
[Photo Credit: Ministry of Multi-Ethnic Affairs & Sugar Industry-Fiji]
The Permanent Secretary for Sugar Industry, Dr. Vinesh Kumar, together with the Director of Operations yesterday met with lorry drivers at the Lautoka Sugar Mill to hear first-hand the challenges they are facing due to the closure of the Ba Mill.
The lorry drivers shared concerns ranging from long delays in offloading cane at the mill to slow quota allocations.
Lautoka Mill General Manager, Ilaitia Ratumainaceva, and the Acting Cane Logistics Manager were also part of the meeting.
Dr. Kumar acknowledged the concerns raised and concurred with the lorry drivers that better planning is required by FSC in allocating and calling lorries to the mill.
In response, the General Manager assured the lorry drivers that FSC will work closely with them to address the issues raised.
The Permanent Secretary commended both the farmers and the lorry drivers for their resilience and patience during these challenging times, and reaffirmed his commitment to working in close collaboration with the FSC team to ensure smooth mill operations.
Later in the afternoon, Dr. Kumar convened a meeting with the Chief Executive Officers of the sugar industry institutions to align priorities and address critical operational challenges.
A key issue highlighted was the quota system, with particular emphasis on ensuring that manual laborers engaged by farmers are allocated sufficient quotas to ease their burden.
Dr. Kumar further directed the Sugar Industry Tribunal, in coordination with the Sugar Cane Growers Council and the Fiji Sugar Corporation, to ensure that there is minimal disruption across the industry and that solutions are implemented swiftly to support farmers and stakeholders.
The Ministry reaffirms its commitment to working with all stakeholders to ensure that cane is efficiently harvested, transported, and crushed, and that the industry continues to move forward despite the difficulties faced.
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