Copyright dailypost
During a recent episode of Yumi Fokas, host Harry Atisson sat down with a living legend of Vanuatu’s kava industry — Emil Lakeleo, widely recognised as one of the first people to commercialise kava and introduce its sale in nakamals. From his humble beginnings on Nguna Island, Lakeleo’s journey reflects the evolution of kava from a traditional plant of cultural importance to one of Vanuatu’s most valuable commodities. “I started selling kava when I was only ten years old,” Lakeleo recalled. “My father planted a lot of kava, and people from Tongariki, Mataso, and Pele islands would come to Nguna to get some. They would ask my dad, and he would send me up the hill to harvest it and deliver it before the ships left back to their islands.” That was back in 1956–1958, when Lakeleo was just a young boy helping his father trade the Borogu variety of kava, which thrives in Nguna’s soil. “From ten years old until now, I’m still selling kava — I’m 77 years old today,” he said proudly. After working with Telecom Vanuatu and the Post Office, Lakeleo met the late Charlot Longwah, and together they began exploring ways to commercialise the kava trade. “We started planting kava at Lololima to show people that we could make it a commercial business,” he said. Although his first plantation faced challenges, his journey took him to Santo, where he found inspiration that would reshape kava culture in Vanuatu. “The first nakamal or kava bar that sold kava in ‘cells’ was in Chapuis, Santo — a place for the people of Pentecost,” Lakeleo explained. “When I saw that idea, I brought it back to Port Vila and opened a small nakamal. That was in the late 1980s.” By the early 1990s, Lakeleo had opened nakamals in both Port Vila and Luganville, at a time when only a few were in operation. His influence helped spread the now-familiar kava bar culture across the country. Perhaps Lakeleo’s most notable contribution came when a group of farmers from Pentecost approached him for help. “They told me, ‘We have a lot of kava in Pentecost but nowhere to sell it,’” he said. “So I bought iron roofing and timber for them to build a small market where they could sell their kava.” That small initiative grew into the now-famous Anamburu Kava Market, known today as one of Port Vila’s busiest kava trading hubs. “When I saw the storage full every day, I realised it was a good business and also a way to help farmers,” Lakeleo said. He started with five storage rooms, then expanded to 12, and later to 24 — providing farmers across the islands a reliable place to sell their kava. Today, Lakeleo no longer runs nakamals himself but focuses on supporting farmers through the market and storage facilities he established. His lifelong dedication to kava has shaped an industry and supported countless livelihoods across the islands.
