The Australian government has committed approximately $87million in grant funding support to Fiji.
Official documents for the funding commitment were signed yesterday by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Biman Prasad and Australian High Commissioner to Fiji Ewen McDonald.
At the media conference after the signing, Prof Prasad said the funding was part of Australia’s budget support program aimed to sustainably finance Fiji’s development ambitions.
“Australia’s budget support program, underpinned by the renewal of our Vuvale partnership in October 2023, has helped the Government to sustainably finance our development ambitions, including but not limited to critical infrastructure, support for our health and education services, climate change as well as support for the vulnerable,” he said.
Australia’s support for the 2023-2024 fiscal year is focused on improving public financial management and fostering economic reforms to enhance recovery and resilience.
“The Fiji Government shares the same sentiment as the Australian Government including other development partners in that sustainable economic growth and well-functioning public financial management systems are essential for stability, prosperity and providing services to vulnerable groups,” Prof Prasad said.
“In total, the Fiji Government over the years including the current financial year has received more than $580million from the Australian Government.”
This $580million, he added, included the current budget support grant, contributions to social infrastructure programs, hospital rehabilitation, cyclone recovery, rural electrification, and direct support from Australian universities and institutions.
He said over the past five fiscal years, Fiji has implemented extensive reforms with development partners to enhance governance, public financial management, and support for state-owned enterprises and government agencies, efforts that he said have been supported by over $2billion in blended financing from various development partners, including the World Bank, Asian Development Bank(ADB), Australia, New Zealand, and the European Union plus contributions from the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).