Those involved in the agriculture sector have been reminded to position themselves for the re-opening of the international borders.

Agriculture Minister, Doctor Mahendra Reddy says agriculture plays a vital role in the economy and the re-opening of the border means they will need to meet the demand from the tourism and service sectors.

He adds sourcing of agricultural products from overseas will need to be minimized.

“Hotels and restaurants will pick up to full capacity progressively, the programs that we have on the ground is basically to target that particular demand, so we don’t want to pull off what we are already exporting, in fact, we want to further increase our exports.”

There are currently nine programs that allow farmers and those who have lost their jobs to farm and contribute to meeting the demand while at the same time earn an income.

The Ministry also handed Back to Rural Agriculture (B2RA) kits to 20 farmers in Nadi and Sigatoka today which is one of their programs aimed to assist over 300 farmers.

The $400 package consists of farming tools, planting materials, and cash.

Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama has announced that Fiji’s border will be opened by the 1st of November.