Nikhil Aiyush Kumar 
[Photo: File]
Around 10-million dollars’ worth of projects remain pending due to insufficient capital budget allocations.
This is according to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and Defence, which reviewed the annual reports of the Office of the Prime Minister and the Fijian Immigration Department covering 2019 to 2023.
Presenting the committee’s findings in Parliament, the Chair Lenora Qereqeretabua says consideration should be given to increasing capital allocations to progressively address the backlog.
She says the committee also raised concerns over disparities in the distribution of small grants.
It found that one province received 78 projects valued at more than 1.2-million dollars, while some provinces received only one project.
She adds that the committee has recommended that small grants be allocated based on clear, equitable and transparent criteria, with stronger verification processes and greater community awareness of how the scheme can be accessed.
It also called for a proper monitoring and evaluation framework to determine whether the grants are achieving their intended social and economic outcomes.
Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka told Parliament that the Office of the Prime Minister has been progressively implementing the committee’s recommendations, with improvements made to internal coordination, monitoring, reporting and accountability.
Parliament later unanimously agreed to note the contents of the report.
