PHAMA Plus Performance Story – Fijian Kava

Over the past 15 years, Fiji’s kava economy has undergone a remarkable transformation. What was once a largely subsistence crop with modest commercial value has now become the country’s most valuable agricultural export. In 2008, near the start of the first phase of the Pacific Horticultural and Agricultural Market Access (PHAMA) Program, kava exports were valued at under FJD4 million. By 2024, the Fiji Bureau of Statistics reported a more than tenfold increase exceeding FJD53 million. The broader kava sector is now estimated to be worth over FJD190 million when domestic consumption, processing and informal sales are included.

The kava industry now supports more than 14,500 farming households across Fiji, up from approximately 10,400 households recorded in 2016, according to the Fiji Yaqona Farming Household Census 2024. The major growing regions include Kadavu, Bua, Cakaudrove, Naitasiri, and parts of Macuata and Lomaiviti. For many of these rural communities, kava has become a critical source of income, far exceeding subsistence returns and playing a vital role in sustaining rural economies—not just during boom periods but as a stable livelihood option.