Prof Biman attacks FijiFirst for its reckless spending

73 per cent of Fiji’s tourism earnings recovered

Fiji has recovered 73 per cent of its tourism earnings ever since it opened its border in 2021. Deputy Prime Minister and Tourism Minister Viliame Gavoka revealed this at the inaugural Fiji Tourism Investment Summit on Denarau Island where he also commended the soaring occupancy rates which continued to track above 2019 levels which was...

$44.8m in compensation paid out – Tuinaceva

A total of $44.8 million in compensation has been paid under the no fault scheme since January 1, 2018, of which $30.3 million was for motor vehicles accidents, $13.5m for employment accidents and $500,000 for school accidents. Opposition parliamentarian Naisa Tuinaceva said this in Parliament on Monday during debate on the ‘Review Report of the...

Tourism leakages in Fiji

Tourism industry leakage is a big factor in national development and there is a need to understand what leakages are taking place from which sun-sectors or the industry. This was highlighted by Professor Paresh Narayan of Monash University and the president of the Asia-Pacific Applied Economics Association (APAEA) at a public lecture held at the...

Naidu: Need to consider standardised VAT rate

Government should consider expanding the list of zero-rated VAT (value added tax) items to keep its political promise of containing the inflation rate. Business consultant Sailesh Naidu said this at the Fiscal Review Committee public consultation in Lautoka this week, where he also said, in a bid to increase consumer consumption, the State should also...

Fiji company directors ordered to pay FDB $7.4million

Two directors of a company have been ordered to pay $7.4 million to the Fiji Development Bank. High Court judge Justice Yohan Liyanage ruled recently that Anand Chandra and Subhas Chandra were bound by an agreement with FDB and liable to pay any residual debt of their company, Toa (Fiji) Ltd. The duo had approached...

Gravel extraction in Navua: Residents tell of sorry tale

Residents living along Vakabalea Rd in Navua were forced — yet again — to tell of their sorry tale of living in almost unbearable conditions because of activities related to gravel extraction when an Environmental Impact Assessment consultation was conducted yesterday for a proposed quarry in the area. And as residents repeated issues they have...

$26k for FBC rebranding

ABOUT $26,800 was spent for the Fijian Broadcasting Corporation (FBC) rebranding, says Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Professor Biman Prasad. He said the cost was far less than the $207,000 incurred to purchase a vehicle for the former FBC chief executive officer and highlighted the cost included the invitations, set-ups, logistics and evening...

One in every $5 paid as interest to our lenders – Prof Biman

Almost one in every five dollars of revenue that Government collects is now paid as interest to our lenders, of which about 70 per cent is local. Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Professor Biman Prasad painted a grim picture of Fiji’s finances during his ministerial statement in Parliament on Thursday. He said while the...

Fiji broadcaster ordered to pay doctor $50k

Fijian Broadcasting Corporation Ltd has been ordered to pay $50,000 to a doctor who was labelled as “fake” in a news story published in September 2016. Shanjivan Padarath claimed damages for cyber libel loss and damage to his fame, profession, dignity, prospect of promotion, employment abroad, mental distress, anxiety, pain and suffering. Mr Padarath claimed...

Public Rental Board shows increase in wages

Public Rental Board (PRB) staff received a whopping $296,244 increase in salaries and wages between 2019 and 2020 pushing total expenditure in pay to $959,486. This, according to the PRB’s 2020 annual report that was presented in Parliament on Monday. The report showed that salaries and wages in 2019 for 47 staff was $663,242, which...

Farmers in Fiji ‘shortchanged’ in cane payments; lost $13.8m

Sugarcane farmers in Fiji lost $13.87 million after being “shortchanged” in their cane payments from 2019 to 2021. Sugar Minister Charan Jeath Singh said this in Parliament this week. “Yes, there was a shortchange but let me go beyond 2019. Let us start with 2017,” Mr Singh said. “In 2017, the previous government gave $85...

14,000 to 16,000 Fijian tourism workers overseas – Minister Gavoka

An estimated 14,000 to 16,000 tourism workers have left the industry for overseas jobs, says Minister for Tourism and Civil Aviation Viliame Gavoka. He made the statement while replying to a motion for debate on the review of Fiji National University’s 2020 annual report in Parliament this week. “We all know about the brain drain...

Carbon footprint

The Sugar Industry’s product carbon footprint revealed in a study by Fairtrade International found that emissions were associated with sugarcane cultivation and transport to the mill. While speaking at a two day Fairtrade workshop for sugar cane farmers in Lautoka this week, permanent secretary for Sugar Yogesh Karan said this was a concern for the...

$1.6b investments within tourism sector

A total of 262 projects were implemented from 2007 to 2020 with a value around $F1.6 billion worth of investments within the tourism sector. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade Manoa Kamikamica shared this at the official opening of the inaugural Fiji Tourism Investment Summit 2023 on Denarau yesterday. “However, there are numerous opportunities...

Bid to streamline bottlenecks

Trade and Investment Minister Manoa Kamikamica says government policies, inflation and interest rates together with investment climate and economic conditions are some factors that affect overall investment decisions. He highlighted this when officiating at the inaugural Fiji Tourism Investment Summit 2023 in Nadi yesterday. “We all know the importance of investments and its centrality to...

$3b industry

The tourism sector is projected to grow to a $3 billion industry this year as markets in Asia open up and new markets, including Canada, come on stream. This exciting development was shared by Deputy Prime Minister Manoa Kamikamica with stakeholders from the public and private sector who are part of the inaugural Fiji Tourism...

Firm shows interest

A Malaysian firm has shown interest in Fiji’s electronic vehicles sector and had a meeting with the Ministry of Trade, Co-operatives, SMEs and Communications permanent secretary Shaheen Ali to discuss their investment proposal. According to the ministry the award winning firm — Energreen Tech and Evwave — are distributors of Pilot-branded EV chargers and collaborates...

Employee of the year award motivates Eshley to do better

Eshley Narayan recently joined the Fiji New Zealand Business Council as a committee member and received the Employee of the Year Award from her employer – DHL Global Forwarding (Fiji) Pte Ltd. Ms Narayan is the business development executive at DHL Global Forwarding (Fiji) Pte Ltd. “I’ve been in this industry for seven years and...

Summit to promote tourism investment opportunities

A three-day inaugural Fiji Tourism Investment Summit starts from today until April 1, 2023, at the Sheraton Fiji Resort on Denarau Island to promote Fiji’s tourism investment opportunities. Organised by Investment Fiji and Tourism Fiji in collaboration with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the summit is set to provide the invited investors an opportunity to...

Maximise recycling – Call to hold waste producing companies accountable

Waste producers must be held accountable on how they are managing their waste, says Pacific Recycling Foundation founder Amitesh Deo. Marking International Day of Zero Waste today, Mr Deo said people must know where recyclables ended up. He said one of the key messages of International Day of Zero Waste was to maximize recycling and...

Pacific Leadership Summit in Fiji

One of the greatest joys of my job is being able to travel to Fiji and the six other Pacific countries Tower operates in to connect with our team, customers and partners. Tower’s Suva hub is the heart of our Pacific operations and I am back in Fiji this week alongside three other Tower executives...

Fiji is NZ’s leading trading partner, says Tirikatene

New Zealand’s Minister of State for Trade and Export Growth, Rino Tirikatane has commended Fiji for being the country’s number one trading partner in recent years. Speaking in Wellington during Investment Fiji’s 2023 Investment and Trade Mission to New Zealand Business Forum, Mr Tirikatene stated both nations are on the same wavelength as both countries...

Women farmers promote insurance

Turning to agriculture as a source of income and survival has worked quiet well for two single mothers in the Western Division. While some may not consider large scale cane farming for an independent woman, these ladies have found success and have even purchased insurance to protect their livelihoods this year. Premila Devi has owned...

Signs of recovery

Loans and advances by credit institution in 2022 was $491 million, states the Reserve Bank of Fiji in its 2022 annual report that was tabled in Parliament on Monday. The RBF said credit institutions had shown signs of recovery from the pandemic’s effects, with earnings improving. The RBF said asset quality held by credit institutions...

Outsourcing industry shares plans

There are plans by Fiji’s outsourcing industry to penetrate at least 5 per cent of the USA market. Outsource Fiji executive director Sagufta Janif said Fiji’s outsourcing industry was largely 75 per cent to 80 per cent) made up of made up of businesses and clients from Australia and New Zealand. In a media release...

Boost for trade

The launch of Fiji’s Electronic Phytosanitary Enhanced Services is a transformation that has the potential to boost Fiji’s trade in agriculture and promote efficiency in the entire export supply chain. Speaking at the launch in Suva last week, permanent secretary for Trade, Co-operatives, SMEs and Communications Shaheen Ali said the Biosecurity Authority of Fiji (BAF)...

Women grateful for the learning opportunity

The Academy for Women Entrepreneurs (AWE) program was launched in 2020 by the US Embassy and so far, 300 women entrepreneurs have been trained in and graduated from the program. Since its establishment in 2020, this year was the first time for a summit to be held for the alumni of the AWE from Asia...

$782.4m mobile money transfers

As many as 632,123 people used either M-PAiSA and MyCash for mobile money services in 2022, with person to person transfers amounting to $782.4 million in 2022, states the Reserve Bank of Fiji in its 2022 annual report that was tabled in Parliament on Monday. The RBF said mobile money services provided by Vodafone Fiji...

$1.2m profit for company

Bottlers of VaiWai and AquaSafe Natural Artesian water – Pleass Global Ltd (PBP) – recorded a net profit of $1.2 million in 2022. Company chairman Warwick Pleass said this was a growth of 11 per cent compared with the previous financial year. In its 2022 audited financial statements, the company recorded a 92 per cent...

Business

2nd April