Shania Shayal Prasad 
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Professor Biman Prasad is emphasizing the need to ensure that evidence-based policy is based on solid numbers and facts.
In light of the hard lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic, Prasad is encouraging all to explore early warning alerts in their evidence-based strategies.
He says this can help mitigate risks and future-proof policies as best as possible.
Prasad made these comments while speaking at the Evidence-Based Making for Decent Work ILO-Pacific Islands Regional Training in Nadi yesterday.
“After all, policy changes are costly and not conducive to investor confidence when certainty is not guaranteed. And we in Fiji fully understand the dire consequences of haphazard policymaking and implementation over the last several years.”
Prasad also commended Australia’s recent report “Measuring What Matters”, a dashboard to measure indicators, because of deficiencies in effective monitoring of fundamental national issues.
He adds The Australian Treasury report notes that 13 percent of Australians reported mental health problems, and half the population has one or more chronic health conditions.
The Finance Minister says such policy shifts in thinking and counting are important for the Coalition Government to think deeply because the Australian economy is strong and its most recent budget announcement was a surplus budget.
