Women vegetable growers in Wau, Morobe Province have received two new walk-behind tractors.

Under an Agriculture, Value Chain Finance (AVCF) product tailored by the Women’s Micro Bank Limited (Mama Bank), Produce Distributer NKW Fresh, and the Pacific Private Sector Development Initiative (PSDI), the product aims at assisting small-scale farmers with financial needs.

Mama Bank CEO, Gunanidhi Das said farmers play a significant role in supplying PNG Markets with fresh produce and most importantly generate an income to support their families.

However, they are restricted to financial institutions to acquire funding to improve their productivity.

“Mama Bank is glad to empower and build the financial capacity of PNG farmers through easier access to credit facilities, and I thank NKW Fresh and PSDI for this great partnership,” said Das.  

Under the AVCF product, farmers can obtain finance to improve their income generation activities. The AVCF product will also identify areas in the sector that needs to improve.

With the walk-behind tractors, 15 women farmers are now set to benefit fully from this initiative.

“PSDI is pleased to support an important initiative and innovating financial solution,” PSDI Growth Specialist Jeremy Cleaver said.

Furthermore, NKW Fresh General Manager David Stewart said a farmer using machines like the walk-behind tractor can cultivate land four times more than the use of traditional tools like spades and forks.  

He added the increased productivity can provide a small-scale farmer with an annual income between K45,000 and K75,000.