The boards that steer Fiji’s sugar sector are set for a significant reshuffle after the Office of the Minister for Agriculture, Waterways and the Sugar Industry invited expressions of interest for new directors to serve on the Fiji Sugar Corporation Limited (FSC), the Sugar Research Institute of Fiji (SRIF) and the Sugar Cane Growers Fund (SCGF). The public notice signals fresh appointments under newly installed Sugar Minister Tomasi Tunabuna and frames the exercise as part of a broader push to modernise governance across the industry.
The ministry said appointments will be strictly merit-based and is targeting candidates with more than 10 years’ professional experience in fields directly relevant to the sector. Areas specifically cited include agronomy, financial and risk management, sugar manufacturing, supply chain logistics and strategic planning. Successful candidates will be expected to provide “strategic leadership and direction” while strengthening accountability, good governance and improved financial management across the three bodies.
Beyond traditional technical areas, the recruitment drive marks a notable shift in the expertise sought for board roles. The public notice places new emphasis on sustainability, commodity trade knowledge and change management — reflecting a pivot towards longer-term resilience, market orientation and organisational reform. The ministry framed these competencies as central to improving efficiency and service delivery across the supply chain, from research and production to farmer support and commodity sales.
Appointees will also carry responsibility for risk management and statutory compliance, the ministry said, underlining an expectation that directors will help bolster institutional performance and financial discipline. The boards named play a critical role in shaping policy direction and operational decisions for institutions that remain central to Fiji’s sugar economy; the recruitment is intended to bring fresh leadership and technical capacity to those governance roles.
The overhaul comes against a backdrop of wider public-sector appointments by the government as it seeks to strengthen institutional governance across multiple sectors. Recent national appointments — including leadership changes in education, the judiciary and ocean management — have illustrated a pattern of placing experienced professionals into statutory and advisory boards, a context the ministry cited in describing this sugar-sector initiative as part of efforts to rebuild confidence and drive long-term growth.
The Office of the Minister has invited applications through its public notice; further details including application procedures and timelines were not included in the ministry release. Stakeholders across the sugar industry, from growers’ organisations to processing and research entities, are likely to watch the selection process closely given the boards’ influence over policy, research priorities and fund disbursements that affect farmers’ livelihoods and sector competitiveness.
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