Water, Health Issues on Agenda

How to improve Fiji’s healthcare facilities and how to address challenges faced by the water sector would be part of the discussions during the twoday National Economic Summit that begins in Suva next Thursday. This was revealed by the Minister for Finance, Biman Prasad.

As the Ministry of Finance prepares to host the inaugural National Economic Summit next week, Mr Prasad announced the key 12 thematic areas and other areas of focus as the centre of discussions. The summit will be held at the Grand Pacific Hotel on April 20-21. Mr Prasad said participants would be divided into Thematic Working Groups to encourage an integrated approach to addressing development challenges.

Among others, key discussions with the thematic working groups would be around issues such as:

How to improve macro-economic management and financial and fiscal stability;

How to transition away from a largely public sector-led growth in the past model to a more private sector driven economy;

What are the measures that are needed to diversify the Fijian economy and create more jobs and income for our people;

How can we be improving our healthcare facilities which are in poor and dilapidated states, an insufficient programme for maintenance and upkeep, poor hygiene and sanitation facilities;

How can we address the challenges in our water sector?

The twelve (12) Thematic Working Groups are:

Macroeconomic management; Key growth sectors – includes tourism, manufacturing and commerce, micro, small and medium enterprises, financial services,

Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) and the construction industry;

Governance and reforms – includes law and order, reform of state institutions and foreign affairs and external trade;

Human development – includes health, education and training, housing and urban development, youth and protection of children, culture and heritage, sports development, poverty alleviation, employment and labour market, women in economic development;

Rural and outer island development;

Land based activities – includes sugar, non-sugar crops and livestock, forestry, land resource development and management and mineral water and ground water resources;

Marine-based activities and resources;

Technology – includes information and communication technology;

Indigenous people’s participation in development;

Water resource and waste management - includes waste and wastewater and waste management;

Transport; and

Energy and electricity.

Each thematic working group will have a chairperson to facilitate discussions.

“The chairperson is to also provide necessary leadership and networking for their thematic areas,” Mr Prasad said.

The ministry will play a leading role in organising the summit and facilitating papers, discussions and outcomes of the summit, which will feed into the upcoming 2023-2024 Budget, and potentially, a new National Development Plan in the future.

In addition to the thematic working groups discussions, there will five plenary sessions held over the two-day summit with the following themes:

1. The state of the economy and future of fiscal policy;

2. Responsible, responsive and resilient leadership;

3. Universal coverage and basic health care;

4. Research and innovation - pathways for economic prosperity; and

5. Transparency and accountability priorities for effective governance.

“On the logistics side, the 12 thematic working groups have been finalised and invitations are being sent out and we are awaiting confirmations.”

He said invitations had also been sent to all Members of Parliament, including those in Opposition, other political parties, diplomatic missions, international and regional bodies, civil society organisations, trade unions, academia, women and religious groups and many important players in our private sector.