priorities of the people: hardship in the fiji islands

8/13/2019 Priorities of the People: Hardship in the Fiji Islands

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Prioritiesof the PeopleHARDSHIP IN THE FIJI ISLANDS

September 2003

Asian Development Bank


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Asian D evelopment Bank 2003All rights reserved

This publication was prepared by consultants for the Asian Development Bank. Thefindings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in it do not necessarily repre-sent the views of A DB or those of its member governments. A DB does not guar-antee the accuracy of the data included in this publication and accepts no responsibilitywhatsoever for any consequences of their use.

Asian Development BankP.O . Box 789, 0980 M anila, Phi li ppinesWebsite: www.adb.org


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Introduction 1

Is Hardship Really a Problem in the Fiji Islands? 3

What is Hardship? 4

Who is Facing Hardship? 6

What Causes Hardship? 7

What Can be Done? 13

Contents


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Introduction

Fiji has commonly been viewed as a society with deepinequalities, but little absolute poverty. But manypeople now believe that poverty in the form of destitu-

tion, homelessness, and hunger exists in Fiji. It has been esti-mated that in 1991 approximately one in four families hadincomes below the national poverty line. Hunger not only exists inFiji but has been increasing in its extent and severity. The unstablepolitical situation, coupled with a young population, increasingmigration to the urban centers and overseas, and weak interna-tional markets for sugar and kava, poses serious challenges to im-proving basic services, job opportunities, and the standard of living.

Despite improvements in literacy, infant mortality, immuni-zation, and life expectancy, there has been a decline in Fijis humandevelopment index ranking relative to other nations. The 2002Human Development Report ranked Fiji 70 th . With a 1999 Hu-man Poverty Index of 8.5, the Fiji Islands was ranked 4 th best interms of poverty among 12 Pacific developing countries.

The presence of poverty in Fiji has generated considerabledebate over the past twenty years, leading the government to ana-lyze the extent and nature of poverty in order to strengthen povertyalleviation policies and programs and target the most disadvan-taged people.

One in four

families lived

below the

poverty line in

1991


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What is Hardship?

The assessment focused on identifying peoples percep-tions of hardship and poverty to better understand theviews, needs, and priorities of the people, especially the

poor themselves.When asked about hardship, the most common Fijian term

used was bula dredre (meaning not enough money to pay debts,lean-to house with pit toilet, little plantation, and receivingwelfare). Dravudravua was the term used for poverty (meaningno food, no house, no money, and no land).

People described hardship in the urban areas, particularly inSuva and Lautoka (Central and Western Divisions), as beingalways in debt and dependent on others, and having low income,poor living conditions, unsafe water supply, and stressful familyrelationships that lead to broken marriages and problematic chil-dren. In the rural areas of the Northern, Western, and Eastern Divi-sions, hardship was described as poor living conditions, includingpoor sanitation, limited access to health care, unsealed roads andpoor transport service, low income, poor access to markets, vulner-ability to calamities such as cyclones and droughts, and an inabil-ity to afford to meet basic needs and fulfill family, church, andtraditional obligations.

Despite some differences between rural and urban communi-ties, both groups defined hardship as: (i) low income, which limits

Being always in

debt, having

low income, and

poor living

conditions

A house made of scrap materials


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peoples ability to provide for family needs and traditional andchurch obligations; (ii) lack or limited access to basic services,particularly education (beyond Class 8), safe water supply, roads,

transport, and electricity; and (iii) landlessness, particularly forindigenous Fijians who have moved to urban areas and Indo-Fijiansand Melanesians who are dependent on leasing land for shelter andgrowing crops to eat and sell for income.

The assessment found a growing dependence on cash even byrural and remote outer island communities. Meeting basic needsand accessing services such as education and health care increas-ingly require cash payments.

The communities views on whether hardship had increased or

decreased over the past 5 years were evenly split between those whohave seen an improvement in their lives and those who said theirsituations have worsened. Ten percent saw no change in their stan-dard of living. The communities who felt their lives had improvedcited construction of a community hall, foot path, communitywater supply, and rural electrification as improving their standardof living and sense of well-being. T hese projects all addressed basicservices and needs. The communities that experienced greaterhardship pointed to higher prices of basic goods such as flour, rice,

and fuel; more joblessness, particularly in urban settlements; andhigh drop-out rates for both rural and urban children.

Elderly Fisherman, 70 Years Old

I am originally from Qamea Island off Taveuni in Cakaudrove. I am 70 yearsold and live with my wife and threeteenage children in a one-room houseat the Veiraisi Squatter Settlement. Mybrother in law, his wife, and a child alsolive here, as well as a distant relative, hiswife, and a grandchild. Three familiesconsisting of 11 members share thehouse, which has a floor area equivalentto the one room flat at PRB Flats (about

60 square meters or less). There is no water or electricity at the

Veiraisi Settlement; we use a well fordrinking and washing. None of my co-

inhabitants have jobs. Instead, we plantroot crops around the compound andgo fishing daily. We earn cash by sellingfish and marine products at the NaderaRoad Junction. I go fishing twice a weekand earn about F$20. The money isused to buy essential basic groceriessuch as sugar, salt, rice, flour, kerosene,and oil, which are often consumedwithin a day or two because there aremany mouths to feed.

I hope that the government canassist me with a boat to go out fishingmore and also for water for my family.


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What Causes Hardship?

The causes of hardship and poverty are complex and interre-lated. Landlessness was identified as one of the majorbarriers, particularly for Indo-Fijians and indigenous

Melanesians in both rural and urban areas, and indigenous Fijianswho have migrated from rural to urban areas in search of a betterlife. Urban communities in the Central and Western Divisionsadded that limited opportunities to earn cash and limited or de-clining access to basic services and infrastructure were the maincauses of their hardship. There was also the perception, particularlyamong Indo-Fijians and Melanesian communities, that ethnicdiscrimination over access to government services was a majorcause of their hardship. Rural indigenous communities said poorquality or lack of sealed roads, transport, storage, and communica-tion facilities made it difficult to sell goods and crops in the majormarkets, and they either dont have health centers or professionalhealth workers in their communities, or lack both.

There was a widespread feeling that declining respect fortraditional values and elderly and traditional leaders by a younger,better educated generation has resulted in individualism broughtabout by modern ideas, and it is starting to undermine the

No land, few

opportunities

to earn cash

and access

services

Widow, 43 Years Old

I was born in Nubayani Hospital, Lekutu.My parents brought me up in Bunikea.

My family was very happy. My fatherused to gather us six children for prayermeetings everyday. I am the oldest inthe family. I went to school in Lekutufrom Class 1 and finished Class 8. End-ing my education, I returned to thevillage and helped my mother withdomestic chores. After 5 years in thevillage, I got married. We stayed to-gether for 10 years and had four chil-dren, two boys and two girls.

Everything was fine then becausemy husband was a good provider forthe familys needs. Then he died in1993, and my family brought me back

to Banikea Village. When I returned, Ifound hardship in my family. None of my relatives would help me. I now haveto plant our food, look after my motherwho is 69 years old, find money to sendmy two older children to school, andlook after the two younger ones livingwith me in the village. One of thesechildren is suffering from Down Syn-drome.

Life is very difficult for my familynow without any assistance from rela-tives, church, or clan. The only assis-tance I get is F$60 a month from theDepartment of Social Welfare. I am notgiving up but am praying that help willcome.


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strength of the community support system. Manyalso felt that community resources are largelywasted due to laziness or lack of strong personal

motivation to improve ones situation and maxi-mize resources, particularly ones land. Wrongpriorities, such as raising funds for church meet-ings instead of community water supply systemconstruction, were also cited as major causes of hardship in both rural and urban areas.

Specific causes were cited for three groups thatare especially affected: children, the youth, andwomen.

Children

The most common cause of hardship for children mentioned dur-ing the assessment was parental neglect due to the breakdown of marriages and parents limited time for their children, due, forexample, to drunkenness and kava drinking. This has led somechildren to drop out of school and have little interest in helpingfarm their familys land.

The people surveyed said childrens diet and access to otherdaily necessities have worsened due to rising prices of basic goodsand widespread availability of cheap junk food. Poor nutrition wasalso said to be caused by parents, particularly mothers, having littleknowledge which foods are healthful, resulting in meals containingtoo many carbohydrates and very little protein and fiber.

Another major cause of hardship among children was limitedand/or decreasing access to primary and secondary schooling.Affordability (especially beyond Class 8), lack of facilities, anddistance contributed to reported increases in drop-out rates at theprimary and secondary level, thus limiting income opportunitiesfor the children when they get older. Children in rural communitieshad to walk long distances (10 km or more) with some having tocross rivers to get to school. During the rainy season, these childrenhave to stay home since the rivers are often overflowing and danger-ous to cross.

YouthAn increasing number of drop-outs and push-outs (due to too fewschools), particularly for students entering secondary level, wascited as the major reason for the high jobless rate among the youth,


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especially in the urban areas. Most youths who cannot continuetheir studies go back to their villages without hope of receivingfurther education or training to access better earning or job opportu-nities. Many young people in the rural areas either become subsis-tence farmers, marry early, or migrate to the urban centers in searchof jobs. Many of those in the urban areas stay in the settlements andmarry early and depend on casual jobs, such as construction work,for income. Some get involved in gangs.

Several communities said that young and mostly joblesspeople waste time and money drinking kava and beer. In urbansettlements, a growing number of jobless young men were breakingand entering middle class and affluent households in the capital.Some young women (and a few men) from the urban poor commu-nities surveyed had turned to prostitution to earn desperatelyneeded cash to support their families. Contrary to common percep-tions, crime is reportedly also increasing in the rural areas, with thetheft of chickens and root crops becoming a regular occurrencewithin rural settlements.

Women

In addition to their traditional role as homemakers, women have anemerging role as family income earners responsible for payingschool fees and providing for their families daily needs, large ex-tended families needs, and church and traditional obligations.Many women reported that when they dont have enough cash forall of these needs, they feel community pressure to put church or

Crime and

prostitution

were said to be

increasing

Ex-Convict, 36 Years Old

I am married and self-employed. I nowmake a living out of my small workshopby making Fijian wood combs. Its ex-pensive to get the right timber ( vesi hardwood) and costs about F$20 for 2feet. In a week I can earn about F$40-F$60. My family finds it difficult to livefrom this income. If I make F$50, wespend F$25 for food, F$15 for schoolneeds, and F$10 for transport and medi-cine. At times I have to borrow from mybrothers for basic needs like sugar,cooking oil, and salt.

Sometimes I collect copper andbrass from the rubbish dump to sell.From this I can earn about F$20 a week,but it is not a regular activity for me. Ialso collect tools and equipment thatcan be used at our home.

I fear that I will not be able to sup-port my family due to lack of incomeand the discrimination I face as an ex-convict. I also fear going back to sellingillegal drugs to make money or gettinginvolved again in crime. I hope some-one will give me a steady job to supportmy family and be a good father.


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traditional obligations above paying their childrens school ex-penses.

Women ranked low income and lack of jobs as the biggestcause of their poverty and hardship. T hey said there are too few jobsand they are often unable to meet the skill and educational require-ments of the few available jobs. They also said that as women, theylacked business opportunities and easy access to markets. In theurban areas, most women work as shop assistants, domestic help-ers, and factory workers, especially in the garment industry. In therural areas, women earn cash by selling fruit and vegetables in thelocal market.

Single parenthood was said to be increasing, due to unplannedand/or teenage pregnancies, breakdown of marriages, and lack of family support.

Limited access to services such as water supply, education,roads, and transport caused women hardship because of their re-sponsibility for domestic chores, including carting water fromdistant wells and rivers.

In spite of these difficulties, most women said they felt theirsituations were generally improving due to better education and

access to skills training, and participation in the labor force. In-creasing respect for womens contributions to society and their rolein the economy were also cited as positive factors. Others saidwomens well-being had declined due to lack of land and disregardfor traditional knowledge and skills.

The number of single mothers isincreasing


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Schools, particularly primary andsecondary, were available in mostsample communities. Two communi-

ties located in the Central and WesternDivisions did not have a primaryschool; they sent their children toneighboring villages. Concerns ex-pressed about schools related to thequality of education and affordabilityof school fees and other related ex-penses.

Communication facilities,

mostly telephones and tele-radios,were available in 15 of the 20 commu-nities surveyed. Although available,they were mainly located in the urbanareas and were community phones,since few households could afford thecost and provide the required landownership certification for a privateline. Overall, communications ser-

vices were rated as good, particularlyin the urban settlements. However, for communities outside thecapital, the telephone service was unreliable and expensive. Ruralcommunities in both the Northern and Eastern Divisions, forexample, reported that most of the time they can only receiveincoming calls and only for a few hours in the afternoon.

Roads were available in 15 out of 20 sample communities. Of those with roads, eight had access to sealed roads and the remain-ing seven were limited to gravel roads. Most communities con-sulted expressed concern over lack of regular maintenance andcontinued deterioration of vital rural road networks, particularly inthe Northern, Western, and Central Divisions. Therefore, theyrated road conditions as poor.

Health facilities were available in 14 of the 20 communitiessurveyed. Only 4 of the 10 rural communities had immediateaccess. Those without walked for an average of 1-3 hours or more (inthe Central, Northern and Western Divisions). Distance, lack of medical supplies, and poorly trained or lack of trained staff in thehealth centers, particularly in the Eastern and Western Divisions,were cited as reasons by communities for rating health services aspoor.

Communitywater tap


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Piped water was available in 14 of the 20 communities sur-veyed. Of the 14, 10 urban communities had piped water suppliedby the Public Works Department and four rural communities had

piped water from their own community water source, such assprings and streams. Although overall water supply was rated asgood by most urban communities, most households in the squat-ter settlements and those living on traditional lands did not haveaccess to safe water. Households could only apply to be connectedto the water main if they could pay the connection costs and pro-duce certifications from the landowners allowing them to apply.Since most occupied the land illegally, they could not get thesecertificates. Most got water for a fee from neighbors who managed

to get connected. T hus, it was common to see one water meterproviding water for three or more houses in the squatter settle-ments. A number of households from the Lau Group living on tradi-tional leases in Kalabu Village (about 15 minutes drive from Suva),got water from a well.

Power was the least available service with only 11 of the com-munities having electricity. The remaining nine communities stillrely on petrol or benzene lamps for lighting. Similar to the watersupply situation, most households in squatter settlements could

not get power connections due to connection costs and landowner-ship requirements.

What Can Be Done?

After listening to the views of the poor and understanding

the nature of hardship, what can be done to address it?Working together with those facing hardship to plan,prioritize, and implement solutions has a good chance of leading tosuccessful, lasting initiatives.

During the assessment, people described current initiatives,their perception of their role and the roles of others in development,how they cope with hardship, and most importantly, their prioritiesand suggestions for future action.

Current Initiatives to Address HardshipMost of the communities surveyed, particularly in the rural areasand outer islands, have found ways to improve their standard of

Work together

to lessen

hardship


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living and cope with the hardship and poverty experienced byindividuals, families, and their community as a whole. Theseinitiatives can be classified into three categories: (i) income gen-

eration, such as fundraising and seafood harvesting; (ii) basic ser-vices, such as building community water tanks, flush toilets inhouseholds, and community power projects; and (iii) skills devel-opment, such as handicraft and small business skills. These dem-onstrate communities ability to work together as a single unit andwith government as active partners, not just beneficiaries.

Some community members were aware of government initia-tives to help address causes of community hardship and poverty,including youth and womens programs, the Village Improvement

Scheme, Healthy Islands Project, social welfare, and the PovertyAlleviation Fund. Some of these initiatives, although intended tobe high impact, have since stopped. Community members stressedthat continuation of these initiatives is required to ensure long-term benefits to effectively address hardship and poverty.

A few nongovernment initiatives, including Red Cross disasterrelief, the Kana Project, and Save the Children Fund, were men-tioned by the communities surveyed. T he community memberswere also aware of some projects initiated by international organi-

zations in the areas of micro-finance, health, water, sanitation, andother services.

However, about 40% of the communities were not aware of anypoverty alleviation initiative led either by government or nongov-ernment organizations.

It is useful to consider the community initiatives listed aboveand how programs organized by government and nongovernmentorganizations are perceived to improve the effectiveness of futuredevelopment programs.

Roles

Communities should be actively involved in implementing devel-opment programs to help improve and sustain their benefits. Thecommunities consulted during the assessment had a clear under-standing of their role and those of others in development. T hey saidthey would be willing to contribute by providing free labor, land,food, timber, and cash to support government community develop-ment programs. Communities expect the government to provideexpertise, financial support, market outlets, materials and equip-

Communities

have found

ways to cope


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ment, skills training, basic services, land for resettlement, andregular visits by government officials to their communities.

They viewed the role of nongovernment organizations to be

funding community projects and providing technology and agricul-tural advice and skills training. Lastly, the perception of interna-tional organizations role is to provide financial assistance,technology, advice, and training.

Rural and urban communities have developed coping strate-gies through the years in response to poor service delivery, such asworking as a community, utilizing family networks, and dependingon their environment for water. During crises, most communitiesdepended on family, church, traditional clan, district and/or pro-

vincial council, and community women and youth groups for sup-port. Supporting the above mentioned activities and groups willhelp communities become strong partners in development andpoverty reduction.

Other groups, such as district and provincial governmentofficials as well as Members of Parliament (MPs), were seen as farless important. However, some communities, such as the Indo-Fijians, relied on them for support.

Community Coping Strategies

Service Response to Unavailable Service

MarketGive away produce to the needy and/or relatives,sell w ithin the village, barter, and sell at reducedprices in the community

School Walk to the nearest school, board w ith relatives,and conduct community fundraising to pay forschool expenses

Telephone Use postal services, radio announcement s, and

tele-radio and pass messages through peop leRoad Use walking paths and sea and river transport

Transpor t Walk, use boats, horses, and cattle-drawn carts

Health f acility Use tradit ional medicine, walk to the nearesthealth facility, airlif t to Suva, and travel to t henearest health f acility and stay wi th r elatives.

Piped water supply

Collect rain water (outer islands), boi l watercollected from creeks or rivers (rural), and rely ongovernment trucks (urban settlements duringwater outages)

Power Use kerosene and hurricane lamps, benzenelamps, and candles


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Peoples Priorities

During the assessment, the communities suggested several priority

actions to address hardship and poverty, which can be classifiedaccording to the following major categories: Improve market access in the rural areas and create jobs in

urban areas to increase incomes; Improve access to services, particularly (i) water supply, (ii)

transport and power, (iii) education and roads, and (iv)health services to address communities need for bettermarket access, improved living standards, and higher in-comes; and

Strengthen traditional community leadership and gover-nance to address the weakening of traditional structures,breakdown of marriages, and increasing crime, as well asimprove community resource planning and management toaddress economic and development issues.

Other community priorities included acquiring leadership,business management, and parenting skills.

These priorities validated the key themes of the governmentsStrategic Development Plan (SDP) for 2003-2005. Specific SDP

strategies that support the identified community priorities in-clude Rural and outer island development, Increasing investment for job creation and growth, Strengthening good governance, Formalizing and strengthening government and civil soci-

ety partnership in poverty alleviation, and Resolving the agricultural land lease issue.Communities identified the following areas for capacity

building (ranked according to importance) to improve their abilityto actively participate in development and poverty reductionactivities:

Business management, Health education, Skills training, Parental education, and Others including marketing, conflict management, and

leadership training.

Income, public

services, and

traditions were

priorities


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Contact InformationFor more information about hardship-reduction activities in the Fiji Islands, contactMinistry of Finance and National PlanningP.O. Box 2212, Government BuildingsSuva, Fiji Islands

Tel. (679) 307-011 Fax (679) 300-834E-mail: [email protected]

AcknowledgementsPrincipal Researcher/Writer Ma. Luisa Zuiga

Managing Editor Lisa Kircher Lumbao

Photographer Ma. Luisa Zuiga

Production Office of External Relations and Printing and Graphics Section,ADB

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