Suva:India’s Pacific Ocean outreach gained traction on Wednesday with the announcement of a slew of Lines of Credit and develop-ment assistance totalling USD 80 million for Fiji and a visa on arrival for all the 14 island countries in the region during Prime Minis-ter Narendra Modi’s visit here.
Modi, who held talks with his Fijian counterpart Frank Bainimirama, also announced a USD one million Special Adaptation Fund for the Pacific nations and a proposal to develop Pan Pacific Islands Project for tele-medicine and tele-education. His trip is the first by an Indian premier to Fiji in 33 years after Indira Gandhi in 1981.
India and Fiji also agreed to expand their security and defence cooperation during Modi’s day-long visit to Fiji, considered as hub in the Pacific Ocean region, as Suva rolled out the red carpet with billboards “Vula Modi (Welcome Modi) dotting various traffic intersections.
Modi also utilised his visit to address a meeting of leaders of 12 Pacific Ocean countries, a move consi-dered significant. He also addressed the Fijian National University, the first by a world leader.
The other decisions announced at this meeting relate to an increase in Grant-in-Aid to Pacific Island Countries from USD 125,000 annually to USD 200,000 to each Pacific Island country for commu-nity projects, complimentary space to Pacific Island countries during exhibi-tions organised by ITPO to showcase their products and an offer to support the setting up of a Trade Office in New Delhi to promote trade between India and Pacific Island countries.
“It is a new day and a new beginning in our relations with Fiji,” Modi said at a joint media appearance with Bainima-rama at the Prime Minister’s office. “Fiji could serve as a hub for stronger Indian engagement with Pacific islands. I see this visit as an opportunity to renew an old relationship and lay the foundation for a strong partnership in the future,” he added.
Reciprocating Modi’s sentiments, Bainimarama, a former military ruler, said the Indian Prime minister’s visit has laid the groundwork for “productive relationship” between the two countries.
“We are proud to have India as a partner in Fiji’s future,” he said, adding that 15 more bilateral agreements are in the works. Bainima-rama was sworn in as Prime Minister on September 22 after the first parliamentary elections in the pacific nation since he seized power in a coup in 2006.
Seeking stronger engagement with Fiji, India will give a lines of credit of USD 70 million for a co-generation power plant, USD five million for upgrading the sugar indus-try besides a USD five million fund to develop its small business and villages. India will also set up a Parliament library, and double the scholarships and training slots for Fijians.
The lines of credit were part of three agreements signed between the two countries in the presence of the two leaders. Modi arrived here at the crack of dawn on the third and final leg of his 10-day three-nation tour. He was welcomed by his Fijian counterpart at Suva International Airport and is due to return home on Wednesday.
Modi was accorded a ceremonial guard of honour at the airport after which he attended the traditional ceremony of welcome at Albert Park, close to the Prime Minister’s office and Parliament. He shook hands with people from the Indian diaspora assembled at the ground as he walked past the enclosures.
Out of the 849,000 population in Fiji, 37 per cent people are of Indian-origin. Many Indians arrived in Fiji as indentured labour in the 19th century. Modi also addressed Fijian parliament, the first by a foreign leader, after parliamentary elec-tions, during which he said that India was prepared to work with Fiji to build a “Digital Fiji”.
Modi proposed to depute technical experts to Pacific Island countries including in the fields of agriculture, healthcare and IT. He also offered coope-ration in use of space technology applications for improving the quality of life of people and commu-nications.
“We are also working on a solar energy project with the Pacific Islands at the community level. The regional hubs will be developed in the Pacific Islands,” he added. Modi offered training program-mes to the diplomats of Pacific Island countries and proposed a distinguished visitors programme under which the two sides can organise seminars explore new ideas for strengthening mutually beneficially econo-mic cooperation.
He proposed a Forum for India–Pacific Islands Cooper-ation (FIPIC) be held on a regular basis and invited the Pacific Island leaders for next meeting in New Delhi in 2015.
Modi touched a chord with the locals at all his events starting his speec-hes with a Fijian greeting “Nissan Vola” and ending them with “Vinaka” (Thank You). “We will also expand our defence and security cooperation, including assistance in defence train-ing and capacity building.
We agreed to identify opportunities to expand our trade and investments and work out a concrete roadmap,” Modi said. He said that India looks forward to closer engagement in areas like information tech-nology and Space applica-tions. He also suggested Fijian leaders to invite Bollywood to shoot their films in Fiji to attract more Indian tourists. (PTI)
