Palau Response for Affected Poor & Vulnerable Groups

June 6, 2025- Great News from the Bureau of Agriculture at Ngchesar, Palau! 🇵🇼 Strengthening Skills, Empowering Futures!

We're beyond excited to share some big wins in our journey to boost food security and income for our small-scale agricultural producers, especially our incredible women farmers on Babeldaob!

Beyond just growing, we recently completed a crucial Food Safety and Food Processing Training Course. The goal was simple but powerful: to make our products even better, safer, and add more value to them. We dove deep into vital skills like equipment sanitation, improved processing methods, and rigorous food safety standards. These are technical lessons that form the bedrock for certification, preparing our products for market, and showcasing Palau's exceptional taro product.

What makes this truly special is who it was for: the incredible women's groups who are the project beneficiaries and contributors to local food production. This workshop focused on building confidence and reinforcing the message that you're not just contributors—they're partners and vital leaders in our food system.

Special Thanks and Acknowledgment
We want to send our sincerest gratitude to Mr. Alesana Malo, our visiting Food Technologist, for sharing his invaluable expertise and guiding us through this truly transformative training. His insights have been instrumental.

And this vital initiative simply wouldn't have been possible without the generous support of the Government of Japan through the Japan Fund for Prosperous and Resilient Asia and the Pacific (JFPR), in partnership with the Asian Development Bank. Their commitment under the Palau COVID-19 Response to Affected Poor and Vulnerable Groups Project has directly empowered our community and opened up exciting new doors for our local food industry. We are incredibly grateful for their partnership.

We'll keep you updated as we continue to grow together!

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1XhgQvLnep/

💜Lak Di Mluk💜 🧡No Silence On Violence🧡
📞 MOMEKEDONG CALL 775-VOCA (8622) 📞

Alii Friends!
✅Now that the first six months of the year is almost over, take a moment to have a self-check-in on your mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual health.
✳️Are you on-track with your personal goals, reaching your fullest potential, and living your best life?
💪You have the power to make it all happen and truly make this a blessed and fulfilling life.
📍And, remember if you experience or witness gender-based violence (GBV) or violence of any kind, know there is help. A ngeso a ngar er ngii.
📞 Call 775-VOCA (8622) for help and assistance.

Strengthening our partnerships to boost food safety and develop exciting value-added products, with a spotlight on the incredible taro! 🌱 Mr. Malo will be collaborating with the Food Processing Center team on these important topics, aiming to elevate current trial products like taro waffles and pudding. 🧇🍮

Fantastic work, FPC Team Palau Taro Flour 🙌

Grateful for the strong support and collaboration from implementing agencies PVA, BOA-MAFE, Division of Environmental Health-MHHS, MOE Staff Delina Kebekol, Volunteers Susan Chiu and JICA Setsko Tojima. Your partnership is invaluable.

Let's continue to raise awareness and standards of food safety and innovate together in Palau's food sector!

Ministry of Health & Human Services - Republic of Palau, Technical Mission of the Republic of China （Taiwan） in Palau, Palau Visitors Authority, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and the Environment, Ministry HRCTD, Ministry of Finance - Bureau of Revenue and Taxation, Embassy of Japan in Palau（在パラオ日本国大使館）, Palau Community College - PCC, Palau SBDC, 680 Night Market

A warm welcome to Mr. Alesana Malo from Samoa! He's joined us in Palau as a Food Technology Consultant to collaborate with our Women Seed Grant beneficiaries and the Food Processing Center team under Output 2.

With his extensive experience working with various Pacific communities, he'll lead training sessions on food safety and developing value-added taro products in the last week of May or early June 2025.

Stay tuned for exciting updates!

💜LAK DI MLUK💜
🧡NO SILENCE ON VIOLENCE🧡
⚡Let's end Gender-Based Violence (GBV). ⚡
The 4 Main Types of GBV are:
1️⃣Physical
2️⃣Sexual
3️⃣Psychological
4️⃣Financial

If you experience or witness GBV, please speak up!
CALL 775-VOCA (8622)

🌱Join us for the Annual Green Fair!🌿
Hosted by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Environment in partnership with Palau Visitors Authority, this year’s theme is “Investing in Our Community: Safeguarding our Investment for a Cleaner Future.”

📍 Bureau of Agriculture, Ngchesar
📅 Friday, April 18, 2025
⏰ 9 AM – 3 PM

Bring your friends and family for a fun-filled day of activities, raffles, and prizes — all while supporting a greener Palau! 💚

For more info, call PVA at 488-2793/1930. Don’t miss it! 🌎✨