Praneeta Prakash 
Aerial shot of Savusavu town. [File Photo]
While investor confidence in Savusavu remains high, the lack of modern utilities and essential services poses a major barrier to progress.
This was highlighted by Special Administrator Shiu Dayal Sharma while appearing before the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and Defense to respond to the council’s 2014 and 2015 Annual Report.
He says one of the key issues is the absence of a modern sewerage system, which is essential for supporting high-end tourism developments.
“We need to get the sewer system done, you know, because if we have to get good hotels, then we need to improve the services and the sewer system. So currently we are facing a challenge, identifying the land.”
[File Photo]
Sharma adds that despite infrastructure setbacks, Savusavu is seeing a steady increase in applications for hotel developments.
“And we have investors. We don’t say we don’t have investors. We have people who are interested in investing.But this logistics needs to be improved. Council receives plans, future plans. We receive people from overseas who want to come and spend about $200 to $300 million in getting resorts done. But the logistics are not allowing it, you know.”
He adds that many of the challenges have been clearly identified and that solutions are in the pipeline, pending decisions from relevant ministries and development partners.
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