“I am pleased with the support that we are receiving now. This support means more money to boost what we have been doing. My family will now be able to extend our potato farming activities. I will be able to meet extra costs like school fees and we can be able to improve our diets”.

Amongst other activities, Kinapulam Farmers’ Co-operative Society supplies potato seeds to farmers for small-scale commercial purposes. Rhonda’s group and the Yakam Resort Co-operative society are the second group to sign the LVG at a value of PGK 89,810 (USD 25,506) and PGK 82,172 respectively. To date, four community-based groups have signed LVG agreements with the UNDP under the EU-funded Enga Landscape Management Project.

These small grants are part of the key component of the Enga Landscape Project. The first two grantees, Laigap Poverty Relievers Association and Pakelam Waves Eco-Tourism Association were awarded in November 2021. Overall, the four grants will benefit (directly and indirectly) over 5,000 people in the target communities.

The grant disbursement is established as seed funding and financing opportunity to support community-based projects. By the end of this year, the project will aim to provide to more than 40 grantees to strengthen the sustainable and economic development of Enga Province.

These grant projects will allow the respective communities to increase their sustainable agriculture practices in a climate-friendly manner that will create jobs for the community, conserve biodiversity, and tackle climate change issues.

The Enga Landscape Project (Strengthening Integrated Landscape Management Project (SISLaM) is funded by the European Union and implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).