPAP was approved on April 29, 2010, and signed on Aug 9, 2010.
The total loan financing for Phase I was US$39 million (K131.8 million) and Phase II US$55 million (K185.9) with PPAP completion date on Dec 31, 2019.
The development objective of the PPAP is to improve the livelihoods of smallholder cocoa and coffee producers.
This objective would be achieved by implementing the following components, namely: industry coordination and policy development, productive partnerships and market access.
The cocoa-producing provinces currently benefiting from PPAP are the Autonomous Region of Bougainville (AROB), East New Britain (ENB), Morobe, Madang and the two Sepik provinces.
Under the PPAP, there are 36 cocoa partnerships being implemented and are at various stages of implementation – some are struggling whilst others are doing well.
The cocoa partnerships by provinces and funding are as follows:

• ENB has 15 partnerships with 11,150 farmers and K23.2 million funding;
• AROB has six partnerships with 6,053 framers and K14.7 million funding;
• EAST Sepik and West Sepik have five partnerships with 3,697 farmers and K10.5 million funding;
• MADANG has three partnerships with 1,730 farmers and K4.7 million funding; and
• MOROBE has one partnership with 595 farmers and K1.4 million funding.

This means the PPAP has a total of 30 partnerships covering 23,225 households and K54.6 million in funding.
The cocoa feeder/ring road funding by provinces are as follows:

• ENB has six feeder roads (13km) and one box culvert bridge with a funding of K8.6 million;
• AROB has three feeder roads (14.9km) with a funding of K6.6 million;
• MOROBE has one feeder road (6.1km) with a funding of K1.8 million;
• MADANG has one feeder road (6.5km) with a funding of K 3.9 million; and
• EAST Sepik has five feeder roads (19.5km) with a funding of K10.6 million.

The rehabilitated 59.8km of feeder roads and the culvert bridge will benefit more than 300,000 farmers and villagers.
The activities implemented as of December 2018:

• A TOTAL of 98 bud wood gardens (94%) from a target of 104 have been set up;
• A TOTAL of 89 nurseries (92%) from the target of 97 nurseries have been set up;
• A total of 19,675 tool kits (85%) have been distributed to PPAP farmers from the target of 23,233 tool kits;
• A TOTAL of 975 farmers (agronomy and livelihood) training programmes or activities have been conducted to both PPAP (58,332 farmers) and non-PPAP farmers (3,709) of which there were 16,216 female farmers and 45,825 male farmers; and
• AS part of the diversification, a total at 93,423 galip plants (47.6%) from the target of 196,390 have been planted on 2,331ha by PPAP farmers.

The cocoa partnership project activities have achieved the following:

• FARMERS have rehabilitated 5176ha of old cocoa tress or about 3.24 million old cocoa trees;
• A TOTAL of 4.6 million hybrid clones have been planted on 6,997ha, representing 85% of the target of 5.4 million cloned seedlings envisaged to be distributed by the project;
• ASSUMING all farmers received 200 clone seedlings as per the PPAP implementation schedule, a total of 8,676ha will be planted with cloned seedlings at the end PPAP;
• DUE to higher yields per hectare, lead partners have recorded a total sale of 9,748 tonnes of dry beans from their registered farmers. The average dry bean price per tonne is K4,953 as of December 2018, so cumulatively the PPAP farmers have earned about K48 million.

From the cocoa industry perspective, production has been on a steady increase of 38,000 tonnes in 2013 to 43,000 tonnes in 2017.
Production will increase considerably within the next two years with the increase in production in the East and AROB.
Production is expected to be doubled with the distribution of the new clones to East Sepik, West Sepik, Morobe and Madang.