14th February 2024
- The Chief Guest – Acting Prime Minister and Minister of Finance – Hon Professor Prasad;
- Acting Permanent Secretary for Multi-Ethnic Affairs and Sugar Industry – Ms. Kumari;
- Chief Executive Officer of Oceania Hospital Pte Ltd – Mr. Pillay and the team;
- SCGF Management Team – CFO Mr. Pesamino and Manager Legal & Compliance Ms. Chetty;
- Invited Government Officials, Guest and, media partners
We acknowledge the almighty, past, current, and future owners of this land where we stand.
We at Sugar Cane Growers Fund are humbled and honored to partner with Oceania Hospital Pte Ltd. We would also like to convey our best wishes of this occasion from Mr. Bhamji and the board members. We thank Mr. Pillay, his Board, and the Management team. We also thank the Acting Prime Minister for being present despite such a busy schedule. Thank you Sir.
Why Oceania? The growers in (particular) Northern and Western Divisions also reach out to Oceania maybe because they have accessibility through their immediate family or children.
We are always on the ground, meeting the growers and subject of interest we discuss with them. Last weekend when I was in Labasa, met two sugar cane farmers, who are Oceania patients and they shared very positive experiences. So that is the reason for us to partner with them. We understand the challenges in the health sector and we are of the view that as a conduit of connectivity with growers, we at SCGF play an important role.
We continue to look at innovative solutions and continuous improvements, despite challenges within the industry to not only provide premier and affordable financial solutions but have value added beyond.
This Loyalty Card gives the platform for our growers to get the benefit of special rates and I must thank Oceania and all our partners. The number of partners and also growers are increasing. This collaboration with Oceania also supports the SDG Goal (3) Good Health and Well-Being. We have a 100% waiver of the Loan Application Fee that relates to Medical Expenses. In addition, the collaboration aligns with the current National Development Plan for the Health sector – increase access to quality, safe, and patient-focused clinical services through improved collaboration with local NGOs and community groups to extend healthcare outreach and education in rural areas.
We believe that challenges also bring opportunities. Last month our Board approved a concept for the management to explore a savings scheme for sugar cane farmers. For this, we have started working with the United Nations Capital Development Fund and other financial industry players to re-strategize our position for other innovative solutions. Considering again the SDG (Gender Equality) and the National Development plan, the Board also approved a discount of Legal Fees by 50% (from $550 to $275) for matters relating to probates as most of the beneficiaries are women. This has come into effect from 1st February 2025.
We have also partnered recently with the Asian Development Bank’s We Finance Code (WeFI) demonstrating our commitment to increasing funding provided to women-led micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) or women-led growers.
Finally, today 14th February 2025 is Valentine’s Day and to recognize our cane growers and their Valentine, there is a promotion that we will request the Acting Prime Minister and Ms. Kumari to launch our SCGF Valentine promotions and more on that we will later get our Manager Legal & Compliance Ms. Chetty to explain.
So once again thank you Acting Prime Minister Sir and Mr Pillay for this remarkable event.
Vinaka Vakalevu
Raj Sharma
Chief Executive Officer
