Fiji’s smart borrowing has been widely endorsed - PM

Prime Minister, Voreqe Bainimarama says Fiji’s strategy of smart borrowing has been widely endorsed, including by the United Nations.

While speaking in the 2020/2021 National Budget Debate, Bainimarama says Fiji’s multilateral partners see the prudency behind all of the budgets.

The Prime Minister says these are institutions run by actual economists, with whole teams dedicated to reviewing our economy, and they trust Fiji. He says that is why they have stood with Fiji through this crisis.

Bainimarama says the Opposition can shut their eyes to these global realities all they want and the Prime Minister says he really does not care.

He says he puts his stock in the international economic experts over failed former professors.

The Prime Minister says anyone with eyes can see that every dollar of the well-structured, carefully targeted two-billion-dollar stimulus package in this budget has been allocated to save the economy, to serve people, to sustain jobs and to create new ones.

Bainimarama says the budget gives help where it’s needed most, granting $100 million in direct government unemployment assistance.

He says this assistance is allocated not only to those whose jobs have been lost but to those who are working on reduced hours.

Bainimarama then gave an example that he could announce there is a cure for COVID-19 but the Fiji Times will still have a front page story of Biman Prasad.

He says the newspaper company and the Opposition Leader keep talking about debt servicing payments but fail to highlight that the debts were mostly accrued prior to 2007.

Bainimarama says the social security they have built over the years remains, free education is funded, social welfare payments are being paid, subsidised transportation to school continues and free textbooks are paid for.

The Prime Minister says the government won’t be slashing the salaries of the civil servants they need to help put this economy back on its feet and to support the people who have suffered the most, much to the disappointment of Biman Prasad.

Bainimarama also says that the government has promised cane growers a guaranteed price per tonne of 85 dollars for three full seasons. He says that promise will be delivered.

He says the first three payments of the third season will be paid at $70 per tonne, but in the fourth and final wash-up payment, they will make up the full amount of $85 per tonne, as they always do.

Bainimarama also says they have provided nearly $300 million in direct support to cane farmers over the past seven years.