Namatanai JDP approves K400,000 for transport and agriculture projects

A total of K400,000 has been earmarked to improve transport and agriculture services in Namatanai electorate this year.

The Namatanai Joint District and Budget Priority Committee (JD&BPC) under the District Support Improvement Program (DSIP) recently approved the Transport and Agriculture projects for 2010 and 2011.

The JDP appropriation will include:

• The purchase of 10 trucks for the remaining top-up primary schools in the district and;
•  Purchase of 20 boats to assist surrounding islands and the Konoagil Local Level Governments (LLGs) with the transportation of copra, cocoa, and market goods to the buying points and;

• Buying of additional water tanks that will be supplied to all LLGs that experienced difficulties during the Elnino type drought.

From the K400,000 project funding, K100,000 will go towards transport while another K100,000 will be for agriculture as grants for all five LLGs in the Namatanai district.

The JD&BPC also endorsed the remaining balance of K200,000 for agriculture particularly coffee and to conduct Cocoa Pod Borer (CPB) awareness programs by the district didimans (agriculture advisers).

Meanwhile, Member for Namatanai Byron Chan who is also the chairman of the Namatanai JD&BPC noted that the coffee and CPB programmes were approved in 2010, but due to slow implementation has been brought forward to this month.