The Foundation for Rural Integrated Enterprises and Development (FRIEND) has marked its 25th anniversary by reaffirming its core belief that every person in Fiji deserves dignity and self reliance, and that the country’s diversity is a source of strength rather than division.

Speaking at the celebration, a FRIEND Fiji President Talei Soqe said the organisation began a quarter of a century ago with a single idea and a series of hard questions about how development should work in Fiji.

Soqe challenged the way vulnerable communities are often framed.

She said FRIEND’s work over 25 years, from social and economic empowerment to holistic health, is built on a vision of a Fiji that is “abundantly rich” in wisdom, knowledge, resources and generosity.

Soqe says FRIEND’s approach centres on communities taking ownership of their land, skills and future, drawing lessons from farms, gardens and oceans.

She stressed that they have never measured their success by the size of their office, their team, or their budget, but they measure their success by how a mother feels, how she is able to feed her family nutritional and healthy food from our local backyard.

Soqe also highlighted the revival of traditional and sacred practices that add value to local resources and open pathways to national and international markets.

Over the past 25 years, she says it has worked alongside women, men, youth, widows, single parents, children, former prisoners and persons living with disabilities to ensure their development was not overlooking anyone.