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A REAWAKENING OF CULTURAL PRACTICES

By Samantha Rina and the rediscovery of ‘slow’ food, in a change
from the fast-food lifestyle that has become
Creative and cultural sectors across the Pacific synonymous with modern Pacific living.
and the world, have been among the hardest hit Members of the RCS Working Group noted that
...Continues to Care as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. While the as a result of COVID-19 measures, more time was
spent within families and more attention given to
value of arts and culture is often framed in strictly
About Fijian Businesses economic terms and there is no denying the food security, fostering stronger, collective cultural
responsibility and wellbeing (traditional social
significant contribution to the tourism industry, or
the taxation revenue created by cultural events
protection and sharing, collective community food
and exhibitions, the creative and cultural sectors of security), as well as a revitalisation of traditional
Congratulations Fiji the Pacific serve a far deeper and more important The Festival of Pacific Arts has been postponed to June 2024 knowledge on food production and preservation.
Pacific Trade Invest New Zealand extends its well wishes to the people role for the people of this region. as a result of the COVID-19 control measures. FestPAC was Pacific people returned to the land, the ocean and
of Fiji on the 50th anniversary of their independence. In the Pacific, our culture is our identity; one created to showcase arts and culture and to halt the erosion cultural and traditional ways of living to sustain
of traditional practices through ongoing cultural exchanges.
New Zealand and Fiji have long enjoyed a strong trading relationship
understand what is happening with Fijian SMEs right now. that comprises spiritual faith and customary them during the crisis.
with Fiji being New Zealand’s largest trading partner, in the Blue Pacific and
in NZ’s top twenty trading partners worldwide. 2. We Get Businesses Export Ready beliefs and practices. We have a unique variety of While the increased attention to cultural
There’s a range of things that need to happen before coming into the languages and art including storytelling, chants, resilience was highlighted as a positive, other
Through mutual business, trade and investment New Zealand and Fiji
continue to support each other’s regional growth and integration. New Zealand market and as the saying goes ‘you don’t know what you poetry, songs, dances, attires and handicrafts that members suggested that lockdowns, restrictions,
Who We Are don’t know’. But we know what you need to know – and we are keen to highlight the diversity of culture in each country, limited public gatherings and physical distancing
share that knowledge with you.
Pacific Trade Invest New Zealand is an agency of Pacific Islands Forum province and village. For a region whose cultures had created unprecedented stress and anxiety
Secretariat (PIFS) and is funded by New Zealand’s Ministry of Foreign PTI NZ is the principal contact between exporters in the Pacific and are people-centred, with in-person interaction among people as these measures undermined
importers in New Zealand.
Affairs and Trade (MFAT). and engagement critical to many expressions cultural rights, holistic health and wellbeing.
Based in Auckland, Aotearoa New Zealand and part of the global We work with a range of stakeholders to help identify export capable
Pacific Trade Invest network with offices operating out of Sydney, Beijing, businesses in Fiji and assist them to become export ready for the New of culture (notably ceremonies), one of the key Some members of the RCS Working Group
Zealand market. challenges faced in the wake of the COVID-19 noted that the work on the draft RCS had helped
and Geneva we are the leading trade and investment promotion agency
between the economies of the Pacific Island countries and New Zealand. We do this with a suite of programmes designed to provide up-skilling pandemic has been social distancing requirements It has taken a crisis like COVID-19 to revive or reawaken inform their responses and actions with their
and learning.
Our team is passionate about driving economic development in the Blue and limitations to group gatherings. Pacific cultural ways of being. Pacific peoples all share a governments, and all agreed that the impacts of
Pacific through empowering small to medium enterprises (SMEs). One offer is Path to Market, a short two-hour online seminar introducing COVID-19 forced the world and our ‘continent common need to better safeguard, sustain and promote our the pandemic would be detrimental in the short-
We believe in harnessing the enormous potential and amazing resources specific areas aspects of the business value chain exporters should take of islands’ into lockdowns that lasted for months. cultures. and long-term of the creative arts and cultural
into consideration; these include product brand for market penetration;
available within the Pacific Islands. Economic, social and cultural life came to a sector. Among the national issues raised were
How We Work with Fiji barcoding and freight logistics.
Fiji was also chosen to be the country where we recently piloted our standstill as borders closed, travel was restricted reduced international and domestic tourism, ‘state
PTI NZ has long enjoyed a great working relationship with Fijian and became more costly and quarantine made of emergency’ regulations, budget cutbacks, rising
businesses. We’ve always been ‘boots on the ground’ and have loved bespoke Business Mentoring Programme.
being able to work in Fiji, as well as bringing business owners back to New Four Fijian export capable businesses have been through an intensive compulsory. Freedom of movement was restricted, unemployment and domestic violence reports,
ten-week programme to help fast-track them into export ready status for and gatherings and events were postponed or and limitations on social gatherings impacting live
Zealand for things like trade shows.
We know there are amazing products being created in Fiji. One of the the New Zealand market. cancelled in an attempt to control the spread performances and gatherings in public spaces.
ways we work with businesses is to support product development and 3. We Find Good Investors of COVID-19 and ease the pressure on health More serious impacts were also identified
provide market intel to help inform producers. PTI NZ is proud of being well-embedded within the Pacific. It’s not care systems. One of these events was the 13th such as limited or no opportunities for potential
We’ve also got a strong record of connecting New Zealand importers just about exporting, it’s also about worthwhile investment. We connect Festival of Pacific Arts and Culture (FestPAC), a new entrants to the arts and creative industries
investors to the right opportunity and provide sound advice ensuring
and buyers to Fijian exporters. large celebration of indigenous Pacific Islanders In the wake of the COVID-19 crisis, Pacific people have re- sector; limited government budget allocation
But 2020 was a surprise for everyone, and like most businesses we’ve investments are practical and mutually beneficial. turned to the land, the ocean and cultural and traditional
Our investment portfolio is diverse and includes options of full ownership, and cultures. ways of living to sustain them during the crisis. and donor partner appropriations for the cultural
had to pivot, adapt, change, and discover new ways of collaborating with
each other. This has meant supporting virtual trade missions, going digital joint ventures and a range of investment packages all customised to Fiji’s First launched in 1972 by the Pacific Community sector; potential impacts of the digital divide
and creating promotional videos so companies in the Blue Pacific can foreign investment legislation. (SPC), FestPAC was created to showcase arts development needs and issues, including reinforcing existing inequalities; as well as the
We are here to help facilitate investment and shared understanding
participate in New Zealand trade shows. and culture and to halt the erosion of traditional globalisation, geopolitics, climate change, oceans potential exploitation of indigenous and traditional
The key thing is, PTI NZ doesn’t come in and just hand out money - between the Fijian and New Zealand markets. practices through ongoing cultural exchanges. and most recently, the COVID-19 pandemic. knowledge as a result of virtual convening.
instead, we work with Blue Pacific SMEs in three important ways: Let’s Talk Since 1972, 12 Pacific countries have hosted The impact of COVID-19 on Pacific cultures However, it was also acknowledged that there
1. We Advocate We’re always interested in hearing from small to medium enterprises FestPAC, with the next festival now scheduled for has been a widely discussed topic during the is potential in supporting the online culture and
Our nations are not the biggest in the world, and we are not the loudest. who are looking for investors, or to get into the New Zealand market. June 2024 in Hawai‘i. The 2020 postponement, RCS review, with members sharing reflections arts sector through initiatives such as virtual live
At Pacific Trade Invest we understand that it’s not always possible to have We have a whole suite of new products coming in 2021 – and while we however, has not meant that the work in the and learnings from their jurisdictions. Despite performances and museum and gallery tours,
people all over the globe speaking up for Fijian exporters. hope we’ll be able to get back to Fiji and spend some face to face time with
But we are here, listening to what you have to say. We use our monthly potential clients, we’re also planning to be able to fully support Fijian SMEs cultural and creative sectors have come to a its disadvantages, COVID-19 appears to have providing that there are adequate safeguards for
Pacific Business Monitor Survey to give us a “right now” sense of what in the digital space. standstill. also presented an opportunity for the Pacific to intellectual property, traditional knowledge and
Fijian business owners are going through, what they’re feeling, thinking We encourage you to reach out – you can email us, or contact us via While life in the real world changed dramatically realise the importance of cultural ways of being traditional cultural expressions. As part of ongoing
and worried about during this extremely hard year. Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. because of COVID-19 control measures, the online and knowing, and the strength and resilience our discussions, FestPAC is now considering options
And we take that information to key decision makers in Wellington and Email: info@pacifictradeinvest.co.nz world became even more important with the cultures bring to our ways of being. The pandemic for a hybrid virtual/in-person event in 2022.
advocate on behalf of Fijian SMEs. Because the information is collected Instagram: @pti_nz reliance on technology to ensure work continued. has allowed us as a region to retrace our steps As the work to review the RCS continues, it is
regularly, it is timely, and provides key insights for those who need to Facebook: @pacifictradeinvestnz This has, in turn, shaped our “new normal”. In and in some cases, re-learn the importance and interesting to note that it has taken a crisis like
keeping with this, SPC has been working with value of Pacific culture beyond its association with COVID-19 to revive or reawaken our cultural ways
the Council of Pacific Arts and Culture (CPAC) tourism. of being. We are also reminded that keeping culture
to continue the work of reviewing the Regional The RCS Working Group considered the question, and culture-related work alive is crucial, crisis or
Cultural Strategy (RCS). As the regional strategy “how can culture as a human resource contribute to not. While we may differ culturally and in many
for the promotion, preservation, and protection the mitigation of COVID-19 impacts?”. In response, other ways, as people of the Pacific we all share
of Pacific cultures, the RCS provides a responsive members shared that a lot of positive stories had a common need to better safeguard, sustain and
framework to current and potential future issues emerged of how culture had helped mitigate the promote our cultures. The next phase of the RCS
that impact the cultural sector and influence the impacts of the current crisis. Notable examples will attempt to capture sustainable development
living cultural experience, values and identities include the revival of barter trading, now facilitated aspirations and protective mechanisms for Pacific
of Pacific people. This responsiveness requires largely via social media; the return to backyard cultures.
attention to emerging contemporary issues. Over farming and food production, subsistence fisheries, *Samantha Rina is a communications officer
time, this has extended from an initial emphasis of and traditional medicines and massage; the use of with the Human Rights and Social Development
safeguarding cultural heritage to other sustainable arts and crafts as a coping mechanism for stress; Division of the Pacific Community (SPC).
Islands Business, November 2020 23