In a bid to combat the increase in squatter settlements, the Suva City Council is trying to identify all vacant reserve land.

SCC Special Administrators Chair Tevita Boseiwaqa says there are plans to clean up and carry out redevelopment on these reserve lands, to stop people from illegally occupying it.

Boseiwaqa says squatters are becoming a challenge in the city area and they are trying to address it effectively.

He says that concrete steps will be taken to stop further increases in informal settlements on vacant municipal land.

“So what we are planning now is to identify even putting the fence and planting trees in Suva and so forth. What we are doing is to identify all the vacant reserve land and once that is done we need to clean it up and have something in place.”

Lands Minister Filimoni Vosarogo says if the municipalities are unable to utilize their reserve land they can surrender it to the ministry

Vosarogo adds all municipalities must maintain records of all reserve lands under their jurisdiction.

He stresses that these records should serve long-term community benefits.