FNU’s Labasa Campus failure raises serious questions
More than $9 million wasted and no building in sight. Who will be held responsible for this decade-long disaster?
Thursday 07 August 2025 | 21:00
The abandoned structure of the Fiji National University’s $30 million Labasa campus, which is now set to be demolished after being declared structurally unsafe.
Photo: Shratika Naidu
For more than a decade, the people of Labasa have waited for the promise of a proper university campus. What started in 2013 as a $30 million Government-backed project under the 'Look North Policy' has today become a cautionary tale of mismanagement, waste, and inaction.
The Fiji National University (FNU) now aims to restart the project, with classes to start by Semester One of 2027. But this promise comes only after a string of failures. The most glaring of these is the fact that the partially built structure has now been demolished, following three engineering reports in 2025 confirming serious structural failures and safety concerns.
In financial terms, the damage is clear. The university has written off $7.6 million of taxpayer-funded capital costs and a further $2.3 million of its own internal funding. This does not include the $4.3 million of work-in-progress that remains.
The 2024 audit conducted by KPMG uncovered alarming governance lapses: lack of a proper business case, poor documentation, governance weaknesses, irregularities in tendering, and flawed oversight. The project was even paused in 2019, with no meaningful progress made since.
While the Minister for Education Aseri Radrodro has confirmed that a complaint was filed with FICAC in July 2024, no updates on the investigation have been provided. It is crucial that this is not be swept under the carpet. The failure of the Naiyaca campus project is not just about money. It is about lost opportunities. Students from Vanua Levu denied access to quality education closer to home, and the North left behind yet again.
The new plan to integrate Higher Education and Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in a shared facility is a step forward. However, the public deserves assurance that this will not repeat past mistakes. Independent monitoring, open tender processes, and full disclosure of progress must be non-negotiable.
This episode should serve as a wake-up call. Public projects, especially those funded by taxpayers, require strict oversight and accountability. Those found responsible for the failures at FNU must face the law—and must never again be allowed to manage public funds.
Fiji cannot afford such waste. The people of Labasa deserve better.
Feedback: naisa.koroi@fijisun.com.fj
