Women now make up the majority of the Fiji Revenue and Customs Service (FRCS) workforce as the agency accelerates recruitment to bolster operations in its post‑COVID recovery phase, the organisation’s 2023–2024 Annual Report shows. FRCS reported a total staff complement of 648 for the year ending July 2024, with 332 female employees compared with 316 male, producing a slight female majority.
The workforce expansion was driven by an active recruitment and re‑engagement programme. During the 2023–2024 period FRCS recruited 97 new staff and saw 73 former employees rejoin the agency through newly created positions, the report states. FRCS described the drive as part of a strategy to become an “employer of choice” and to ensure it has the capacity and skills needed to deliver on long‑term objectives as it modernises and expands services.
Staffing is concentrated in frontline revenue and border functions. Customs remains the largest employer within FRCS with 237 staff, followed by Taxation on 174 and Compliance with 94. Other business units named in the report include Corporate Services, Technology, Finance, and People, Capability and Culture, along with the Executive Office. Geographically, the majority of employees are based in Suva (371), with the next largest numbers in Nadi (168) and Lautoka (67); smaller teams are stationed in centres such as Labasa, Savusavu and Ba.
The rise in headcount has had a material impact on personnel costs. Total employee expenditure rose to $33.7 million for the year ending July 2024, up from $25.2 million in the previous year — an increase of more than 33 percent. Salaries and wages made up the bulk of the spend at $26.2 million, while employer contributions to the Fiji National Provident Fund (FNPF), overtime and allowances totalled $4.26 million. The report also lists costs for annual leave, recruitment, and training and professional development.
FRCS framed the increased outlay as an investment in operational capacity, saying the recruitment and associated expenditure are required to support its ongoing modernisation and service delivery improvements. The agency indicated the rehiring of former employees and creation of new roles were deliberate steps to rebuild institutional capability after pandemic disruptions.
The development at FRCS echoes a wider pattern of increasing female representation and new appointments across public institutions in Fiji in recent months, seen in several high‑profile leadership changes. Observers say the numbers provide a concrete marker of the public sector’s shift to refill and reform workforces after the constraints of the COVID era. For FRCS, the challenge going forward will be sustaining service improvements while managing higher ongoing personnel costs amid competing fiscal demands.
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