Posthumous award for ‘Mr Tourism’
ONE of the first indigenous Fijians to become a senior tourism executive in what was then an infant tourism sector was posthumously acknowledged at the recent ANZ Fiji Excellence in Tourism Awards and had his name engraved in the Lifetime Achiever Award category.
The late Malakai Gucake was known to many as an indigenous pioneering tourism leader, in government circles known commonly as ‘Mr Tourism’ and was described as a special individual who became passionate about Fiji’s tourism potential.
Tourism icon and FETA board of trustee Bill Whiting said as a young man and a schoolteacher by profession, the late Mr Gucake developed his reputation as a good administrator by first establishing a specialised English Teaching Unit.
He then joined the Department of Foreign Affairs and became the late president Ratu Sir Kamisese’s Mara’s very first chief protocol officer, followed by a stint with the High Commission in Canberra.
“There he became passionate about Fiji’s tourism potential,” Mr Whiting explained at the recent awards ceremony.
“Visitor arrivals in 1961 was less than 15,000 visitors… by 1974 this had increased to over 180,000 visitors.
“In Fiji a new type of business called ‘inbound tour operator’ started to pop up. One of these was an Australian company called Kings Travel.”
Mr Gucake was appointed general manager Fiji for Kings Travel based in Nadi in 1974, a post which allowed him a great grounding in tourism.
Mr Whiting said the Cakaudrove man never looked back and constantly demonstrated his passion for Fiji’s tourism industry.
After five years managing Kings Travel, he became general manager of the Fiji Visitors Bureau, now known as Tourism Fiji in 1979.
And in doing so he became the first indigenous Fijian to hold this position.
Mr Whiting said several indigenous Fijian CEO’s followed in his footsteps including the current Tourism Minister Bill Gavoka.
“While general manager of the Fiji Visitors Bureau, the man we are recognising tonight, led a push to develop a regional tourism body, the Tourism Council of the South Pacific, TCSP.
“He became chairman of its management board. This regional body is known today as the South Pacific Tourism Organisation, SPTO, and is still headquartered in Suva.
“His primary motive was to tap into the EU Lome funding available to ACP countries to develop tourism on a regional basis.
“Now our man was very smart, he knew that Fiji would be the biggest beneficiary of these funds given the size of our tourism industry relative to other South Pacific countries.
“So, he pushed very hard and succeeded in winning EU support for South Pacific tourism.”
Mr Gucake was also one of the first iTaukei to recognise the importance of sustainable tourism and cultural tourism.
Mr Whiting said Mr Gucake also advised Denarau landowners on their environmental impact assessment, guiding landowners in maintaining coastal protection and was instrumental in getting EU funding to restore and protect the ruins that is known as the Tavuni Hill Fort above the Sigatoka river – a project he was very passionate about and remains a tourism attraction to this day.
“Leaving TCSP he became director of Tourism, before passing away following a car accident in May 1994.”
Now our man was very smart, he knew that Fiji would be the biggest beneficiary of these funds given the size of our tourism industry relative to other South Pacific countries. So, he pushed very hard and succeeded in winning EU support for South Pacific tourism.
– Bill Whiting