Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, Prof. Biman Prasad, emphasized the need for building more trust in the government regarding policy delivery and implementation. Prasad made these remarks during a post-budget consultation with the Nadi Chamber of Commerce.
Prof. Prasad highlighted the coalition government’s commitment to serious reforms, which he credited for the growth of the Fijian economy. “When we came into government last year, we made a very conscious decision to undertake some serious reforms. Some were not very popular, but it allowed us to put the country on a path toward successful economic growth,” Prasad stated.
Addressing businesses in Nadi post the National Budget announcement, Prasad explained that their tax reforms had enabled the government to raise over $600 million in revenue. “We managed to reduce the debt-to-GDP ratio to a double-digit deficit of 4.8 percent,” he said. “At the same time, we increased expenditure to $4.3 billion, addressing the deficit and improving social infrastructure, education, skill development, and other social sectors.”
Prasad mentioned that the reduction of the deficit to 3.5 percent supports their economic forecast, which remains positive at 2.8 percent, though this falls short of the previous budget’s projection of 3.4 percent. “But we still view this as a very positive growth after a significant COVID recovery in 2022 and last year. We’re now reaching what we call trend growth, and our debt to GDP ratio has been reduced,” he added.
Parliament will convene next week to debate the provisions outlined in the newly announced National Budget for 2024-2025.