at this point, i must commend the department of agriculture which has been at the forefront in working with various players in the industry. as a result, most of the hotels and resorts now use a lot more local produce. in fact a number of hotels have developed their own backyard gardens and are now linked with local suppliers to ensure a steady supply of quality and fresh produce. complementing this is the growing trend and awareness amongst chefs and travellers on the diversity and the richness of our local cuisine and diet. ladies and gentlemen, all too often access to affordable finance has been cited as a major challenge to growth in the sectors i have highlighted this morning. the reserve bank, as the financial sector regulator, is taking a more proactive approach to this issue. our most recent efforts include the streamlining of our export finance facility and import substitution facility into a single entity called the import substitution and export finance facility ( or iseff ). the facility will continue to focus on improving fiji ’ s balance of payments position by assisting exporters, large scale commercial agricultural farmers and renewable energy businesses to obtain credit at concessional rates of interest. in addition, the bank has further reduced the administrative requirements and streamlined the approval process for funding under the scheme. in february this year the rbf issued a policy to commercial banks ’ which required them to lend at least four percent of their deposits to businesses in the agriculture sector and a further two percent to the renewable energy sector. in addition, the reserve bank recently required all banks to establish local advisory boards to guide senior expatriate management to better understand, and align their strategies to fiji ’ s regulatory and supervisory environment, as well as national development objectives, which will include the provision of financial services to the wider community. ladies and gentlemen, the rbf will continue to play a proactive role in ensuring accessible finance is provided to these key sectors with a view of creating opportunities for farmers and families to improve their livelihood and contribute to economic growth. we hope that you will also make the most of the opportunities that the crest agriculture show has to offer and take the time to visit the finance providers and find out about their available services and products. this morning i would also like to introduce and launch a new recipe book that was compiled by a local chef – mr simione toanikeve, whom the reserve bank sponsored in 2010 for training in malaysia. this scholarship came about through the support of the intercontinental hotel group here in fiji and the crowne plaza mu

meet fiji ’ s external payment obligations ; and that our financial system is sound. you may ask how do we do this? the reserve bank independently sets monetary policy by managing the nation ’ s money supply to achieve a set policy interest rate. in doing so, we indirectly influence the interest rates of commercial banks, that is, the deposit and lending rates. these in turn will lead to changes in the amount of money that is circulating in the financial system and the availability of credit in the economy. our presence here at the crest agriculture show is a testament of our commitment and support to grow what we see as critical sectors of our economy. we are trying our best to raise awareness and bring about unity and support, from all stakeholders, to work together to improve the conditions and living standards of all our fellow citizens in fiji. bis central bankers ’ speeches the main focus of today ’ s financing day is to raise awareness and understanding of the different products and facilities that are available from our various financing institutions that have been targeted to assist the agriculture and the renewable and sustainable energy sectors. you might be asking, why are we facilitating finance to these sectors? as a resource - based economy, our greatest competitive advantage lies in the development of our resource - based sectors. this means that we need to continue to work together as a nation to grow fiji and increase the production and utilisation of our own natural resources for both domestic consumption, as well as exports. as such, the agriculture, fisheries and forestry sectors will continue to play an integral role in fiji ’ s overall development. the agriculture sector, which includes sugar cane, other cash crops, livestock and subsistence farming, is vital to fiji ’ s economy, contributing notably to fiji ’ s gross domestic product ( gdp ). the sector provides food and livelihood security, promotes community development in rural areas, generates income for approximately 65 percent of our population, and earns foreign exchange for the country. unfortunately, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, the sector has been performing well below par in recent years. as an illustration, for 2010, total agriculture exports were around $ 581 million with sugar earnings accounting for 12 percent or $ 70 million. back in 2008, agricultural exports were much higher at $ 670 million and sugar earnings accounted for 37 percent or $ 248 million. over the past decade, the contribution of the agricultural sector to fiji ’ s gdp has also declined from 12. 3 percent in 2001 to 9. 2 percent in 2011. the decline in performance in