Batiki
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Batiki (Script error: No such module "IPA"., also known as Mbatiki in English)[1] is an island of Fiji belonging to the Lomaiviti Archipelago.[2] The island is of volcanic origin,[3] with a land area of about 12 square kilometers.[2] To the north-east is Wakaya Island, to the east is Nairai, and to the south-east is Gau.
Batiki's population of approximately 300 Fijians lives in coastal villages.[4] The economic activity of the island consists of farming and fishing.
There are four villages on the island: Manuku, Mua, Naigani, and Yavu.[4] Mua village is home to the residence of the chief,[2] island pastor, the health clinic center, a single flat-primary school building with a boarding facility and playground.Script error: No such module "Unsubst".
Geography
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Batiki has a large interior lagoon of brackish water flanked by mud flats. A broad barrier reef surrounds Batiki with a channel in Nakasava on the north side of the island. A small portion of the coastal area is covered by mangroves, mainly in Wainiketei Bay.
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The presence of nests of the critically endangered hawksbill sea turtle has been recorded on the island.[5]
History
The island was devastated by Cyclone Winston in 2016, with Naigani village being affected the most.[4][6] The high chief of Batiki since January 2012, Torau Ni Bau Ratu Inoke Tuidelaibatiki Virivirilau, died on 4 February 2017.[7]
Demographics
Batiki had a population of 324 people as of the 1966 census,[8] and 483 as of the 2007 census.[9]
Economy
The main source of income is from copra, pandanus (Template:Langx), small-scale farming, and fishing, with fish being sold to the markets in Suva.[10][2] There is a sea cucumber fishery, which mainly involves male youths.[2] By 1987 a commercial seaweed farm was established on Batiki.[11] As of 2009 there were 42 farms on Batiki, with a total area of 13 hectares.[12]
Another important source of income for the locals is the Bula Batiki coconut oil firm, whose products are made from the island's bountiful coconut palms.[10][13][14] This business was started in 2015 by a British man named Callum Drummond, known as Kelevi by the islanders, when he won a grant from Cardiff University for the project.[15] The two other co-founders are Ellis Williams and Tim McKee.[10] In 2020 a coconut oil processing plant designed by CAUKIN Studio was built at Yavu village.[16][17]
Infrastructure
There is a primary school on the island,[10] Manuku District School, with 71 students as of 2016[6] and 4 teachers.[2] There is also a nursing station at Mua village staffed by a registered nurse.[2][10][16][18] Critical cases are referred either to Qarani Health Centre or Levuka Hospital. The nursing station opening hours are from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm on a daily basis, but it is also on standby after hours in case of emergencies.Script error: No such module "Unsubst".
The island has no airport or roads, so most transport is by local cargo vessels, small fibreglass boats, or via a shipping franchise that services the Lomaiviti archipelago on a monthly basis.[2][10]
Notable people
- Taufa Vakatale (1938–2023), politician and educator.
References
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