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FIJI-TOURISM
Fiji raises tourism standards to attract more visitors
SUVA, July 6, 2018 (BSS/XINHUA) – The Fijian government on Friday
pledged to raise its tourism standards to increase visitor arrivals and
foreign exchange earnings.
While delivering the opening address at the new Rosie Holidays Event in
Fiji’s third largest city of Nadi on Friday, Fiji’s President Jioji Konrote
said 47 percent of the Fijian government’s allocation of 99.3 million Fijian
dollars (about 47.2 million U.S. dollars) announced in the 2018-2019 National
Budget for Fiji’s Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism, was allocated to
the tourism sector to foster sustainable development.
The Fijian government was constantly engaging with Fijian industry
stakeholders, including Fiji Airways, to have more source markets for tourism
arrivals, he said, adding that Fiji receives the largest portion of visitors
to the Pacific and in 2017, 39.4 percent of all visitors to the region
visited Fiji.
He said Fiji’s ongoing initiatives involve expanding international
marketing programs to maintain Fiji’s strong position in global tourism.
The Tourism Fiji Marketing Grant continues global branding initiatives
in target markets to ensure that Fiji remains a top tourism destination and
maintains its growth in the tourism sector.
Konrote said Fiji Airways’introduction of three flights per week between
Narita in Japan and Nadi which commenced on July 3 will increase the traffic
of Japanese holidaymakers and business visitors to Fiji.
He said the recent upgrade of Nadi International Airport along with full
service destination management companies like Rosie Holidays, augurs well for
the growth of the tourism industry.
Fiji’s hosting of international sporting events like the Super Rugby
Games and the Fiji International Golf Tournament leverages Fiji’s image as a
sport tourism destination and the broadcast of these international events to
viewers across the world, showcased Fiji’s profile as a premium sporting
destination.
In 2017, over 2 million passengers came through Nadi International
Airport.
In 2017, Fiji’s visitor arrivals grew by 6.4 percent. The Fijian
government has also set a target of growing the tourism industry into a 2.2
billion Fijian dollars industry (about 1 billion U.S. dollars) by 2021.
BSS/XINHUA/ARS/1622 hrs