The interim government is now actively taking steps to change the formula being used to set the value of native land which is expected to result in lease rentals increasing significantly.
While making the announcement to Village News today, Interim Fijian Affairs Minister Ratu Epeli Ganilau has revealed that all native land which is not under the ALTA legislation will now be valued at the market rate and not go through the Unimproved Capital Valuation.
Ratu Epeli said the change to the regulation which was approved by cabinet earlier this week will be gazetted soon, and it will guarantee higher returns to landowners since their lease rentals and compensation will be assessed based on the market value.
He said the change was recommended by the Colonel Apakuki Kurusiga led team reviewing the NLTB operations, which clearly stated that the Unimproved Capital Valuation used for years by the NLTB to set the rate of lease rentals should be scrapped.
Village News has established that following the valuation of native land on market basis instead of the Unimproved Capital Valuation, the lease rentals and premiums will increase significantly for native land used for tourism, commercial, industrial and residential purposes.
Ratu Epeli has also confirmed that the current lease payout is based on 6 percent Unimproved Capital Value of the total value of the land being leased. However, many tenants are only paying two to four percent.
He said there will be a major increase in rent for native land outside ALTA.
The other issue that has emerged is that the last valuation for all native land was carried out back in 1992. According to Ratu Epeli, the valuation should be carried out every 5 years to update the lease rentals and premiums. However, he is concerned that no valuation has been done for the last 15 years.
