GOVERNMENT OF FIJI Parliamentary Paper Number 92 of 2006 Strategic Development Plan 2007-2011 Typesetting Ministry of Finance & National Planning Cover design Art & Soul Printing Star Printery Limited November 2006 Ministry of Finance & National Planning Suva, Fiji. www.mfnp.gov.fj FOREWORD I am very pleased to write this foreword for the Government’s Strategic Development Plan covering the period 2007 to 2011. It was endorsed at a National Economic Summit at the end of September. It has also been given final approval by Cabinet. The Plan represents the combined vision and ideas of many people who took part in the extensive consultations and drafting which led to the preparation of the final document. This process was a true exercise in democracy, built on a partnership between Government and the community. This involved the National Economic Development Council and nine Sector Working Groups. These had members from the business community, non-government organizations, provincial and advisory councils and trade unions. I thank them sincerely for their contributions. The Plan has special significance because it also represents the united views of the Multi-Party Cabinet, formed after the national elections in May. For the first time elected representatives of the SDL Party, and the Fiji Labour Party, have joined in the governing of Fiji. The membership of the Cabinet gives Fiji a fully multi-ethnic Government. This is reflected in the main elements of the Plan which draw on the manifestos of the SDL and the FLP. Within the pages of the Plan are the policies and targets which will guide Fiji’s progress in the next five years. They cover the total spectrum of national life – social, cultural, and economic. Implementation of the Plan will bring Fiji closer to that ultimate destination of prosperity and permanent harmony and unity, founded on mutual understanding and respect. i It will strengthen the foundations of stability and sound governance, which is indispensable for what we want to accomplish. Each section of the Plan is a part of the whole. They are all crucial. But it is the achievement of higher rates of sustainable economic growth – directed towards a target of five per cent of gross domestic product – that will largely determine the success of the Plan. Strategies for higher growth in the Plan aim to create the additional jobs and improved incomes we urgently need and help us to lift more people out of poverty. This growth will produce additional revenue for Government which can then be channelled into development and provision of amenities and services such as roads, water, electricity, housing and health centres. We must continue to attract bigger volumes of private investment; without this we will not reach our objectives of providing enough employment for young people and the unemployed. The Plan proposes measures to boost investment levels. Our exports have to expand substantially to generate the foreign earnings which will sustain growth. The Plan includes Fiji’s first integrated export strategy. The country’s productivity is far too low for us to compete effectively in this age of global competition. Our inaugural Productivity Charter, adopted by the Government, the unions and the employers, fits in very well with the aims of the Plan for enhanced economic efficiency. This drive for efficiency in the Plan will also apply to the public service and public sector which will become more accountable, cost efficient, investor friendly and service oriented. With the advent of our new form of co-operative multi-ethnic government and the public goodwill this has received, Fiji is ready for an epoch of positive change. This Strategic Development Plan is the vehicle that will help to take us forward. Hon. Laisenia Qarase Prime Minister and Minister for Sugar and Investment ii Abbreviations ADB Asian Development Bank ADR Alternative Dispute Resolution ALP Alternative Livelihood Project ALTA Agricultural Landlord and Tenant Act AMA Agriculture Marketing Authority ASA Air Services Agreement BFHI Baby Friendly Hospital Initiatives BNPL Basic Needs Poverty Line BQA Bilateral Quarantine Agreements CAAFI Civil Aviation Authority of the Fiji Islands CFB Customary Fisheries Bill CFC Chlorofluorocarbons CHARM Comprehensive Hazard and Risk Management CID Criminal Investigations Division CIDA Coconut Industry Development Authority CITES Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora CMDA Capital Markets Development Authority CO2 Carbon Dioxide COIFS Commission of Inquiry into Financial Services DNR Department of National Roads DPP Director of Public Prosecutions EEO Equal Employment Opportunity EEZ Exclusive Economic Zone EFF Export Finance Facility EGM Emperor Gold Mining Company Limited EIA Environmental Impact Assessment EMA Environment Management Act ERB Employment Relations Bill EU European Union iii FASANOC Fiji Association of Sports and National Olympic Committee FDB Fiji Development Bank FDI Foreign Direct Investment FEA Fiji Electricity Authority FHCL Fiji Hardwood Corporation Limited FIC Forum Island Country FICL Fiji Investment Corporation Limited FIMSA Fiji Islands Maritime Safety Administration FIRCA Fiji Islands Revenue and Customs Authority FIT Fiji Institute of Technology FIU Financial Intelligence Unit FMF Flour Mills of Fiji FNPF Fiji National Provident Fund FSAP Financial Sector Assessment Programme FSC Fiji Sugar Corporation FSFE Fiji Seventh Form Examination FSLC Fiji School Leaving Certificate FSMed Fiji School of Medicine FSN Fiji School of Nursing FTIB Fiji Islands Trade and Investment Bureau FTR Financial Transactions Reporting FVB Fiji Visitors Bureau GDP Gross Domestic Product GEM Gender Empowerment Measure GWh Gega Watts per hour HA Housing Authority HACCP Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point HART Housing Assistance Relief Trust HIES Household Income Expenditure Survey HRIS Human Resource Management Information System ICAO International Civil Aviation Organization ICT Information & Communication Technology iv IHR International Health Regulation IHRDPEP Integrated Human Resource Development Programme for Employment Promotion ILO International Labour Organization IMCI Integrated Management of Childhood Illnesses IPP Independent Power Producers IRB International Rugby Board ISO International Organisation for Standardisation ISPS International Ships and Ports Authority IT Information Technology ITC Information Technology & Computing KM kilometres KPI Key Performance Indicator LNG Liquefied Natural Gas LPG Liquefied Petroleum Gas LTA Land Transport Authority MoA Ministry of Agriculture MDG Millennium Development Goal MFI Micro-finance Institutions MLA Mutual Legal Assistance MoE Ministry of Environment MoH Ministry of Health MPA Marine Protected Areas MSME Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises MT metric tonnes NAS National Adaptation Strategy NCCC National Coordinating Committee on Children NCD Non Communicable Diseases NEC National Environment Council NEP National Energy Policy NGO Non Governmental Organizations NLTB Native Lands Trust Board NRSC National Road Safety Council v NCSMED National Center for Small & Micro Enterprise Development NSFC National Sports Funding Commission NSP National Sports Policy NZ New Zealand ODS Ozone Depleting Substances OHSA Occupational Health and Safety Act PACER Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations PALP Pacific Anti-Money Laundering Programme PDCs Provincial Development Committees PIB Prices and Incomes Board PICTA Pacific Islands Countries Trade Agreement PMTCT Prevention of Maternal To Child Transmission PPP Public Private Partnership PRB Public Rental Board PSIP Public Sector Investment Programme RBF Reserve Bank of Fiji RFMF Republic of Fiji Military Forces ROI Rural and Outer Island RTGS Real Time Gross Settlement SCARF Seed Capital Revolving Fund SCGC Sugar Cane Growers Council SME Small and Medium Enterprise SMME Small, Medium and Micro Enterprises SOPAC South Pacific Applied Geo-science Commission SPARTECA South Pacific Regional Trade and Economic Cooperation Agreement SRU Squatter Resettlement Unit TAC Total Allowable Catch TCF Textile, Clothing and Footwear TCTS Tonnes of Cane per Ton of Sugar TPAF Training Productivity Authority of Fiji TVET Technical and Vocational Education and Training UGMP Urban Growth Management Plan vi UN United Nations UNCEDAW United Nation Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women UNCRC United Nations Convention of the Rights of the Children UNDP United Nations Development Programme UPAP Urban Policy Action Plan USP University of the South Pacific VCCT Voluntary Counselling and Confidential Testing WHO World Health Organization WNC World Netball Championships WOSED Women's Socio-Economic Development WSSD World Summit on Sustainable Development WTO World Trade Organisation vii Contents Chapter 1 Vision, Mission and Guiding Principles ...............................................1 1.1 Introduction ...............................................................................................1 1.2 Vision: “A peaceful, prosperous Fiji” .......................................................2 1.2.1 Peace, Unity and Multi-racial Harmony ...............................................2 1.2.2 Prosperity for All..................................................................................3 1.3 Mission and Guiding Principles ................................................................3 1.3.1 International Commitments ..................................................................4