GOVERNMENT plans to raise about $1.48billion through domestic and external borrowing during the 2026-2027 financial year to finance its budget deficit and repay maturing debt.
According to the Ministry of Finance’s Annual Borrowing Plan released last week, Government’s gross financing requirement for the financial year stands at $1.4819billion.
Of this, $1.0456 billion will finance the projected fiscal deficit, while another $436.3million will be used to refinance maturing Government debt.
The debt repayments comprise $188.7million in domestic debt and $247.6million in external loans.
Government intends to rely more heavily on the domestic market, with $853.9million expected to be raised domestically, while $627.95million will come from external sources.
The ministry said Government could adjust the balance between domestic and overseas borrowing depending on financing conditions, provided it remained within the borrowing limit approved by Parliament.
Government will also continue seeking concessional financing from external sources.
The domestic borrowing programme will largely be financed through Fiji Infrastructure Bonds and Viti Bonds.
Government plans to issue $838.9million in Fiji Infrastructure Bonds, covering maturities ranging from two to 25 years.
Another $15million in Viti Bonds will be made available for subscription between August 1, 2026 and July 16, 2027, as Government seeks to encourage greater participation by retail investors in Government securities.
Treasury Bills will also remain an important part of Government’s financing operations.
At the end of July, outstanding Treasury Bills stood at $279million, with around $300million in T-Bill issuances proposed for 2026-2027.
On the external front, the Government expects to source $627.95million from multilateral financiers.
This includes $444million in budget support loans, $132 million in project loans and $51million in other financing.
The borrowing comes against expectations of relatively modest economic growth.
The Ministry projects Fiji’s economy to grow by 2.5 per cent in 2027 before reaching its long-term trend of 3 per cent in 2028.
It said global supply-chain disruptions, inflationary pressures, uneven sectoral performance and mixed labour-market conditions could continue to weigh on the recovery.
