INVESTMENT Fiji is looking at undertaking a host of new initiatives to make it easier to do business in Fiji.
Fiji is at 77 on the World Bank Ease of Doing business index compared to its Pacific Island neighbours, Solomon Islands at 74, Vanuatu 76 and Tonga at 58.
Investment Fiji chairman Adrian Sofield said the initiatives included online payment for permits and streamlined staffing in his office.
"We have allocated changes whereby investors coming into Fiji will be allocated one of our staff members on case based approach so that particular staff becomes the contact for the investor," Mr Sofield said.
"That staff member will see through the approval agencies and advise him or her to achieve the end result which is to start business."
He said attempts to have online payment for foreign investors had been a continuing four-year procedure. "We are still not there with online payment, board and management are not happy with it," Mr Sofield said.
"We want people to come on the website to process their applications, pay their fees and move forward — we are not there yet but I expect we will be there in the next month or so.
"We've instituted an investment approval tracking system (IATS) that will enable online transactions that will facilitate faster and much easier registration and tracking of investment projects. That will be conducted to enable quicker processing of applications from our various government departments."
Mr Sofield said another World Bank Survey on the time it took to start business rated Fiji at 45 days compared to Samoa where it took just nine days to start business.
"I know in the last few months we have lost some business to Samoa so there are things we need to address," he added.