$699M worth of foreign investments are expected to be generated into the country this year.
Investment Fiji CEO Ravuni Uluilakeba said that this is expected from their anticipated 206 projects by December which is an increase of 7.5 percent in investments from last year.
He said that from January to April this year, a total of 51 investment proposals worth $211.8M has been recorded.
Uluilakeba said that this is mainly from the tourism, services, wholesale and retail trade, manufacturing, agriculture and forestry sectors which are the major ones to boost our economy in the coming months and next few years.
According to Uluilakeba, investment levels have been fluctuating in the last five years since 2007 which recorded $483.71M worth of investments with a decrease in 2008 and 2009 but it picked up in 2010 with $592.05M worth of projects.
In 2011, the investment level was $466M.
USP's Dean for Faculty of Business and Economics Professor Biman Prasad said that despite government's innovative incentive schemes to attract foreign investment in the last five years, the investment level has not gone up due to lack of confidence in the economy.
In a presentation to the Fuel Retailers Association, Prasad said that according to ADB estimates, since 2005, the gross domestic investment has averaged around 13 percent of GDP per annum which is well below the usual 25 percent target that subsequent governments in Fiji since 1987 have wished for and which none have achieved.
He acknowledged that the Bainimarama government has delivered changes in some areas which have been useful for the economy.
However, he claimed there have been numerous decrees which have created new layers of regulations and bureaucracy which not only lead to an increase in the cost of doing business but has also created uncertainty and lack of confidence.
Story by: Sofaia Koroitanoa
