The National Farmer’s Federation (NFF) and Solomon Islands have reinforced the importance of the PALM worker scheme, in a landmark meeting.
The Solomon Island’s High Commissioner, His Excellency Robert Sisilo, was welcomed to NFF House this week.
NFF President David Jochinke said the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) scheme was an important mechanism for both countries.
“It was an honour to welcome His Excellency to NFF House,” Mr Jochinke said.
“The PALM scheme is vital to both Australian agriculture and the Solomon Islands.
“Solomon Island’s participants report high levels of satisfaction in the PALM program, so it was great to hear the ways the program is working for them.
“But we both agreed, further success of the scheme would depend on it being better designed to meet the needs of both Pacific workers and Australian employers.
“His Excellency expressed a desire to see increasing numbers of workers from the Solomon Islands across both short and long-term streams.
“We look forward to working together to ensure the long-term sustainability of the program.”
His Excellency Robert Sisilo said the meeting was productive and positive.
“It was fantastic to discuss the vital PALM scheme with the NFF this week,” Mr Sisilo said.
“Australia and the Solomon Islands share many common values, and it was great to see we are aligned on many topics, especially PALM.
“The PALM scheme is very important to the Solomon Islands and is the third-largest source of national income for our country.
“Most workers are engaged and positive about the scheme, and look forward to its growth and improvement.”
As of March 2025 there were 4,945 Solomon Islander workers participating in the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) scheme in Australia.
Stacey Davidson
Ashleigh Whittaker