Looking after his young family is a sacred charge for Benjamin Narayan.
“I have two daughters, that I call my princesses,” he said.
Last Friday Narayan was awarded a Micro-Qualification in Maintaining Seafood Safety and Quality certificate.
The recipient of a scholarship offered by the University of the South Pacific, under the Pacific-European Union Marine Partnership (PEUMP) Program, Benjamin was among the first 16 Pacific Islanders awarded the micro-qualification.
The micro-qualification was a two-week certificate course aimed at teaching participants methods of keeping seafood safe for human consumption and other avenues for processing that they can take to add value to their products.
It also teaches participants how to maintain seafood quality for later consumption and sale even after being stored and transported.
The 34-year-old of Lautoka, who was among laid off workers of Air Terminal Services (ATS) in Nadi, turned to the sea to generate a secondary income.
“The pandemic had a destabilising and disheartening effect on me and my wife because we both lost our jobs,” he said.
He started selling fish and other seafood products from home about a year and a half ago with his wife.
“We should not put all our eggs into one basket. Initially I started this side business to cover some of my extra costs. It was on a small-scale so I didn’t really depend on it.
“I’m glad I started it before I got laid off because otherwise we wouldn’t have a leg to stand on.”
Benjamin said being a father today is made harder by the impact of the pandemic, but it had strengthened his resolve to continue providing for his family.
“When children are young they don’t know what’s happening, they have no comprehension of what the pandemic is. When they need something we have to provide it; they are really young so we have to try our best as parents to provide our children with whatever they need.
“My elder daughter will be starting school next year and we all know the struggle faced in sending children to school under normal times let alone in these uncertain times. This business has been a great help.
“The micro-qualification is very important for me as I travel distances to meet fisher folk to buy seafood.
“Most small business entrepreneurs are not that well equipped it terms of our knowledge of handling seafood products and that’s how people getting fish poisoned.
“This course taught us to maintain seafood safety and quality, even at larger volumes of product and it has given me an opportunity to provide the same guidance to my suppliers.
“My customers deserve seafood that is free from bacteria and chemicals.”
