At least 10 years to bring debt to GDP ratio down to about 55 to 60% - Prof. Prasad

If we grow at a rate of 4 to 5 percent, it is going to take us at least 10 years to bring debt to GDP ratio down to about 55 or 60 percent.

Deputy Prime Minister, Professor Biman Prasad stated this in reply to a question about the national debt level at the Fiji Commerce and Employers Federation breakfast at the Holiday Inn.

Professor Prasad says when they came into government their target was to put the debt on a trajectory where debt to Gross Domestic Product ratio starts coming down.

He says what that means is they are growing the economy but also managing the expenditure and revenue in a commensurate manner. The Deputy Prime Minister says over a longer period of time, the government may still need to borrow but the borrowing comes at a slower pace.

He says this means instead of borrowing $2 billion, the government will only borrow $1 billion because of the rising revenue and growing economy.