Case Of Fiji Research Articles

Law and banking development in a South Pacific island economy: the case of Fiji, 1970–2006

This paper examines the applicability of the prominent law–finance theory to banking development in Fiji, a representative island economy in the South Pacific region. Secondary and primary data are used to assess legal institutions and the level of development in the banking sector in Fiji (and, where possible, in other South Pacific island economies) in comparison with up to 53 other countries, both developed and developing. The paper also re-examines the question of a possible law–banking development connection internationally, in light of newly available data and a newly proposed composite index of banking development. While the results are broadly consistent with previous findings of a direct relationship between law enforcement quality and banking development, they also suggest that the legal rules codifying creditor rights may not be as influential as had been thought previously. The latter result accords with the experience of Fiji, where very weak legal rules combined with average law enforcement quality (and high accounting standards) yield a reasonable performance in terms of banking development over the 1970–2006 period. The paper also points out some possible policy implications of these results.

Law and Banking Development in a South Pacific Island Economy: The Case of Fiji, 1970-2006

This paper examines the applicability of the prominent law - finance theory to banking development in Fiji, a representative island economy in the South Pacific region. Secondary and primary data are used to assess legal institutions and the level of development in the banking sector in Fiji (and, where possible, in other South Pacific island economies) in comparison with up to 53 other countries, both developed and developing. The paper also re-examines the question of a possible law - banking development connection internationally, in light of newly available data and a newly proposed composite index of banking development. While the results are broadly consistent with previous findings of a direct relationship between law enforcement quality and banking development, they also suggest that the legal rules codifying creditor rights may not be as influential as had been thought previously. The latter result accords with the experience of Fiji, where very weak legal rules combined with average law enforcement quality (and high accounting standards) yield a reasonable performance in terms of banking development over the 1970–2006 period. The paper also points out some possible policy implications of these results.

A tale of three constitutions: Ethnicity and politics in Fiji

There have been sharp divisions of opinion throughout Fiji's modern history between those advocating an integrated, nonracial state, based on individual rights, and those in favor of a political order based on ethnic communities. Integration and consociation, perhaps, are not apt terms to categorize this division, but, certainly, they have some resonance. Many features associated with consociation have been present in the colonial and the postcolonial constitutions, such as separate communal representation, group rights, asymmetrical autonomy, power sharing, separate educational systems, and entrenchment of rights to culture and land. Norms regarding indigenous peoples’ rights have been invoked, as well, adding an extra twist to the integration-consociation polarity. But there have also been strong tendencies toward political integration and broad-based, nonethnic social justice policies. Fiji's experience shows that this polarity has limited intellectual or policy value. Consociation easily and, in Fiji's case, seamlessly slides into hegemony.

Liberalising Trade in the Agriculture Sector of a Small Island State: The Case of Fiji

This paper uses Fiji as a case study to investigate the impacts of three trade liberalisation policies – removal of sugar price subsidies, unilateral trade liberalisation and multilateral trade liberalisation, implied by the successful completion of the Doha Round. Removal of the sugar price subsidies has an adverse effect on real output, real national welfare and employment, but promotes growth of non‐agricultural exports in the long run. Unilateral trade liberalisation, in the form of tariff cuts in the agricultural sector, increases real output, real national welfare and non‐agricultural exports in the medium term. However, this growth is not sustained in the long term. The best outcome for Fiji is multilateral trade liberalisation which increases real output, real national welfare, non‐agricultural exports and employment. It is argued that reform of trade policies in less developed countries could come at a cost, therefore highlighting the need for compensating mechanisms to deal with the adverse impacts. Other measures to assist farmers to expand output in response to a rise in prices could include measures to reduce transport, storage and packaging costs, as well as institutional measures to enhance the functioning of input and factor markets.

Rapid Survey Technique Using Socio-Economic Indicators to Assess the Suitability of Pacific Island Rural Communities for Kappaphycus Seaweed Farming Development

The literature on economic feasibility of farming seaweeds like Kappaphycus alvarezii in tropical locations is mainly based upon Asian case studies, and often does not take into account social factors in seaweed farming success. Pacific island countries are culturally and economically distinct from Asia, and efforts are now being made to establish seaweed industries here. Past experiences have showed that social factors often outweigh technical factors in determining the success of rural development projects. In addition, Pacific island communities are very diverse in their socio-economic make-up. The particular community chosen for location of a development project is therefore critical to success. Project managers need to recognize in advance the best type of community for seaweed farming development. The objective of this study was to identify socio economic factors that can be used as predictors of project success or failure. Using results of social survey techniques carried out in eight communities within the Fiji Group, a rapid survey technique has been developed which can enable decisions about whether a community is suitable for farming seaweed or not. Though developed from Fiji case studies, the technique can be applied in other rural Asia/Pacific situations.

Sweetening the Transition in EU Sugar Preferences: The Case of Fiji

The European Union grants preferential market access for sugar to a group of African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries. Sugar exported under these quotas receives between two and three times the world price. These trade preferences are intended as a form of aid, but they tend to stifle productivity growth in the recipient countries. The European Union could better assist ACP countries by providing direct development assistance in place of sugar subsidies, for example by investing the aid transfers into infrastructure or other essential public services. This paper tests this proposition for the case of Fiji using a computable general-equilibrium model. It is found that significant gains in economic performance can be achieved by employing such alternative strategies for aid. These gains are particularly strong over the medium to long term when the aid funds are diverted to infrastructure development. However, there are issues of equity to consider since, in the case of Fiji, the rural poor would be the losers if trade preferences were to be removed. Moreover, the degree of benefit in alternative strategies such as infrastructure development will be contingent on the economy's flexibility, which in turn depends upon the country's regulatory regime and education performance.

Testing Hall's permanent income hypothesis for a developing country: the case of Fiji

Hall (1978) has stimulated considerable controversy and empirical work on testing the validity of the permanent income hypothesis (PIH). Much of this work is on the developed countries. In the developing countries per capita incomes show larger fluctuations and for the majority, opportunities for intertemporal substitution are limited. This paper uses the extended framework of Campbell and Mankiw (1989) and finds that current consumption is determined by current income for more than two thirds of the consumers in Fiji.

Economic Impact of Tourism on Fiji's Economy: Empirical Evidence from the Computable General Equilibrium Model

Tourism is Fiji's largest industry, earning over F$500 million in foreign exchange and employing around 40,000 people. The tourism industry over the last decade has grown at an annual rate of 10–12%. The expansion of tourism, which generates more expenditure in the economy, is likely to have implications for other industries. In this paper, the aim is to delineate the long-run impact of a 10% increase in tourist expenditure on Fiji's economy. To achieve this, the author uses a computable general equilibrium model. Among the key findings are that a 10% increase in tourist expenditure in Fiji will increase GDP by 0.5% and contribute to an improvement in the balance of payments, real consumption will increase by 0.72% and real national welfare will increase by 0.67%. It is also found that an expansion of tourism will lead to an appreciation of the exchange rate, together with an increase in domestic prices and wage rates, and so traditional export sectors will experience a decline in their export competitiveness. In Fiji's case there is evidence that the increases in tourism and non-traditional exports outweigh the fall in non-traditional exports caused by an expansion of tourism.

Inequality and conflict in Fiji: From purgatory to hell?

Abstract: This article examines socio‐economic inequality in Fiji and finds that, contrary to oft‐repeated claims, inequality between Fiji"s major ethnic groups (inter‐ethnic inequality) is less significant than inequality within each ethnic group (intra‐ethnic inequality). In spite of this reality, inter‐group inequality and affirmative action policies have remained central features of state policy in Fiji. This article suggests that Fiji's experience has three implications for the growing literature on the relationship between inequality and conflict. First, examining average inequality between groups can be misleading. Secondly, a key to understanding the relationship between ethnic and economic cleavages in post‐colonial plural societies, such as Fiji, is in the interaction between intra‐group and inter‐group inequality. Thirdly, there does not seem to be a straightforward relationship between actual levels of inequality, perceptions of inequality, and the prominence given to inequality in ethno‐nationalist discourse. In Fiji's case, the strategic deployment of inter‐group inequality has served, and continues to serve, the material and discursive interests of some political elites. As a result, the intersection between ethnicity, inequality and political rivalry in contemporary Fiji has been the source of much conflict and, importantly, may offer a nexus on which attempts at conflict resolution should focus.

Seizure of power, indigenous rights and crafting democratic governance in Fiji

The overthrow of the duly elected government of Fiji in May 2000 illustrates some of the problems of establishing democratic institutions in deeply divided states. In part, while the Fiji case suggests the need for consensus political systems of powersharing requiring special kinds of institutional arrangements which deviate from standard Western zero‐sum adversarial parliamentary models, it points to its limitations in an inflamed communal society. The 1997 constitution incorporated several consensus mechanisms and institutions that attempted to contain the centripetal forces of division and restore stability. However, it was erected on a society that was still deeply at odds with itself. The promise of the 1997 Constitution was located on a minefield of unresolved underlying problems.

Taking advantage of indigenous knowledge: the Fiji case

At the dawn of the new millennium, people in developing countries are grappling with issues such as sustainable development, poverty alleviation, high population, and rapidly depleting renewable environmental resources. These issues have become prominent despite the development approached and strategies that have been adopted in developing countries throughout the world to attain economically, environmentally and culturally fulfilling and meaningful development. Instead of attaining better living conditions, most developing countries are struggling with stagnant economies, unequal development, increasing unemployment and rapidly worsening environmental conditions. It is certain that the natural environment cannot sustain the industrialised and monetised economy that most nations aspire for.

Abstracts

Arun Agrawal, Indigenous knowledge and the politics of classificationMelissa Leach and James Fairhead, Manners of contestation: “citizen science” and “indigenous knowledge” in West Africa and the CaribbeanShubhra Gururani, Construction of Third World women's knowledge in the development discourseHugh Raffles, Intimate knowledgeMarie Roué and Douglas Nakashima, Knowledge and foresight: the predictive capacity of traditional knowledge applied to environmental assessmentMichael R. Dove, Hybrid histories and indigenous knowledge among Asian rubber smallholdersTania Murray Li, Ethnic cleansing, recursive knowledge, and the dilemmas of sedentarismNandini Sundar, “Indigenise, nationalise and spiritualise”– an agenda for education?Luisa Maffi, Endangered languages, endangered knowledgeJoeli Veitayaki, Taking advantage of indigenous knowledge: the Fiji caseBrad Haami and Mere Roberts, Genealogy as taxonomyMansoor Shahvali and Kiumars Zarafshani, Using PRA techniques as metacognitive strategies to develop indigenous knowledge – a case study

IT‐enabled Services as Development Drivers in Low‐Income Countries: The Case of Fiji

AbstractThis paper examines the options available to a developing country, Fiji, for participating in the exploding international trade in IT‐enabled business services. A rapidly‐growing portion of this trade takes place when firms from developed countries purchase services from providers located in low‐income countries or place remote service delivery facilities in such locations. The paper describes the segments of IT‐enabled business services in terms of their skill‐intensity and the value they add, and discusses current trends in the international trade in business services, with particular emphasis on North‐South service outsourcing. The paper identifies conditions that low‐income countries must create in order to develop entry‐level IT‐enabled service delivery capability and then analyses Fiji's potential to develop or attract such services delivery capability. Policy options to facilitate the development of an indigenous IT‐enabled service industry in Fiji are proposed.

Language, Authenticity and Identity: Indigenous Fijian Students and Language Use in Schools

Many indigenous minorities are in the process of revitalising their languages lost through such colonial policies as the use of colonial languages for instruction in schools. In these revitalisation movements, the indigenous language becomes a symbol of group authenticity. The literature suggests that indigenous populations define group authenticity as part of an oppositional identity relative to that of a dominant, or former colonising group and their language. This paper focuses on the case of Fiji, where English is the language of instruction in secondary schools but where the indigenous Fijian language has a strong presence, ironically, due in part to the historical use of the vernacular for academic instruction in mission schools. The paper explores the attitudes of indigenous Fijian secondary school students on English-language usage among peers and suggests that an indigenous group can define group authenticity independently of an oppositional identity.

An empirical investigation of development assistance and growth for the case of Fiji

Presents an empirical analysis of the relationship between development assistance and economic growth for the case of Fiji. Foreign aid to the island economies is a major source for foreign exchange and resource needs. A neoclassical production function is applied in this study to estimate the aid‐growth nexus. Components of total aid, such as grant aid, loan aid, technical co‐operation, bilateral and multilateral aid flows are also employed to estimate a disaggregated impact of foreign aid in the short run and in the long run. The results show that bilateral aid, grant aid, and technical co‐operation grant have a significant impact on economic growth in Fiji. On the other hand, domestic resources do not contribute significantly to economic growth in Fiji.

‘Benchmarking’ and Participatory Development: The Case of Fiji’s Sugar Industry Reforms

Since the mid‐1970s, opposition has grown within developing countries to the use of ‘top‐down’ development approaches by foreign consultants. Disenchantment with these development strategies, it is often claimed, has led to the current incorporation of participation in consultants’ development practices. This study is concerned with the practice and methods of participatory development planning. It evaluates the Strategic Plan adopted by the Fiji sugar industry in 1997 in response to challenges that are attributed to the pressures of globalization and international competitiveness. The authors assess the external consultant’s self‐proclaimed ‘participatory methods’ in the articulation of these challenges, in the design of restructuring programmes, and in shaping the discourses of reform more generally. The consultant’s use of the fashionable ‘benchmarking’ methodology is seen to be one of the most problematic features of the ‘participatory’ process.

Female-perpetrated spousal homicides The case of Fiji

The paucity of empirical and theoretical research on women and lethal violence has been widely noted in homicide literature. While there has been substantial growth in published research over the last fifteen years, a majority of this literature has focused on Western industrialized nations. This study examined the four cases of female-perpetrated marital homicides that occurred in Fiji during an eleven-year period. Results are consistent with previous research indicating that homicidal women kill predisposed or latent victims and kill at home. Striking differences between husband murders in Fiji and Western nations were also noted: Women who killed their conjugal partners in Fiji constituted a minuscule proportion of homicidal spouses in the society, did not use guns to perpetrate the crimes, and planned and executed their crimes with male accomplices. Each of the four cases was profiled in the text to show characteristics of victims and perpetrators, the methods of killing, and the circumstances surrounding the lethal attacks.

The façade of consultancy in the Fiji public service

In any common definition consultancy entails the provision of advice to improve the status quo. This paper examines the notion of consultancy in the Fiji public service and highlights the consultancy qualities and their contextual application in Fiji's case. The examination of the role of internal consultancy necessitates a discussion of the general framework of Fiji's political system, in particular the decision-making process, and the cultural values and practices dominant in the public service. The contemporary notion of political neutrality of the public service requires that civil servants are endowed with the qualities of ‘disinterestedness’. The character of the public service is, therefore, emphasised as ‘precise, soulless and machine-like’. This, however, is difficult to achieve in a society divided in two along ethnic lines. The paper argues that while civil servants carry out consultancy functions they are not recognised as such and the boundary between consultancy and project management is blurred by the job and work environment in the public service.

Education for cultural identity: A Fiji case study

Education for cultural identity: A Fiji case study

The Fiji Connection: Migrant Involvement in The Economy of Rotuma

The Fiji Connection: Migrant Involvement in The Economy of Rotuma