A vegetable garden project has enabled a church youth group to reap benefits a year later and these include generating $5,000 tala in revenue.

The Salani Methodist Youth have concluded work on their vegetable and ornamental garden, thanks to support courtesy of the Civil Society Support Program [C.S.S.P.] under the Samoa Women Shaping Development Program – Gender Fund.

Salani Methodist Church Minister and Project Director, Reverend Uale Misifo, said in a statement that 30 youth were involved and most of them were unemployed.

He said the project gave their youth the opportunity to make good use of their time rather than become involved in illegal practices.

"We started harvesting our vegetables last year and so far we have earned an estimated amount of $5,000 tala. The money goes towards supporting our youth activities,” he said.

“It is our vision, to ensure the sustainability of our project, and we have plans in the future to procure tunnel houses to protect our vegetable garden in times of unfavourable weather conditions.”

The initiative strives to promote and build green livelihoods for Salani youth who are currently unemployed, which will be in line with the goal of the Salani Methodist Church to provide the village’s unemployed youth people with opportunities to develop their skills and boost their livelihood.

Under the Samoa Women Shaping Development Program – Gender Fund, the Methodist Youth of Salani were awarded $28,000 to support their project last year. The fund offers financial support to small-scale projects with a specific focus on women's access to equal opportunities and growth.