Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama said Fiji was leading the Pacific towards a thriving economy.
After two difficult years of grappling with the COVID-19 pandemic, he said Government assisted people with over $430 million in unemployment benefits and another $70 million in direct and indirect assistance.
In opening the Cakaudrove Provincial Council meeting in Savusavu yesterday, Mr Bainimarama told members that Government prepared themselves for a recovery period.
“Now we are flying towards what could be a record-breaking year for our economy,” he said.
“This was not guaranteed to happen by any means. Realising this vision began with the decisive measures we took to save lives by vaccinating the nation. “We did very well, vaccinating more of our people faster than many wealthy and developed countries managed to do.”
This, he added, resulted in a steady progress as COVID-19 restrictions were removed, schools, borders and businesses opened and thousands of Fijians returned to their jobs.
“I suppose it is true that no good deed goes unpunished, because we received a lot of criticism at the time we announced the measures,” Mr Bainimarama said.
“In fact, as I recall, we were criticised for every measure we announced. My opponents have fought our recovery, just as they fought our progress for years prior.”
