Remittances key to local development

26 June 2007

Remittances key to local development says Fiji academic

Remittances from overseas now account for around 15% of Fiji's total household income, creating an important seed capital resource for local entrepreneurs to call upon, says a senior academic from the University of the South Pacific.

Dr Eci Nabalarua, Pro Vice-Chancellor Academic at USP, told a conference in Port Vila, Vanuatu, that overseas remittances now amount to more than $300 million Fiji dollars, outstripping the combined revenues from tourism and sugar.

"The bulk of this money is accruing to Fijian households," said Dr Nabalarua. "In addition, there's an emerging trend for greater economic self-sufficiency at the provincial level, with the creation of investment portfolios which can act as a source of financial capital and credit for small businesses. So there's no shortage of capital for local entrepreneurial development."

Dr Nabalarua was speaking on development and entrepreneurship in Fiji at the first conference of the Asia Pacific Academy of Business in Society (APABIS).

Jointly organised by the University of Waikato Management School and the University of the South Pacific, the conference is focusing on communities and sustainable development.

Dr Nabalarua pointed out that much Fijian business activity exists in the informal economy, and is strongly rooted in the traditional values of family and community structures.

"It's not enough to cut and paste Western business templates - it just doesn't work," she said.

Dr Nabalarua said holistic, sustainable development was fundamental to the Fijian world view, and money was not the primary motivating factor. "What matters is that the benefit returns to the whole community, in which individuals understand and know their place and space."

Professor Juliet Roper of Waikato Management School, who founded APABIS with the endorsement of the European Academy of Business in Society, says there's growing evidence that successful business is based on a full and constructive engagement with the welfare of the communities it serves.

"APABIS aims to create a network of research and practice in sustainable business development across the Asia-Pacific region, and we hope this conference will aid that process," she said.

The APABIS conference continues until 27 June.

For more details visit www.management.ac.nz/apabis

ENDS

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