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Experts believe cultured half-pearls or mabé pearls have the potential to become the Pacific s most valuable and promising aquaculture commodity.
The farming of these pearls is being done mostly by women in coastal communities.
Lilieta Nikece works for the Fisheries Department in Fiji and also works with the women in the coastal communities.
She says the project has not only empowered them and generated an income, but that it has changed their lives. Some of them are able to decorate their houses, send the kids to school. It helps them in many ways, she said.
The University of the Sunshine Coast and Australia s International Agricultural Research Centre have joined forces to research and develop pearl farming in Fiji, Tonga and Papua New Guinea.