THE Ministry of Tourism has set an ambitious target for the tourism industry to earn more than $4 billion from by 2027.
Speaking at the 2025 Nadi Business Forum at the Tanoa International Hotel last Friday, Mr Gavoka said Fiji had earned more than $2 billion in 2024.
“Our tourism earnings for 2024 showed about $2.5 billion,” said Mr Gavoka.
“Fiji Airways, our national carrier, brings in another $2 billion in foreign exchange.
“By 2027, our goal is to reach $4 billion with 1.25 million visitors. I want to emphasise that value over volume is the cornerstone of what we want to achieve.
“We have to look at tourism more holistically and measure ourselves across a number of indicators.”
He said this year’s tourist arrivals were already showing positive numbers.
“The most recent numbers show that in April this year, we received 80,363 visitors.
“This is 4 per cent higher than April last year and about 26 per cent higher than March.
“This is possibly the first time in history where April numbers have surpassed 80,000.”
The Deputy Prime Minister said forward bookings for this tourist season were picking up.
“Forward bookings through July too are robust, and the pickup trend is also promising. So, our focus is on maintaining our numbers throughout the peak season.”
Mr Gavoka also highlighted the significant steps made by national airline Fiji Airways to increase its volume of passengers.
“We are now flying to 25 destinations with Fiji Airways carrying over 2 million passengers.
“That’s an impressive feat which we will build on as we explore new long-haul destinations such as China and India.
“Fiji Airways officially joined the OneWorld alliance as a full member.
“This comes with benefits, from accessing a network of 700 airport lounges and priority check-in and boarding.”
Note: This article was first published on the print version of the Fiji Times dated May 27, 2025
