OPPOSITION Member of Parliament Faiyaz Koya has called on the Government to outline contingency plans to safeguard Fiji’s economy amid growing global geopolitical tensions.
Speaking in Parliament yesterday, Mr Koya said developments overseas could have significant impacts on small island nations such as Fiji.
“The world today is facing serious geopolitical tensions,” he said.
“Conflicts are unfolding in different regions, global trade routes are being disrupted, and supply chains remain fragile.”
He warned that these global developments directly affected Fiji’s economic stability.
“For small island nations like Fiji, these global developments are not distant issues. They directly affect our economy, our fuel prices, our food security, and our tourism industry.”
He questioned whether the Government had adequate plans in place to respond if global instability worsens.
“This raises a critical question: Where is Fiji’s contingency plan? What is our backup strategy if global tensions escalate further? What is our national plan if tourism declines due to international instability? What is our strategy if fuel prices spike dramatically again?
“Responsible leadership requires governments to plan not only for good times, but also for difficult times.”
He also called for greater investment in agriculture, economic diversification and renewable energy.
“We must strengthen our agricultural sector so that Fiji can feed itself. We must diversify our economy so that we are not overly dependent on one industry. We must invest in renewable energy and local production to reduce vulnerability to global shocks.”
Mr Koya said while small nations cannot control global events, they must ensure they are prepared for their impacts.
“Small nations cannot control global events. But we can prepare for them.”
