Experts from the University of Yogyakarta, Indonesia are in the country on a 10 day workshop to train participants from Fiji on their skills on woodcarving which was requested by the Indonesian Embassy in Fiji.

While opening the 10 day woodcarving training in Nadi Ministry of Forests, Acting Director Research & Development Semi Dranibaka has highlighted that woodcarving training has been around since 2010 under the guidance of the Indonesian government and Ambassador Chandar Salim.

He says that participants will be trained in bamboo handicraft, construction of bamboo furniture, coconut shell artifacts and batik or woodchip drying in villages.

Draunibaka says that this training has benefitted the skills in artifacts production and is improving the livelihoods of Namaka community groups.

Dranibaka hopes that this partnership will continue in the future and will pave the way forward for a much stronger economic cooperation and capacity building between the two countries.