Miselete Satuala is a mother of five children, a kava farmer, and co-owner of Satuala Development, a business that grows and exports kava. 

Kava is made from the root of the kava shrub. Traditionally, Pacific Islanders crushed or ground the shrub's root, then soaked it in cold water to produce a drink for ceremonies and cultural practices. Kava is said to elevate mood and produce a feeling of relaxation and contentment. 

According to Samoa's latest agricultural census, there are about 1,200 kava farmers in Samoa, and most only farm to meet local consumption needs. The Samoa AgriBusiness Support Project, supported by the Asian Development Bank (A.D.B.) and the Government of Australia, is helping boost the Pacific Island nation's economic performance by addressing constraints that hinder increased trade and export. It assists commercial partner agribusinesses to grow sustainably and works with participating commercial banks to provide suitable financing to these agribusinesses.

In an interview with the A.D.B. Miselete Satuala talked about how the project is helping her pave her way to becoming Samoa's biggest kava exporter.

Describe your business:

With my husband Ropati, we run a kava (in Samoa, we call it 'ava') and taro business on Western Samoa's second biggest island, Savai'i. We have about 12,000 ava and 300,000 taro plants on a 60-acre farm. We inter-crop these plants meaning we plant taro and ava together, so when you harvest one, the other is still growing. It takes about four years to harvest ava. It's a family business. My husband, father-in-law, and a group of about 20 boys manage the farm, including the daily planting and harvesting. My main role in the business is managing the finances. I also help with marketing. I enjoy updating our social media and sharing news about the developments on the farm.

How did you become involved with Samoa AgriBusiness Support Project?

Satuala Development entered the project in 2019. Through it, we got a loan from the Bank of the South Pacific, which helped us purchase a much-needed vehicle at the time. Part of the money was also used to pay for the salaries of boys who worked on the farm. The project couldn't have come at a better time, as we were looking to expand our farm and needed financial backup, given that the ava plants were still young and the taro was not yet ready for harvesting.

Other benefits you have gained through the project?

The impact of this project on our business has been immense. It changed financial institutions' mindset, especially commercial banks, towards the agriculture sector. They now seem more favorable towards the agribusinesses like us and are happy to provide credit. The project facilitated good liaison between the banks and us. The project has also given our business good exposure locally and nationally through high-level government visits to our farm. In addition, the project provided us with business support services, like financial management and technical support, as well as assistance in developing business plans and providing guidance to secure commercial finance.

Did the COVID-19 pandemic present extra challenges for you?

During COVID, the biggest challenge for us was the rising cost of shipping the ava overseas. We could still send our shipments through, but it was very expensive. Hopefully, it will become less so in the future. 

What is the appeal of the ava that you grow?

I don't drink ava, but our clients say our ava is very different from the stronger Fijian and Vanuatu ava. They say our ava has a much lighter, almost milky taste. 

Future with the business:

In Samoa, ava is grown for the local market for local consumption. Our business is different because we grow our ava for export. When we began our business, we set out to be Samoa's biggest kava supplier and are well-placed to achieve that goal. We have been sending six shipments yearly to the U.S.A. since 2019, and our market there has been expanding. We are hopeful our future looks bright!

• Sally R. Shute-Trembath is the Senior Communications Officer with the Asian Development Bank's Pacific Liaison and Coordination Office in Sydney, Australia.