Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Professor Biman Prasad said they inherited a severely deteriorated health and education infrastructure when they came into government.
Speaking at the post-budget breakfast in Suva, Prof Prasad said the state of public facilities, particularly in the health sector, reflected years of neglect that the current administration has been trying to reverse.
“People say you shouldn’t talk about what happened in the past, but we inherited one of the most dilapidated states of health and education infrastructure in this country,” he said.
“I went to Kadavu and saw that the hospital was falling apart for almost 10, 15 years.”
He said the Nausori Health Centre had also been in a state of disrepair, which was addressed with help from the New Zealand government.
Prof Prasad said Government has spent the past two and a half years working to repair with the support of international development partners.
“I want to thank the New Zealand government for fixing it in one year.”
According to Prof Prasad, the Government has completed 29 maintenance and related projects in the health sector within two and a half years, with more planned.
He also acknowledged Australia’s role in supporting Fiji’s recovery and infrastructure efforts.
“We’ve been very pleased with the level of international engagement.
“Australia not only provided innovative budget support but also worked with us to fix health and education infrastructure.”
Prof Prasad said the CWM Hospital remains a concern but noted that the Government commissioned an independent audit with support from Australia to assess the situation.
“Read the first sentence in that report.
“It independently says years of neglect of the CWM Hospital has led to where it is.”
He added that the Government had “the courage” to seek independent assessments of schools in Suva and the hospital, viewing transparency and partnership as key to restoring public confidence in services.
The Finance Minister reiterated that while significant progress has been made, further improvements are still needed across the sector.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, Strategic Planning, National Development and Statistics, Prof. Biman Prasad shares a light moment with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade, Cooperatives, Small & Medium Enterprises & Communications, Manoa Kamikamica, Minister for Employment, Productivity & Industrial Relations Agni Deo Singh and Vinay Narsey after the 2024/2025 Post National Budget Breakfast session at the Grand Pacific Hotel in Suva on Saturday, June 28, 2025. Picture: JONACANI LALAKOBAU
