The Fiji Times – Monday 23rd September, 2019
WHEN Elenoa Nimacere was first thrown into the Yasawa group of island to start off the charity for South Sea Cruises, she did not know what to expect.
As a woman from the highlands of Naitasiri, life on the island was a totally different one for her, however, being an iTaukei woman, she took the offer and promised herself to work with the people of Yasawa and helped improve their living through consistent dialogue and visits.
It all began more than 12 years ago and today, almost every villager from Yasawa knows Ms Nimacere as the awesome woman who will always come to their rescue when they needed assistance in development or in any aspect of life “From the highland to the island,” is how Ms Nimacere of Serea, Naitasiri, loves to introduce herself.
“I did not find it hard in the first place because I grew up in Nadi most of my life and I have worked extensively in the tourism industry for a number of years so working with villagers was nothing new to me.
“In fact it was a challenge as I had to work alone travelling to nearly all the villages and islands on Yasawa and try convincing the chiefs and leaders on setting up something which would allow us to work together and achieve a common goal.”
Ms Nimacere is the Vinaka Fiji Yasawa Trust Foundation manager — the charity arm of South Sea Cruises.
Her work revolves around assisting the indigenous community in improving living standards and creating income generating projects for villagers and also assists those who want to start their eco-tourism businesses.
She started from scratch visiting each and every village on Yasawa right from the southern to the northern tip of the island just to convince chiefs on the importance of working together in partnership with tourism stakeholders.
The Vinaka Fiji Trust was set up by South Sea Cruises sister company, Awesome Adventure Fiji, to give something back to the villagers and to say “thank you (vinaka), for welcoming us into your islands.”
Read the full story here.
