• Our Chief Guest, the Deputy Prime Minister, and Minister for Industries, Commerce, Business Development and Public Enterprises, Honourable Manoa Kamikamica
• The Minister for Finance, Honourable Esrom Immanuel
• The Ambassador of the European Union to the Pacific
• The First Secretary New Zealand High Commission
• The Counsellor – Economic and Development Cooperation from the Australian High Commission
• The Operations Manager Fiji of the UNDP Pacific Office
• CEO and team from Creative HQ
• CEOs, and Heads of Financial Institutions
• Our sponsors, development partners, industry leaders, members of the startup community, innovators, distinguished guests, members of the media
• Ladies and Gentlemen

Bula Vinaka and a very good afternoon to you all.

It is a great pleasure to welcome you all to the official launch of the Fiji Innovation Hub.

I would first like to warmly acknowledge and thank our Chief Guest, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Industries, Commerce, Business Development and Public Enterprises, for gracing us with his presence despite his busy schedule.

I also extend my sincere appreciation to the Honourable Minister for Finance, government representatives, Your Excellencies, our development partners, members of the private sector, the innovation community, and all our invited guests. Your presence here today reflects something important: innovation is no longer a peripheral issue. It is central to Fiji’s economic future.

Our Journey – From Idea to Reality

My remarks come before an excellent line-up of speakers, so I will try to keep my speech brief.

What we are witnessing today is more than the opening of a physical space. It is the realisation of an idea that began with informal conversations between Zeituna, Aneth from UNCDF and Saki, Caroline and me at the RBF Boardroom. That idea was nurtured through further discussions, both virtually and in-person, with Catherine and Colin from Creative HQ. What started as a conversation gradually became a shared vision and, importantly, a belief that we could turn an idea on paper into something real.

But ideas alone do not build innovation. It takes passion. It takes courage. And it takes people who are willing to believe in something before it exists.

Along this journey, we have been fortunate to have the support of many stakeholders, including the Deputy Prime Minister and the Reserve Bank of Fiji Board, who shared that belief and helped us move forward.

We have also witnessed the incredible energy of our technology start-ups, fintechs, entrepreneurs and innovators – people who are not afraid to challenge the status quo, experiment, fail, learn and try again. Their drive and determination have reminded us why a space like this matter.

And so, today, we arrive at this moment – from an idea, to conversations, to collaboration, to action. This Hub has been built with passion, perseverance, teamwork and, I am sure, more than a little sweat along the way! It represents what is possible when people come together around a shared vision.

But this is not the end of the journey. This is where the journey truly begins.

Our vision is for the Fiji Innovation Hub to become a place where ideas find opportunity, innovation finds support, entrepreneurs find community, and the solutions of tomorrow are built today.

Today marks the beginning of an initiative that we believe can make a meaningful contribution to how Fiji creates opportunities, grows businesses, develops talent,
and builds a more diversified and resilient economy.

Why is the Reserve Bank involved?

Before I conclude my short remarks, there is a pertinent question that a number of people have asked me: Why is the Reserve Bank of Fiji driving an innovation
hub initiative?

My answer is simple and straightforward.

The Reserve Bank sits at an important intersection of our economy. We do not operate in isolation from the broader economic environment. And that environment is changing rapidly. Technology is transforming how people save, borrow, invest, make payments and conduct business.

At the same time, Fiji faces fundamental economic challenges. We cannot rely indefinitely on a narrow range of economic activities. We need to broaden the sources of economic growth and create more opportunities for our people. We need to diversify our economy.

We need to encourage entrepreneurship. We need to develop new industries and new business models. We need to increase productivity and competitiveness. And, importantly, we need to create opportunities that allow our young people to participate meaningfully in the economy. This is where innovation becomes not simply desirable, but necessary.

One of our strongest motivations is our young people. Every year, thousands of Fijians leave our schools and tertiary institutions with aspirations for a better future. We should, of course, continue creating good jobs. But we should also create an environment where our young people can become job creators, not just job seekers.

That is the kind of environment we hope this Hub can help foster.

Acknowledgement of Sponsors and Partners

The Reserve Bank of Fiji does not see the Innovation Hub as something we can build or operate alone. In this regard, let me take this opportunity to sincerely thank our sponsors and partners, without whom we could not have come this far:

• Pacific Digital Economy Program of the UNCDF and UNDP, sponsored by the European Union, the Government of Australia and the Government of New Zealand;
• Our implementing partner, Catherine, Jonnie and the Creative HQ team;
• Mastercard;
• Ministry of Industries, Commerce and Business Development;
• HFC Bank; and
• Fiji Airways.

Our Chief Guest will make further announcements regarding support for Year Two, so we certainly look forward to hearing those announcements.

In conclusion, let me reiterate that this should be a Hub not just of technology, but of ambition, creativity, collaboration and possibility. Today marks an important milestone in Fiji’s innovation journey – a journey built on years of deliberate reforms, strategic investments, and a shared conviction that innovation must play a greater role in shaping our future.

Over the past year, we have witnessed meaningful progress: stronger digital infrastructure, greater financial inclusion, continued regulatory innovation, expanded support for entrepreneurs, and deeper collaboration across the innovation ecosystem.

There is still much work ahead. Innovation ecosystems are not built overnight. However, the direction is clear. The foundations are stronger, the partnerships are deeper, and the opportunities are growing.

To our invited guests, our start-up community, our partners, and everyone who forms part of the Fiji Innovation Hub ecosystem – thank you for turning up in such numbers and, more importantly, thank you for believing in what we are trying to build together.

I look forward to seeing what this community will achieve in the years ahead.

Vinaka vakalevu, and thank you.