Landowners to benefit from land reforms

Fiji is set to significantly benefit thousands of landowners and farmers through comprehensive land reforms aimed at enhancing land management, water access, and economic opportunities. Minister for Lands and Mineral Resources Filimoni Vosarogo announced that the Ministry's budget of $37.1 million for the 2026–2027 financial year will drive improvements in land administration and service delivery.

A key aspect of the reforms involves the return of 18,173.67 acres of land previously designated for public use back to their rightful landowning units over the past year. Furthermore, the Ministry is investing $258,330 to digitize land records, survey information, and geological data. Vosarogo stated that this digitization effort will improve information accessibility and streamline land services, making them more efficient for all stakeholders.

For rural communities, a substantial $6.2 million has been allocated to support the groundwater assistance program. The reforms also emphasize agricultural diversification, identifying coffee, cocoa, pineapple, and vanilla as emerging industries with significant potential. Currently, one million coffee seedlings are being planted across 500 acres. Fiji's cocoa industry, in particular, has the capacity to expand its production from approximately 100 tonnes to 500 tonnes, potentially involving thousands of farmers in this growth.

The reforms signal a strategic effort by the Fijian government to unlock the economic potential of its land resources and ensure that benefits are more equitably distributed among landowners and farmers, fostering development in both rural and agricultural sectors.

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this will improve access to information and make land services more efficient.