Permanent Secretary of iTaukei Affairs and chairman of the iTaukei Trust Fund Board, Pita Tagicakirewa [Photo: Fijian Government / Facebook]

The women of Matailobau in the province of Naitasiri have opened their new cooperative to create sustainable living.

Sixty women from the district have graduated from the Rural Women Entrepreneurship Pilot Training Project.

The cooperative will include a grocery store, a hair salon, a sewing room, and an area for screen printing.

Permanent Secretary of iTaukei Affairs and chairman of the iTaukei Trust Fund Board, Pita Tagicakirewa, says the business platforms will enable women to be artistic and innovative thinkers.

He goes on to say that this boosts public spending and purchasing confidence.

Tagicakirewa states that the opening of the cooperative will boost productivity in the labor and trade workforce.