First Familiarisation Visit Hailed a Success

The dynamic initiative of the Government to connect the world to Fiji through the inaugural Familiarisation visit program has been hailed a success. This was held for the Non-resident Heads of Missions accredited to Fiji from Canberra and Wellington.

Participants Impressed

Non-Resident Ambassadors and High Commissioners who cover Fiji from the neighbouring capitals of Australia and New Zealand were very impressed and ended their three-day program feeling more enthusiastic about the enhanced scope of cooperation with Fiji and their respective countries.

With the theme of “Nurturing Global Partnerships for Sustainable Development,” the familiarisation visit took place from Tuesday 20 to Thursday 22 August 2019. Seventeen non-resident Ambassadors and High Commissioners participated in the program and represented countries that span the regions of Asia, Africa, Europe, Western Europe, Middle East and Latin America.

At the official opening of the program, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Defence and National Security, Hon. Inia Seruiratu said that the familiarisation visit presents the Heads of Missions with the opportunity to strengthen their cooperation with Fiji in sectors such as trade, investment, sports, tourism, agriculture and multilateralism. Minister Seruiratu said that “Fiji welcomes your partnership in these areas and others, such as higher education and skills training, technological innovation, infrastructure development, environmental conservation, climate change adaptation and mitigation.” “The facts and figures will tell you that our trade is growing, our exports are increasing, we’re creating more jobs, we’re attracting historic levels of investment, our economic base is steadily expanding its diversity, tourism earnings have risen, our levels of foreign reserves remain strong and we continue to deliver development across the country at a pace Fiji has never before experienced.”

Underscoring the importance of strong cooperation with other countries for Fiji’s development, Hon. Seruiratu added “I know that we could not have achieved these without the assistance of our friends and partners, some of whom are represented here. I also know that there’s so much more to be done, more opportunities to be realized and more partnerships to be forged to meet the intent of the Fijian Government.”

Stronger collaborations promoted

The Dean of the Diplomatic Corps in Canberra and Timor-Leste’s Ambassador to Australia and Fiji, Mr Abel Guterres commended Fiji for initiating the well organised program that has equipped the non-resident Heads of Mission with firsthand information and experience about Fiji’s development priorities and potentials. “The visit promotes stronger collaboration among countries to work together at the multilateral level, especially in addressing climate change. We are grateful for the Talanoa sessions we had with the government ministers and permanent secretaries, it’s been a great initiative to explore opportunities for investment in areas of tourism, agriculture and fisheries. Timor-Leste looks forward to learning from Fiji’s experiences in terms of the transformation it has been able to achieve over these years,” Mr Guterres elaborated.

The Canadian Consul and Senior Trade Commissioner in New Zealand, Mr Francis Huot has reaffirmed Canada’s commitment to advance Fiji’s sustainable development goals. He said that such programs nurture support for development assistance required by countries in addressing challenges like climate change.

“Canada-Fiji relations are growing through exchange of trade, people to people networking and we are also trying to increase our aid to Fiji and other Pacific Island countries. We have great potential for stronger ties. We have specific funding that is available for climate change to countries in Asia-Pacific and is managed by the Asian Development Bank. I can advise the ADB and other international financial institutions on where they should invest the Canadian funding,” Mr Huot said.

Similarly, Mr Karim Medrek, Ambassador for the Kingdom of Morocco based in Canberra, said that the familiarisation visit is instrumental in establishing engagements with Fiji in areas of tourism and solar energy, where Morocco has the largest solar plants in the world. Efforts are also being made to explore partnership in agriculture to take advantage of Morocco’s status as one of the largest fertilizer producers in the world.

Return on Investments

Fiji’s High Commissioner to Canberra, Mr Luke Daunivalu said that the partnership secured through this visit will yield greater returns on investment for Fiji. Both of Fiji’s Missions in Canberra and Wellington will be following up with the participating countries on the interest and opportunities established during the visit.

“The 17 Heads of the Missions who participated in this first Familiarisation Visit program have been greatly impressed by the depth of the discussions undertaken with various Government agencies, which will boost collaboration with these countries. The visit to Daku village and tree planting at Colo-i-Suva afforded them first-hand experience about Fiji’s climate change impacts and needs, enabling those countries to look at ways to assist Fiji. The program has also been a marketing platform for Fiji’s lucrative tourism industry and its unique cultural experience. The Talanoa session between Heads of Missions and government agencies generated much interest in potential areas of cooperation, provided in-depth information and understanding of Fiji’s trade, investment and economic sectors,” Daunivalu explained.

Drawing from the success of the first familiarisation visit, Fiji’s High Commissioner to New Zealand, Mr Filimone Waqabaca said that such visits add value to the work undertaken by Fiji’s missions abroad and efforts will be made to organise similar visits in the future as well.

“Through such visits, Fiji will be able to seek stronger cooperation with the global communities in achieving Fiji’s sustainable development goals. The visit to Daku village in Tailevu has been particularly impactful for them since they got to witness the determination of the people of Daku and the importance of partnership between agencies to address challenges posed by climate change,” HC Waqabaca added.