Mr. Fu Yuanfeng – representative from the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China;
Marama Taukei Naua;
General Manager;
Hotel Management;
Invited Guests;
Ladies and Gentlemen.
Bula vinaka and a very good evening to you all.
It is a pleasure to be here today to mark the official opening of the Nalagi Hotel. I have been informed that Nalagi Hotel has added 197 rooms and 301 beds to Fiji’s hotel room inventory.
This is an exciting time for Fiji’s tourism industry with increased enthusiasm from operators and investors.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The Fiji-China friendship has strengthened considerably since we first established diplomatic relations in 1975. Fiji has a special connection with the Guangdong Province, as a large number of Fijians of Chinese descent originated from there. And the Nalagi Hotel is a testimony of the relationship growing stronger.
I am also happy to note that 2019 is the China-Pacific Tourism Year. Throughout the year, there will be a series of events in China and the Pacific promoting tourism. The Fijian tourism industry will gain a lot from this event.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Just last month, I attended the 2nd Belt and Road Forum in Beijing, after I launched the Macau-Fiji Chamber of Commerce. I was impressed by the vibrant Macau economy and that of greater China. I believe there is a lot the Fijian tourism industry could learn from Macau and greater China, to attract more Chinese visitors. This will assist us in achieving the target set by the Fijian Tourism 2021, especially in terms of creating value for our visitors.
As evident in the last 5 years, 49 tourism projects have been implemented at the total value of 446 million dollars. Your investment of $25 million in this hotel project contributes to this impressive value and further boosts business confidence in the tourism sector.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Tourism is a vital sector of the economy. Tourism contributes approximate 30% to our Gross Domestic Product. An estimated 1 in every 3 Fijian is employed by the tourism industry.
The vision of the Fijian Government for tourism as stated in the 5-Year and 20-Year National Development Plan, is to build a world class tourism destination, that increasingly adds-value to the local economy.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
In order to achieve this, the Fijian Government has identified development areas that will ensure that the benefits of tourism are disseminated to more Fijians. This however, cannot be achieved by the Fijian Government alone. We need partnership and cooperation from stakeholders.
I believe that together, the Government, industry players, resource owners and relevant stakeholders, can achieve the vision of making Fijian tourism a high-quality and high-yielding industry.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It’s worth noting that in 2018, approximately 140 million Chinese travelled abroad. China is the largest source of outbound tourists and fastest growing source market for the Pacific region. Fiji, being the hub of the Pacific, attracts the largest number of the Chinese visitors to the region. Chinese visitor arrivals and earnings continue to increase on an average of 17% and 21% respectively, for the last five years.
In this regard, Fiji is working on strategies to be China-ready. And hotels, such as Nalagi provides a “home-away-from-home” experience, as we can better cater to the specific needs of the Chinese traveler, in terms of in-room amenities, cuisine options, interpretation and activities, to name a few.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The opening of Nalagi is not only beneficial for the tourism sector but has also benefited Fijian businesses that supply to the hotel. In addition, the Hotel employs around 64 Fijians. Hence the benefits are passed down to our grassroot Fijians.
To the company directors, I thank you for investing in Fiji and commend you for your efforts in venturing into the tourism sector from your core business of textiles and real estate development.
Next week Tourism Fiji is hosting Fiji’s largest tourism event, the Fijian Tourism Expo. This event provides industry players an opportunity to meet buyers and tour agents. It has become a ‘must-attend’ calendar event not only for members of our local tourism industry, but also for our international trade and media partners. Every year, this event gets bigger and better, new relationships are created and existing ones, strengthened. I also encourage you to participate in industry events, such as this Expo.
In conclusion, I would like to congratulate the investors for choosing Fiji. You can be proud of your achievement. Thank you for including me in this celebration. Now, it is with great pleasure that I declare Nalagi Hotel officially open.
Xie xie, Vinaka vakalevu and Thank you.