Batiki
Island and Tikina in Lomaiviti Islands, Fiji
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Batiki (Fijian pronunciation: [ᵐbaˈtʃiki], 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 | |
|---|---|
Island and Tikina | |
  Batiki Location in Fiji | |
| Coordinates: 17°47′S 179°09′E | |
| Country |  Fiji |
| Island group | Lomaiviti Islands |
| Division | Eastern Division |
| Province | Lomaiviti |
| District | Batiki |
| Area | |
• Total | 12 km2 (4.6 sq mi) |
| Highest elevation | 186 m (610 ft) |
| Population (2017) | |
• Total | 216 |
| • Density | 18/km2 (47/sq mi) |
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.[citation needed]
Geography
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.
— Watisoni Lalavanua, Ilisoni Tuinasavusavu and Peni Seru, The status of the sea cucumber fishery in Batiki District, Lomaiviti, Fiji (2014)[2]
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
Economy
The main source of income is from copra, pandanus (Fijian: voivoi), small-scale farming, and fishing, with fish being sold to the markets in Suva.[11][2] There is a sea cucumber fishery, which mainly involves male youths.[2] By 1987 a commercial seaweed farm was established on Batiki.[12] As of 2009 there were 42 farms on Batiki, with a total area of 13 hectares.[13]
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.[11][14][15] 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.[16] The two other co-founders are Ellis Williams and Tim McKee.[11] In 2020 a coconut oil processing plant designed by CAUKIN Studio was built at Yavu village.[17][18]
Infrastructure
There is a primary school on the island,[11] 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][11][17][19] 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.[citation needed]
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][11]
Notable people
- Taufa Vakatale (1938–2023), politician and educator.
