Peceli Naviticoko 
Rusiate Nevula - Wainunu farmer
Kava farmers in Nadua, Wainunu, Bua are facing a sharp drop in production.
They say the kava dieback disease is destroying their crops.
Farmer Rusiate Nevula states that they are losing entire farms in a short time.
This has affected the local market.
Farmers are now selling younger kava, which is lower in both quality and quantity.
“For us in Wainunu, the kava disease is affecting us to the extent that we are harvesting and uprooting young kava right to the mature ones. It’s really bad, and most of the time we bring less kava to be sold here at the market. So farmers need to harvest it before it gets damaged and dies out.”
Nevula says many depend fully on kava for income, but there has been no help so far.
There is no chemical cure for the disease.
However, farmers are being advised to use cultural methods like intercropping and clean farming practices to slow the spread.
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