Fiji prepares for a million tourists

Fiji is anxious to reinstate its claim as a ‘Paradise on Earth’ expecting a million tourist arrivals by 2016 but must first contain a series of serious challenges, government officials and experts have said. The adverse effects of the December 5, 2006 coup resulting in unsavoury media publicity worldwide and the flash floods of January 2009 have begun to wane and the country’s resorts reporting revival in business. The annual tourism conference, held the InterContinental Resort in Nadi on August 14, was open and frank, with a number of stalwarts of the industry saying that Fiji should pull itself together and order massive infrastructure development. “We do not have to sell our islands like Hawaii (which was incidentally the first air destination from Fiji in 1928), for we have our own unique culture, people, and other selling factors to attract international tourists,” Tourism Fiji Chief Executive Josefa Tuamoto said. But he did not fail to mention that “Fiji was 25 years behind Hawaii” in creating the type of infrastructure and facilities required for an ideal tourist destination. Projected growth He said the rate of growth in tourist traffic indicated recovery with the number of tourist arrivals doubling from 30,000 in January to 60,000 in July and that the forecast for the total for the year was 500,000 (as it was in 2004). “It would be a quantum leap to one million by 2016 but we are 35 yards behind the starting line,” he said. Mr Tuamoto said tourism was the biggest foreign exchange earner ($F1.6 billion), employing about 80,000 people. “We need additional room capacity of 20,600 (currently 9070), human resources (about 80,000 from the existing supply of 50,000), better airports and other facilities and amenities. We need to be aggressive in our marketing and development strategies to be able to achieve our ambitious target,” he said. Mr Tuamoto said his organisation had committed to spend $F 33 million on marketing Fiji in Australia, New Zealand, Europe and other countries. Fiji Islands Hotels and Tourism Association President Dixon Seeto said Australia and New Zealand were the biggest tourism markets for Fiji (claiming 60% of tourist arrivals) and that Tourism Fiji had done well undertake substantive and sustained marketing campaign in these countries. “But the government should do more to boost tourism. Changes are required and the government should be the agent for such changes,” he said. He said the political situation in the country, compounded by adverse publicity abroad and natural disasters such as the floods, H1N1 flu had seriously impacted Fiji’s tourism sector. Government initiatives Reserve Bank of Fiji Governor Sada Reddy claimed that the government had taken a number of initiatives to position tourism as a competitive, modern and attractive industry, taking into account the growing influence of other destinations in the region. He cited Rebranding Fiji Islands Visitors’ Bureau (FIVB) to Tourism Fiji and increased presence of tourism staff in Nadi as examples. The government has decided to grant a 10-year tax holiday on investments of $F7 million and above, import duty exemption on capital goods not available in Fiji and 55% investment allowance on total capital expenditure provided there is no shift of revenue offshore,” he said. These incentives are specific to the tourism industry and may be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. “Tourism is multi-sectoral by nature and hence supports a number of local industries, including whole sale and retail, transport and communications,” he said. Air links and beyond Tourism experts also underlined the importance of air links in fostering tourism. According to Michael Nacola, Sales and Marketing General Manager of Air Pacific, the national flag carrier of Fiji, the international aviation industry has been undergoing the worst crisis in its history, with the annual losses of at least $F 18 billion (18 times the country’s GDP). “Air Pacific is not immune to such adverse global developments and a number of tough decisions have been taken in recent months. These included withdrawal of services to Japan and Gold Coast (Australia), introduction of discounted fares and several other measures,” he said. Even so, the company remains healthy. Air Pacific (as a group) posted a record profit (before tax) of $F 38.2 million for the year ended March 31, 2008 (the latest available), accounting for an impressive increase of 620% over the previous year. Chairman Nalin Patel cautioned against complacency. “Looking into the future, we can take encouragement from steady growth in our core markets of North America and Australia. Slow growth can be expected from our re-emerging South Pacific routes but flat performance from New Zealand, continued poor performance from Canada and the decline of the Japan market are causes for concern,” he said. Mr Nacola said the challenge was to establish demand and cater to the growing needs of the tourist traffic. But executives like Mr Tuamoto believe in meeting challenges head-on. “Do not focus on the middle of the jump but on the place of landing,” he said.