Assessment work is underway to improve road access for the Tabulotu community in Dreketi, Macuata, with the Ministry of Rural and Maritime Development and Disaster Management's Rural Outer Island Development Unit and partner agencies conducting a site visit yesterday.
The assessment follows social media reports showing community members carrying an elderly resident on a makeshift wooden stretcher due to poor road conditions and limited road access.
Minister for Rural and Maritime Development and Disaster Management, Mosese Bulitavu, directed that an urgent assessment be carried out to evaluate the situation and identify practical solutions.
Bulitavu says the Fiji Roads Authority will undertake an engineering scoping exercise in the coming days to determine the most suitable option for improving access.
He says relevant mataqali landowners have also been requested to provide the necessary approvals for land access and the sourcing of gravel required for the proposed works.
The Minister says following the technical assessment and stakeholder consultations, a project proposal will be finalised to guide the implementation of the proposed 7.5-kilometre access road improvement.
The Ministry is also working closely with the Ministry of iTaukei Affairs through the Macuata Provincial Council, which has already held consultations with the vanua to support a coordinated approach to addressing the community's accessibility challenges.
The Ministry of Rural and Maritime Development and Disaster Management remains committed to working with communities, landowners and partner agencies to deliver sustainable improvements to rural access infrastructure and enhance connectivity for rural communities.
