$4.5B national debt is manageable and reasonable - Government

The government says the $4.5 billion national debt is manageable and reasonable as highlighted by the Head of the World Bank office in Suva however the opposition is disagreeing with the World Bank assessment.

Acting Prime Minister and Minister for Economy Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum says Fiji’s debt to Gross Domestic Product ratio was 44 percent last month and that is a manageable level.

He says Fiji also has a clean record in relation to its debt obligations and the total outstanding debt was $4.5 billion as at the end of last month.

Sayed-Khaiyum says the total domestic debt is 3.2 billion dollars while the total external debt is 1.3 billion dollars.

He also says that foreign reserves stand at 2.05 billion dollars sufficient to cover 5.5 months of imports.

Meanwhile SODELPA MP Viliame Gavoka says they believe the debt is not manageable.

Sayed-Khaiyum says the World Bank has made an independent analysis and then made a statement that Fiji’s debt is manageable and reasonable.

SODELPA MP Aseri Radrodro then raised the question on the debt repayment and whether taxes will increase in the next budget.

Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum says the debts have accumulated over the years and it did not just happen over the last few years and do not have to be paid off at the same time.