Pacific Economist Kishti Sen says the government should put a little more emphasis on sectors that are underperforming to boost economic growth.

Sen says those sectors which are tied closely to the tourism industry and still in the fast lane include transport, accommodation and food service are performing well.

He states that in the middle lane are industry sectors that depend on consumer demand and its output is underwritten by the ‘family bank’ or remittances.

Sen says the sectors that are struggling to perform are tied to the construction industry and these include the business service industries.

Together, they contribute about 16% towards GDP.

“Now, if we can get these industry sectors to switch lanes into the middle lane or even the fast lane, then I think Fiji’s economy can go beyond the three percent and really aspire to grow by four percent to five percent in real terms.”

Sen suggests that the capital projects that have already received approval should commence without delay, and if there are bottlenecks, it should be fixed with some urgency.

The Economist also says that the policy makers should also focus on attracting foreign dollars into areas where Fiji has a comparative advantage.

“And in this regard, medicinal cannabis is an opportunity. This is something that has already been talked about. We have to go through some law reforms because this can come to fruition and that’s already underway, which is a good thing. Sustainable mining in critical minerals such as copper is another because there’s already a large discovery. It’s all about negotiating with landowners and investors so this ore body can be harvested and brought to the global market. So some progress in that area would be useful as it provides for a more balanced industry structure.”

Sen says downstream processing of commodities including fish stock, logs and niche agricultural commodities can also contribute to economic growth.