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Wednesday 26 January 2011

Sigatoka River Safari adds 15th Village to the Tour

Emotions were high when Sigatoka River Safari officially welcomed its 15th village - Navula Village situated along the Sigatoka River in Fiji, to its award winning tour.

As part of the Sigatoka River Safari, tourists travel up the Sigatoka River in custom made jet boats and visit a different village everyday to see and experience 'real' Fijian life. With 14 villages currently involved, the addition of Navula Village was a result of the village seeing the positive impact Sigatoka River Safari was having on the other villages.

"Navula village had heard all the positive news regarding tourism development in the valley and all the great consequences it was having for the villages involved. They too wanted to be part of it and Sigatoka River Safari was happy to welcome them to the tour "Explains Jay Whyte, Founder and CEO, Sigatoka River Safari.

The village chief was overwhelmed with emotion when the first tourists recently arrived at his village.

"The Chief was very emotional. It was the first time he ever had tourists in his village so it was a dream come true for him. Our passengers just couldn't believe how happy the village people were to have them there. It was truly amazing!" Continues Jay.

Navula Village, which is home to 150 Fijians, will be visited by tourists one day a week for 6 months and its annual income will increase significantly through donations from tourists on the tour and from Sigatoka River Safari who pay a percentage of all fares directly to the village visited on that day. The extra funds will be used to support the various village projects.

Other villages who involved in the tour have used their extra funds to put footpaths throughout their villages, fix and renovate their community hall, improvements to their district schools, complete their village churches and many other culturally important projects.

The village will also benefit further from being involved in the Sigatoka River Safari as founder, Jay Whyte, embarks on a project every 6 months to help the 15 villages he works with.

Past projects have included supplying these remote villages new Easy-Tel phones, installing fixed water filters in every village so they can access clean drinking water any time of the day, seven days a week, giving the villages the company's old life jackets to use for when they cross the river to reduce the incidents of drowning and recently Jay installed a Bore Hole (drinking water) in the local Naqalimare District School after the Government threatened to close the school down unless one was installed.

"I decided early on when I pursued my dreams and started the business in 2006 that I was going to do something regularly to benefit the 14 villages we work with in the hills of Navosa. It gives me great pleasure to be able to help the villages and give them something they really need and normally it's things we take for granted like drinking water" Said Jay.


For reservations and enquiries please contact Sigatoka River Safari's toll free on 0800 6501 721,

Email: safari@sigatokariver.com or visit www.sigatokariver.com

 

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