Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade Manoa Kamikamica says the Fijian economy is headed in the right direction and is poised to achieve around 3.4 percent growth this year.

Kamikamica says while this is largely driven by tourism growth, they are also seeing an increase in investment projects that are in the pipeline.

He says six billion dollars of investment is in the pipeline, which accounts for around 185 foreign and domestic projects.

Kamikamica says work on around two billion dollars worth of projects is expected to start in six to 12 months.

Speaking at the Ratu Kadavulevu School’s centennial celebration Business Talk event in Suva last night, Kamikamica says the country can expect a construction boom.

“If that happens, next year we’ll probably be looking at 3, 4, or possibly 5 percent growth. As a country, we need to be growing at 5 percent to actually address the big debt issue that we have currently been facing. That is actually one of the main ways to actually address the debt.”

Kamikamica is urging the iTaukei community to step up and invest in commercial agriculture, as the coalition government is looking at diversifying the economy, and agriculture is one of the sectors they are focusing on.