Fiji to sign ports deal with Australia in shipbuilding boost
Fiji will strike a deal with Australia to upgrade ports and shipbuilding infrastructure, months after Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka said it was likely to partner with China on the project.
Government said cabinet had agreed to enter into a memorandum of understanding with Australia for the project, after Australia committed to financing.
“The revival of the shipbuilding industry in Fiji has been articulated as a key priority,” Government said in a statement.
“It has the potential to increase job opportunities, develop and expand specialised skill-sets amongst Fiji nationals and stimulate investment and economic growth.”
Australia will provide initial grant financing to Fiji’s Government and the Fiji Ports Corporation, the statement said.
Australia, the largest aid donor to the Pacific Islands region, is stepping up its infrastructure support to counter China’s push to expand security and policing ties in the region.
“Countries who want to build their influence in the region look for vacuums to fill and the Australian government is working very hard to be the best development and security partner for the entire region, so there are no vacuums to fill,” Australia’s Pacific Minister Pat Conroy told ABC television.
In November, Mr Rabuka told parliament he wanted to collaborate with China on a key port modernisation and shipyard project, after discussing it in a meeting with Chinese president Xi Jinping.
China is the world’s largest shipbuilder, accounting for half of all ships built this year. The pace of expansion of its navy has concerned Australia, which has donated dozens of patrol boats to its Pacific Islands neighbours to boost surveillance of their territorial waters.