New Australian aid agreement to complement government priorities

Australia has agreed that future development assistance to Fiji should be targeted to complement the Government’s policy agenda and priorities.

The assurance was made by the Australian Minister for International Development and the Pacific, Senator Concetta Fierravanti-Wells, during talks with the Attorney-General and Minister for Finance, Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum, at the 49th Annual Meeting of the Asian Development Bank in Frankfurt, Germany.

Both Ministers agreed that any Australian development assistance to Fiji needed to take into account the Government priorities and complement them, rather than operate in isolation. Targeted assistance programs are to be included in a new aid agreement between Fiji and Australia that is currently being considered.

The AG warmly thanked Senator Fierravanti-Wells for the Australian Government’s support for the Fijian people after the widespread devastation caused by Cyclone Winston.

Discussions on the Fiji-Australia relationship included the development of a modern disaster management framework to improve the overall response to similar events, the seasonal workers scheme, revamping the current double taxation agreement and harnessing private sector participation in Fiji’s economic reforms.