A new public priorities survey by Dialogue Fiji has found that the rising cost of living is by far the nation’s top concern as policymakers prepare the 2026–2027 National Budget. Nearly half of respondents — 49.2 percent of the 1,266 people surveyed — identified household cost pressures as the single biggest problem facing Fiji, the Dialogue Fiji National Budget 2026–2027 Public Priorities Survey says.
The report describes the result as a “near-consensus” that declining purchasing power is now the primary economic challenge for Fijian households. “The cost of living dominates the national consciousness by a substantial margin,” the survey notes, and Dialogue Fiji called the findings a “clear signal” for the government to prioritise measures that ease cost-of-living pressures in the upcoming budget cycle.
Crime and drugs were the second most-cited concern, selected by 18 percent of respondents, highlighting growing public anxiety about law and order. The survey’s qualitative responses frequently linked crime to economic hardship, with many participants referencing drug-related unemployment and economic marginalisation as drivers of criminal activity. Those findings come amid broader public debate over community safety; in January police urged calm as missing-person and unexplained-death reports amplified anxiety in some communities.
Unemployment was the third most-commonly raised issue, named by 9.6 percent of respondents, reinforcing what Dialogue Fiji calls a “triad of economic and social stressors” — falling household purchasing power, joblessness, and crime — that many households are grappling with. Smaller shares of respondents identified governance and corruption (3.9 percent), poverty and inequality (3.8 percent), and health services (3.3 percent) as the most pressing national issue.
Dialogue Fiji frames the survey as a snapshot of public sentiment at a time of mounting economic strain but cautions that the results should directly inform budget priorities. “The results are unambiguous,” the report states, urging that policy responses prioritise immediate relief on living costs while addressing interconnected issues such as employment and crime. The organisation did not publish detailed demographic breakdowns with this release, describing the exercise as a broad public consultation ahead of budget negotiations.
The survey’s findings arrive as government ministers and budget officials begin consultations for next year’s fiscal plan. With nearly half of respondents singling out cost-of-living pressures, the Dialogue Fiji report is likely to sharpen public and political attention on subsidies, social protection, price stability and job-creation measures as competing demands are weighed for the 2026–2027 National Budget.