Members of the Fiji New Zealand Business Council (FNZBC) were asked to engage with the Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations (PACER) Plus as consultations continue around the country.
New Zealand Trade Commission to Fiji David Dewar said this was an opportunity for businesses to work together to keep driving that trade agenda.
He said it was also important that the business community understood and recognised the opportunity of having Fiji as part of “the only significant trade agreement that takes on the entire region”.
He added although governments conducted negotiations, it was primarily and fundamentally done on behalf of businesses and consumers of imported and exported products.
“Trade is not something the governments do, trade is something that businesses do. We want it to work for you,” Mr Dewar told FNZBC members at their cocktail on Wednesday.
“And businesses, when they engage with that smartly, and when they engage with it in a way that really understands where their interests are, and where the whole country’s interests are, can make a massive difference because you can bring the insight, you can bring the awareness.
“Ultimately, this is the negotiations the governments are going to have to do and you can bring that awareness that can actually work in your best interests, not just in terms of the trade bilaterally between New Zealand and Fiji but also how Fiji can shape its own economic policy here and how you can hold governments all around the region including your own, including the New Zealand government, to account.
“And that’s a really powerful thing trade agreement can do.”
The Ministry of Trade, Co-operatives, SMEs and Communications is holding consultation for businesses, stakeholders and the private sector to re-evaluate its stance on PACER Plus.
PACER Plus is a regional trade agreement that was negotiated by Australia, New Zealand and several other Pacific island countries, and its primary goal is to address distinct challenges faced by Pacific island economies, providing a framework for enhanced trade and economic co-operations.
