Press Release
19 May 2026
Staff and students from the Solomon Islands National University Faculty of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (FAFF) โ Department of Forestry have successfully completed an eight-day industry field trip to Eagon Pacific Plantation Limited (EPPL) and Kolombangara Forest Products Limited (KFPL) in Western Province.
The field trip aimed to provide academic staff with practical exposure to modern plantation operations to strengthen curriculum delivery and enrich Diploma and Bachelor programmes through the integration of current industry standards, technologies, and methodologies. The visit also aimed to strengthen partnerships with industry stakeholders to expand opportunities for student attachments, internships, and applied research, while ensuring programmes remain aligned with industry needs and prepare graduates for successful careers in the forestry sector.
Held from Friday 1 May to Friday 8 May 2026, the trip involved 11 FAFF Department of Forestry staff members and four Year 2 and Year 3 Bachelor of Forestry students visiting the two major timber plantation companies.
The visit forms a key part of the departmentโs strategy to maintain โindustry currency,โ ensuring teaching staff remain familiar with contemporary plantation practices and operational realities. This firsthand exposure supports the ongoing review and enhancement of the departmentโs academic programmes, including the Diploma in Tropical Forestry, the Bachelor of Science in Forestry, and the TVET Stream Certificate IV and short courses, ensuring graduates are workforce-ready.
The team departed Honiara by sea on Friday 1 May for New Georgia Island. Upon arrival at Ughele Port, the group travelled to EPPLโs Arara Camp, where they stayed over the weekend.
On Saturday 2 May and Sunday 3 May, the team undertook intensive field tours of the plantation. Led by senior FAFF staff members Mr Carlos Hiro, Mr Larren Gomese, and Dr Trevor Chacha, the group visited nursery operations, planted stands, thinning areas, and active harvesting sites.
โThe weekend at Eagon Pacific gave our lecturers and students direct exposure to current industry practices. The video materials we produced will help bridge the gap between textbook theory and real-world operations,โ a senior FAFF staff member said.
On Monday 4 May, the team travelled by outboard motor (OBM) canoe from Arara Camp to Munda before continuing by bus to Noro and then by OBM canoe to Ringgi, where they paid a courtesy call to KFPL management. The meeting reinforced SINUโs partnership with KFPL and opened further discussions on student attachments and collaborative research opportunities.
Following the courtesy visit, the team travelled 40 kilometres from Ringgi to Poitete Campus in SINU vehicles, where they spent the next four days.
Field tours of KFPLโs operational areas were conducted on Tuesday 5 May and Wednesday 6 May. On Tuesday evening, KFPL Forest Manager Mr Pendrin Napthalae delivered a presentation highlighting the companyโs latest field practices, particularly in silvicultural operations developed through years of research and operational experience.
The team also visited active logging and harvesting sites, reforestation areas, and processing facilities. Additional video footage covering silviculture, harvesting safety, and post-harvest recovery was captured for SINUโs e-learning repository.
According to Peter Mahoa, the field trip has already delivered tangible outcomes, including more than three hours of raw video footage covering forestry operations from nursery to harvest, strengthened partnerships with Eagon Pacific and KFPL, and valuable field experience for both staff and students that will directly inform curriculum reviews.
Student participant Miss Annetta Pitababi said the experience was both educational and rewarding.
โWalking through the plantations and seeing the machinery firsthand ย and knowing other students will learn from these videos in class, makes me proud to be contributing to the development of a stronger forestry programme,โ she said.
ENDS//