DECISIONS MADE AT THE 3RD CABINET MEETING HELD ON 18 FEBRUARY 2025

Decisions Made At The 3rd Cabinet Meeting Held On 18 February 2025 Chaired By Acting Prime Minister, Hon. Biman Prasad.

1. Fiji’s Electoral Legislation Review and Reform
Cabinet agreed that the Fiji Law Reform Commission (FLRC) take charge and responsibility for the review and reform process of the Electoral Act 2014, Electoral (Registration of Voters) Act 2012 and the Political Parties (Registration, Conduct, Funding and Disclosures) Act 2013.

The FLRC will carry out the review in consultation with the Ministry of Justice, the Electoral Commission of Fiji, and the Fiji Elections Office.

Cabinet had earlier approved the review of the Electoral Acts in March 2023.

The revised legislation is expected to be tabled in the April/May sitting of Parliament.

2. Independent Audit of the 2022 General Elections Glitch
Cabinet was today informed that there will not be an independent audit of the glitch during the 2022 General Elections. A review of the Results Management Information System (RMIS) had identified that the glitch in the 2022 General Elections was due to human error and not a system or application error which was quickly rectified by IT. It was not a system or application error. The focus will now be on strengthening operational processes, and introducing preventive measures to ensure greater accuracy and efficiency in future elections.

3. Fiji to Establish its Embassy in Jerusalem 
Cabinet endorsed that Fiji’s Embassy in the State of Israel be located in Jerusalem.

Necessary risk assessments will be undertaken by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Defence, in consultation with relevant agencies, prior to and during the establishment process.

Fiji and Israel established diplomatic relations in 1970 and forged partnerships across security and peacekeeping, agriculture and climate change.

4. Government Guarantee for the Fiji Development Bank
Cabinet endorsed a Government Guarantee for the Fiji Development Bank (Bank) borrowings from 1 March 2025 to 28 February 2026 (guarantee period).

There will also be an increase in the Government guarantee ceiling from $130 million to $190 million for the period March 2025 to February 2026.

The current Government guarantee for FDB’s borrowings for a sum of $130 million for the 12-month period from 1 March 2024, will end on 28 February 2025.

The guarantee is for borrowings through the issuance of short- and long-term bonds, promissory notes, term deposits and any RBF financing facility and other short-term borrowings.

5. First Redeployment of Funds Within The 2024-2025 Budget
Cabinet endorsed the first redeployment of funds within the 2024- 2025 Budget to cater for the additional expenditure demands of FJ$ 28,087,026 (VIP) for the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Local Government.

A sum of $23.0 million will be redeployed to supplement the $37.0 Transport Assistance allocation under the Ministry of Education. The additional $23.0 million is to meet Government’s commitment to fully subsidise the increase in bus fares for both blue and yellow cards effective from 1 September 2024

The Ministry of Local Government will be provided $4,087,026 to make payments for the completion of works at Govind Park, and $1.0 million to supplement the $500,000 already allocated in the 2024-2025 Budget for preparatory works for the Local Government elections.

Funds have been redeployed from allocations that had savings due to the delay in the implementation process for these ongoing projects which had resulted in the slow utilisation of funds by the respective agencies.

6. Tourism Legislation for Fiji
Cabinet endorsed the development of a tourism legislation for Fiji.

The development of the new legislation is to enhance the efficiency of tourism-related licensing and ensure regulatory consistency for the sustainable growth of the tourism sector.

The legislation is expected to introduce an integrated approach to developing, managing and promoting quality sustainable tourism, house national sustainable tourism standards, and provide clarity on the respective roles and responsibilities of the Tourism Department and Tourism Fiji.

A Joint Working Group will be established to oversee the development of the legislation.

7. Review of the Public Health Act 1935
Cabinet endorsed the review of the Public Health Act 1935 (Act).

The Act is the primary legislation for public health in Fiji.

The review will be a comprehensive exercise encompassing the Act in its entirety, with amendments informed by consultations and focused on optimising the legislation for current times.

8. National Action Plan on International Decade of Indigenous Language

Cabinet endorsed the Fiji National Action Plan on International Decade of Indigenous Language (NAP-IDIL).

The NAP-IDIL is an attempt to revive, restore and preserve the iTaukei language.

An Implementation Plan will be developed for the NAP to ensure the effective execution of the strategies and commitments outlined in the NAP.

An iTaukei Language Commission policy framework will also be developed.

9. Extension of the Village Boundaries Geographical Positioning System Survey
Cabinet approved an extension of the Village Boundary Geographical Positioning System (GPS) Survey and mapping through Geographic Information System (GIS), for an additional three years.

The Village Boundary GPS Survey is a key initiative under the iTaukei Land Management Unit (LMU) of the iTaukei Land and Fisheries Commission (TLFC) aimed at creating accurate, geo-referenced village boundaries for legal, planning, and development purposes, and establishing a Geospatial Unit for the digital management of iTaukei land data.

As of 2023, 662 out of 1,152 registered villages have been successfully surveyed and mapped into the GIS system, leaving 490 villages yet to be surveyed.

The Village Boundary GPS Survey is to:
– ensure precise demarcation of village territories;
– mitigate land disputes by providing an authoritative digital reference of village boundaries; support sustainable economic development by enabling structured planning, investment, and infrastructure development;
– facilitate access to government services such as housing, education, and health programmes;
– strengthen climate resilience by integrating village boundaries into disaster preparedness and adaptation strategies; and
– enhance iTaukei land governance through an integrated GIS platform that consolidates land tenure, cultural heritage, and natural resource data.

10. Reversion of the Forestry Experimental Station in Tavakubu to Original Land-Owning Unit
Cabinet agreed that land reserved to the Forestry Department for experimental purposes (NG 187 part of), which is approximately 7 acres located within the Tavakubu cemetery extension, be reverted to Mataqali Nadakuvatu.

NG 187 was part of the land in Fiji bought by the then Colonial Government from the relevant land-owning units, with a total land area of approximately 3177 acres on 28 June, 1924.

In January 1999, Cabinet had approved the reversion of part of the land to the original landowning units on the rationale that the land concerned was no longer needed for the original purpose it was intended for. The operationalisation of the decision took time due to interference from landowning units, delays in survey works, and poor record keeping.

With the survey now complete and registered, the land reserved for the Forestry Experimental Station Government facility will revert to its original landowners.

All active leases existing within the NG 187 remains with no loss of rights and will be administered by iTLTB.

11. Review of the Development of Informal Settlements Act 2022
Cabinet endorsed the review of the Development of Informal Settlements Act 2022 (Act).

The Act was enacted to provide a structured framework for the development, relocation, and upgrading of informal settlements in Fiji.

Several areas of the Act require revision to ensure greater clarity, fairness, and alignment with contemporary social justice and human rights principles, to address the growing issue of informal settlements.

12. Fiji to Participate as an Observer in the Commission on the Conservation of Southern Blue Fin Tuna and the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission
Fiji will participate as an observer in the following two tuna-Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (t-RFMOs):
· the Convention on the Conservation of Southern Bluefin Tuna (CCSBT); and
· the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC).

The CCSBT is an intergovernmental organization established in 1993 responsible for the management of Southern Bluefin Tuna and ensure the conservation, management and optimum utilisation of the species.

The IATTC was established in 1949 and is responsible for the conservation and management of the tuna and tuna like species, associated species and their ecosystems throughout the Eastern Pacific Ocean from Canada in the North to Chile at the South.

Fiji will initially engage as observers, with the potential of becoming members at a later stage.

13. Fiji Law Reform Commission Work Programme 2024 – 2025
Cabinet endorsed the Fiji Law Reform Commission (Commission) Work Programme for 2024-2025.

The Commission is a statutory body established by Parliament in 1979 under the Act to monitor and keep under review all the laws of Fiji.

The approved Work Programme includes nine sets of laws namely governance laws, migration laws, electoral laws, Civil Court Rules, Education Act 1966, Fiji Law Reform Commission Act 1979, Liquor Act 2006 and Liquor Regulations 2008, Police, Security, Human trafficking and Cyber-security Laws, and Regulation of Surfing Areas Act 2010 / Commercial Use of Marine Areas Bill 2025.

14. Project Cooperation Agreement for Fiji’s First Biennial Transparency Report and Fourth National Communication under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
Cabinet endorsed the Project Cooperation Agreement (PCA) for the development of combined Fiji’s First Biennial Transparency Report (BTR) and Fourth National Communication (NC) with United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

BTRs replaced the current Biennial Update Reports (BURs) for developing countries starting from December 2024.

The combined BTR/NC project is designed to support Fiji in this transition, enhancing its reporting capabilities and strengthening its response to climate change.

Fiji has received funding for BTR/NC from the Global Environment Facility (GEF) Trust Fund and the project will be implemented by United Nations Environment Programme as GEF implementing agency.

15. Japan–Fiji Project for the Development of Regional Centres for Improvement of the Meteorological Services and Disaster Risk Reduction in the Pacific

Cabinet endorsed the establishment of Regional Centres (Regional Training Centre and Regional Instrument Centre) for the Improvement of Meteorological Services and Disaster Risk Reduction in the Pacific project (Project), at the Fiji Meteorological Service (FMS) headquarters.

The project will be undertaken in collaboration with the Government of Japan through the Japan International Cooperation Agency at a cost of 1.739 billion Japanese Yen (FJD 25M).

The establishment of the regional centres represents a significant step towards enhancing meteorological capacities and disaster resilience in Fiji and the Pacific region.

16. Land Transport (Amendment) Bill 2025
Cabinet endorsed the Land Transport Amendment Bill 2025 (Bill) for tabling in Parliament.

The Bill removes the mandatory two-year requirement for Provisional License holders in the Land Transport Act 1998 (Act) and introduces a Two-Stage Provisional Driver License System.

The amendment to the Act is aimed at enhancing road safety by ensuring a more progressive and competency-based approach to driver licensing.

By implementing a tiered system, provisional drivers will be subject to a more rigorous assessment process before obtaining a full license, fostering higher driving standards and reducing accident rates.