Fiji's North Tourism Revamp: $451m Na Vualiku Project Set to Launch in September

The Na Vualiku Project, a project of the Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation, will be launched in September.

The project is funded through a $451.87 milUon (US$200 million) loan from the World Bank.

The purpose is to help grow sustainable tourism in Vanua Levu since less than five per cent of Fiji's total number of tourists visit the north.

RECENT VISIT AND INSPECTION

The Permanent Secretary for Tourism and Civil Aviation, Salaseini Daunabuna, together with the Na Vualiku Project team led by interim project manager Scott Wayne, met with Commissioner Northern Uraia Rainima and Labasa Town Council special administrator chairperson Paul Jaduram in Labasa for a period of two days (July 15 to 16).

Ms Daunabuna said the meeting focused on providing them with an update on the development projects earmarked for Vanua Levu.

During the briefing, Mr Rainima received the national sustainable tourism framework, which will serve as the cornerstone for Fiji's approach to sustainable tourism development.

"The Fiji Tourism Development Programme for Vanua Levu, known as 'Na Vualiku', is a significant initiative between the Government of Fiji and the World Bank aimed at promoting sustainable tourism in Vanua Levu," Ms Daunabuna said.

"The Na Vualiku tourism development programme, a collaborative effort between the Government of Fiji and the World Bank, aims to foster sustainable tourism in Vanua Levu."

She said the meeting was a good information sharing moment for them.

"We will be having consultation on the ground soon and so far, the response that we have been receiving from the stakeholders from Labasa and Savusavu have been good so far," she said.

Key objectives include upgrading critical infrastructure and essential services, enhancing coordination and private sector involvement in tourism, improving the environmental sustainability of tourism assets, and managing and promoting protected areas.

The project also focuses on unlocking Fiji's untapped tourism potential with a particular emphasis on empowering women.

The initiative was led by the Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation, with contributions from the Fiji Roads Authority, Fiji Airports, and Labasa and Savusavu Town Council.

The programme emphasises developing resilient tourism infrastructure, investing in naturebased tourism attractions, and providing essential services such as waste and sewage management.

NAVUALIKU PROJECT TEAM MEMBERS

Mr Wayne's home base is Washington DC, in the United States. He is hired as the interim project manager to work with the Central Project Management Unit (C-PMU) that was fully activated in May. The unit is a local team of experts to help get the project jump-started and activities launched over the summer.

"I compare the task to assembling a giant jigsaw puzzle with lots of pieces across many areas," My Wayne said.

"For me, this is a great project in a special country."

He said it's the type of project work he had done around the world for the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, tourism organisations, and tourism-related businesses.

"I learned many best practices and lessons from places like Vanuatu, Cook Islands, Maldives, Caribbean islands, and over 70 other countries, knowledge and experience which are helping me with the work on this project," he said.

"One critical lesson learned has been that it takes a team to bring the pieces together and create sustainable destinations that benefit the people living, visiting, working, or investing in the destination."

He said this project, he was fortunate to have a highly competent and great team in the ministry led by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Tourism and Civil Aviation Viliame Gavoka, Permanent Secretary Ms Daunabuna, and Director of Tourism Jacinta Lal.

The C-PMU team members are:

■ Filipe Corerega: He is the environment and social risk management specialist, formerly with Fiji Roads Authority as their safeguards manager.

■ Tevita Tuicakau: He is the finance management officer, formerly with Live and Learn Environmental Education as their manager finance.

■ Akshay Chand: He is the procurement officer, formerly with the Ministry of Finance as their procurement officer.

They are also assisted by an overseas procurement advisor, Tatyana Nychyperovych, who helps the team navigate the complex paths for getting activities procured and started.

"It can take as many as 16 steps and six months for an activity to get moving because of many safeguards and protective measures to ensure the highest quality result," Mr Wayne said.

PROJECT BACKGRO UND

The project became fully activated in early May starting with foundational pieces such as infrastructure, assessments, and planning.

"It will take some time to pull the pieces together, but in the first few months, we have started rapidly with getting things moving," Mr Wayne said.

"The three phases that comprise the project are estimated to require as many as ten years to accomplish with several steps along the way."

SPECIFIC ACTIVITIES THAT THE PROJECT WILL IMPLEMENT

Improvements to the airports at Labasa and Savusavu are included, along with streetscape improvements to both towns, upgrading of facilities and trails in Waisali Park, assistance with emergency management preparedness, a tourism master plan, support for micro, medium, and small enterprises, and training for people interested in or already working in tourism-related businesses.

Mr Wayne said getting these and the many other activities needed to bolster Vanua Levu as a more sustainable tourist destination would take time and required the engagement of local communities and businesses.

"This is a project that is intended to be as organic as possible, meaning that it will be the product of the people of Vanua Levu," he said.

"We are aiming for an official launch of the project in September and waiting to confirm high level participation."

The diagram (Figure 1) shows some of the activities that will be implemented over the next 10 years.

CONCERNING NEWS

One of the first project activities will be Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) mapping activity, which will take stock of existing tourism-related businesses and identify needs to enable business expansion and/or improvements.

"We are certainly focusing on core tourism service and activity providers, but we are also endeavouring to have a broad, holistic approach in identifying businesses and businesses, thus also looking at the whole iceberg or value chain of Vanua Levu's tourism economy," Mr Wayne said.

The objective of this pilot programme is to strengthen private sector, community-businesses, and women-owned businesses in the tourism sector, enabling these groups to compete with higher value- added experiences and services.

He said the MSME pilot intervention would enhance both private enterprises and community businesses, as communities were the dominant owners of the natural and cultural assets that attracted tourists to the North.

In addition to general market challenges, community businesses face additional challenges in accessing quality Business Development Services (BDS) and business decision making (given the family or community ownership structures of these businesses).

"This is important as communities own most tourism assets as landowners or land-owning units but do not have the skills to establish community tourism businesses and create formalised tourism products, thus limiting their benefit from the sector," he said.

"The project is also providing assistance via Airports Fiji for improvements to the Labasa and Savusavu airports."

He said the improvements included the terminal building of Savusavu, fire equipment, and pavement works.

The project is also aiding Fiji Roads Authority (FRA) for improvements to the cross-connecting road between Labasa and Savusavu, which include upgrading viewpoints and road safety features.

NEW PROJECT OFFICE LOCATION IDENTIFIED

Ms Daunabuna said during their recent visit they identified a project office space location in Savusavu.

The office will be located at JKS Holdings building above the Jack's of Fiji store in the heart of Savusavu Town.

Mr Wayne said they aimed to open the office in time for the project launch in September.

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