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Frank Bainimarama - Source: ONE News -
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Fiji's interim government has devalued the Fiji dollar by 20%,
blaming the global financial crisis for the slump.
Fiji's newly appointed Reserve Bank Governor Sada Reddy announced
the major devaluation on Wednesday, saying it would bring the
Fijian dollar into line with its major trading partners, Australia
and New Zealand.
"The Fiji dollar had appreciated significantly by around 20% since
2007/2008," Reddy said. "This is unsustainable."
The bank said the currency devaluation would help Fiji's exporters
and provide a much-needed boost to tourism.
"The Reserve Bank is asking all sections of Fiji's community to
bear the burden of adjustment so that our economy can recover
quickly and start to generate much needed employment," the bank
said in a release.
The Fiji dollar was last devalued in 1998 by 12.5% by then finance
minister Jim Ah Koy.
It was also devalued twice after coups in 1987 by 33.25%.
The interim regime on Tuesday moved to stop cash reserves leaving
the country as the financial position of the troubled country
sharply worsened amid political unrest.
Commentators say the regime has overspent in the past two years,
running the coffers dry and failing to secure strong foreign
exchange income.
The regime has sacked former central bank governor Savenaca Narube
and several other high-profile public officials who do not suit the
government's new order.
