Press Release – 18 July 2022
Fiji’s outsourcing sector will gain more prominence amongst the international markets with the increased government funding received by Outsource Fiji in the 2022-2023 National Budget.
While welcoming the budget, Outsource Fiji Executive Director, Ms Sagufta Janif, says that the budget provides an opportunity for the industry body to grow further and strengthen its efforts to market Fiji as an outsourcing destination of choice.
“We are extremely thankful to the Fijian Government for their increasing support towards Fiji’s outsourcing industry. The $600,000 funding will allow us to tap into new markets such as the USA, Canada, New Zealand and Singapore, and will also allow us to further explore the UK and Australia markets to promote Fiji’s competitive outsourcing advantage.”
“One of our main ‘selling point’ when marketing Fiji as an outsourcing destination is – our people. Through this budget, we are hoping to attract more global brands into the country, which will result to an increase in employment opportunities for Fijians, especially those who were made redundant by struggling local businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic”, she said.
Ms Janif also adds that the introduction of the Business Visitor Visa by the Fijian Government would enable interested service providers to enter Fiji hassle-free and explore the sector.
“As part of our budget submission, Outsource Fiji had pushed for the introduction of Business Visitor Visa for potential investors and clients to travel to Fiji for a short business trip, in efforts to explore our outsourcing opportunities. We are really glad that the Fijian Government took this on board as this better positions Fiji as an outsourcing destination of choice”.
The 2022-2023 National Budget showed another win for the outsourcing industry with Fiji to have a second landing station in the Western Division, allowing businesses to become more resilient and reliable with their service offerings, and will help us avoid single source of failure.
Ms Janif adds that the submarine fiber optic cable will also increase stability to our telecommunication network and will strengthen Fiji’s position as the Pacific’s ICT hub, making Fiji truly a risk diversification location.
Outsource Fiji Executive Committee President, Mr James Mastapha says apart from the increased funding, which will allow Outsource Fiji to execute its marketing plans; the industry body plans to build a full-time secretariat.
“Fiji in itself has lots to offer to international clients and investors – from the new initiatives announced in the 2022-2023 National Budget, to the continuing tax incentives, our highly-skilled people, and our great infrastructure – therefore, it is important to have all the right resources to be able to successfully market Fiji to international markets. Through the 2022-2023 National Budget, we are planning to expand the Executive Director’s office and get in more professionals who will be able to support Ms Janif in promoting Fiji as an outsourcing destination of choice”.
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