THE Northern Division will soon have a 70 kilometre highway between Dreketi and Nabouwalu.
This is a result of a new agreement signed between the governments of Fiji and the People's Republic of China where over $200million has been borrowed by the Fijian government for infrastructure development in the country.
Following the signing at Sheraton Fiji in Nadi yesterday, Finance Ministry permanent secretary, Filimoni Waqabaca said work on the highway could begin as early as next month.
"The reason for this is because we want economic activity to take place in that region," Mr Waqabaca said.
"We want it to start as soon as possible. We all know for an infrastructure development of this size, there's a lot of activities that can happen in that region as well."
He said the finance for the new highway and a contingency fund to cater for unforeseen circumstances were all included in the loan.
"The loan is a little over $200m. But that includes some contingency that we've put in," he said.
"There are always a number of factors that we've put in that can affect road construction like weather and certain developments.
"We've put in $14m for the contingency.
"The actual amount that will be used on the construction of the road is much less than the $200m given that we've built in that $14m," he said.
Mr Waqabaca also highlighted some of the benefits the new highway would bring for the north.
"The infrastructure development will contribute to the growth that we want for Fiji because of the economic activity that will transpire out of it," he said.
"There are a number of businesses that will benefit from a project this size.