Despite a large-scale push to modernise Fiji’s public service, significant gaps remain in filling government posts, the Ministry of Civil Service has warned. Deputy Secretary for Relations Samuela Moce told lawmakers that while reforms have advanced, the civil service still faces persistent vacancies and recruitment bottlenecks that could undermine capacity across ministries.
Moce was speaking to the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and Defence as he presented the Ministry’s 2022–2023 Annual Report. He outlined a suite of reform measures — including workforce planning, strengthened performance management, modernised human resources policies and digitisation of systems — designed to boost efficiency and service delivery. “So again, this has seen the reform emphasis reaching out to all ministries and government agencies,” Moce said, noting the Ministry uses organisational performance reports, work plans, monitoring and customer service assessments to track reform implementation.
The deputy secretary disclosed new details on the scale of investment in the programme: nearly 79 percent of the Ministry’s budget for the reporting period was directed to reform initiatives, which reached more than 1,800 civil servants. Capacity-building has included leadership development for close to 300 senior officials, Moce said, as the Ministry seeks to embed new management practices and digital tools across the public sector.
Despite those resources, vacancies remain high. The civil service recorded more than 2,400 unfilled positions during the 2022–2023 period, translating to a vacancy rate of about 10 percent, Moce told the committee. He said the recruitment shortfall is driven by heightened competition for talent in the labour market and a shortage of suitably qualified applicants — challenges compounded by the COVID-19 years when many roles were frozen and resources redirected to health priorities.
“The COVID-19 period saw many positions put on hold as resources were redirected toward health priorities,” Moce said, adding that ministries are in the process of restoring capacity but that not all positions have been fully resourced. He cautioned that the combination of growing service demand and recruitment constraints is slowing efforts to staff ministries to levels needed to deliver planned reforms.
The update comes against a backdrop of earlier government moves to overhaul the public service. In late 2025 the administration launched a Functional Review aimed at reshaping structures, operations and the mix of skills across ministries to better align with national development goals. Moce’s report underscores that while funding and training have been prioritised, implementation hinges on translating reform design into filled roles and strengthened frontline capacity.
Addressing the vacancy problem will be central to whether the civil service can fully realise the benefits of recent reforms. Lawmakers on the committee are expected to press the Ministry for further detail on recruitment strategies, incentives for critical skills, and timelines for filling priority vacancies as ministries seek to restore and modernise their workforce after the disruptions of the pandemic.
Leave a comment