14/07/2010 (Solomon Star) - The Auluta palm oil project on Malaita maybe inactive but the Ministry for Agriculture and Livestock is not swayed by the slowness in getting an investor put its money in the project.

The Auluta project which started in 2005 is now ready and the government has been in constant contact with governments and potential investors, mostly from Malaysia to see if they can invest in the project.

Malaysia was chosen because of the country’s expertise in oil palm plantation and the proper setting up of their organization, which monitors and run oil palm plantations in that country.

Two members of the Malaysian Oil Palm Board are currently in the country where they will be making a trip to Auluta Basin this week to see the preparatory work already undertaken and also to hold talks with the Malaita provincial government.

The two member delegation on Monday held discussions with the caretaker Deputy Prime Minister Fred Fono and the caretaker minister for Planning and Aid Coordination Steve Abana.

Permanent secretary of the Ministry for Agriculture and Livestock Edward Kingmele said that of the five thousand hectares earmarked for oil palm plantation, two-thousand five hundred hectares is now ready to accommodate any investor.

The total area suitable for Oil Palm plantation in the Auluta Basin is about ten-thousand hectares of which half had gone through various acquisition processes.

Mr Kingmele also said with Oil Palm plantations coming up in various locations in the country, a government paper is being prepared and hopefully it will be taken to Parliament as a bill.

He said currently, there are no legislation specifically aimed at assisting and regulating Oil Palm activities in the country.

Mr Kingmele said the Ministry is also in the process of creating a body to be known as the “Solomon Islands Palm Oil Investment Corporation” which will administer all Palm oil activities including marketing and monitoring.

The commodity is currently under the CEMA Act but with the formation of this body, it will concentrate on Palm Oil and its products.

Mr Kingmele said there are interests shown from Western, Isabel and Makira provinces in Palm oil development which could increase the number of plantations to reach 100-thousand hectares.

He said one of the options would be to apply what Guadalcanal Plain Palm Oil Limited is doing by encouraging out growers with little or no government influence in its operations.

Mr Kingmele said the Auluta Palm Oil project is a very important national one and the government must assist the people to get an investor or they put local money into.

Deputy Prime Minister Fred Fono said although the project has been on the table for the past five years, consecutive governments failed to take drastic steps to have it implemented.

He said if this project is implemented, the workforce which are moving from Malaita to Guadalcanal can be retained in the province and properly utilized in their province.

Mr Fono said one of the causes of the recent ethnic tension was the migration of people from Malaita to Guadalcanal seeking employment.

He said if projects for Malaita are carried out, a lot of the workers from that province will remain.

Another project earmarked for Malaita is the Waisisi Palm oil project, apart from the Bina harbor project, which Mr Kingmele said an investor had shown interest in it and they will be visiting the country and the area next week.

The Ministry of Agriculture hosted a function at the Iron Bottom Sound Hotel to welcome the Malaysian Oil Palm Board members Monday evening