Dr. Lebot Recommends ni-Vanuatu Women Become Involved in the Kava Industry by Running Nurseries

[kasa_balavu]

Local authority on kava Dr. Vincent Lebot has recommended the need to get women involved in setting up kava nurseries throughout the country while men do the planting side of the ‘green gold’.

While making the recommendation during a kava workshop at Tagabe sometime ago, he indicated the new vision is an opportunity for women to also receive direct financial benefit from the kava industry.

In other words, kava farmers buy their kava plants from the women’s nurseries to transplant on their kava farms.

http://dailypost.vu/news/kava-nurse...cle_99d1cf89-363a-53ec-86b9-0d0310e725ba.html

 

[Zaphod]

http://dailypost.vu/news/kava-nurse...cle_99d1cf89-363a-53ec-86b9-0d0310e725ba.html

Is there something in Fiji and Vanuantu that prevents women from owning and running kava farms (either legally or culturally)?

 

[Alia]

Is there something in Fiji and Vanuantu that prevents women from owning and running kava farms (either legally or culturally)?

Not sure about Fiji and Vanuatu, might be more cultural than legal. My late friend Bill Raynor's (Nature Conservancy Micronesia) wife owned and ran a fresh sakau bar in Pohnpei. I have some nice snapshots...they actually pounded out the fresh root in the traditional manner and squeezed directly in to the half-shell, $5. US. To get a bit of insight direct from Bill see page 58 of Hawaiian 'Awa, Views of an Ethnobotanical Treasure.

 

[kasa_balavu]

Is there something in Fiji and Vanuantu that prevents women from owning and running kava farms (either legally or culturally)?

Just the same cultural challenges as almost everywhere else in the world, combined with the fact the digging is physically demanding. In Fiji, the men plant, and the women weed.

 

[Palmetto]

Plus, there is some evidence that kava leaves may cause abortions, thus women handling the plants too much might have miscarriages. It is easy to see why a culture might develop a taboo based upon its children dying. Seems like the most probable cause to me, even if the original reason was forgotten. It's simplistic to label sexism as the answer, when multiple better reasons exist.