A budget of two-million dollars has been allocated for the establishing a Narcotics Bureau within the Ministry of Home Affairs.

With Fiji grappling with a growing drug culture, the new bureau will focus on law enforcement, investigations, prosecution, intelligence gathering, and conducting awareness in collaboration with key agencies.

Finance Minister, Professor Biman Prasad has also announced that the set-up of drug rehabilitation centers in Fiji, a tax holiday of 13 years, including duty free importation of capital goods required for the establishment of the center.

The budget address also mentions that the Ministry of Home Affairs has also launched the Counter Narcotics Strategy 2023-2028 with a focus on seven strategic areas, including demand reduction, supply reduction, harm reduction, legal reform, data collection, establishment of a Drug Court, and partnership and international cooperation.

Prasad says government is going to provide a full tax deduction for businesses that donate to any drug rehabilitation centre.

While encouraging non-governmental organizations, the government says it is also exploring options for the setup of such centers.