Batiki

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
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 (5 sq mi)
Highest elevation [1]	186 m (610 ft)
Population
• Total	300
• Density	25/km2 (65/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

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 (Fijian: voivoi), 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.^{[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][10]

Notable people

• Taufa Vakatale (1938–2023), politician and educator.