Litia Cava 
Kemueli Naiqama
Former head of the Fiji Bureau of Statistics Kemueli Naiqama is now a Policy Advisor at the Prime Minister’s Office.
Today, he presented findings from the 2019-2020 Household Income Expenditure Survey (HIES) report, which cost him his previous position under the previous government.
During his presentation at the Holiday Inn in Suva, Naiqama cited the HIES report, highlighting that three out of ten Fijians were living in poverty even before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Naiqama expressed concern that the current poverty rate might have escalated since then.
The survey covered a population of 864,132 residing in 199,688 households, providing a comprehensive understanding of Fiji’s economic landscape.
According to the report, a staggering 258,053 individuals across 45,724 households, representing 29.9 percent of the surveyed Fijian population, were living below the poverty line during the stated period.
He emphasized that the report also identified rural areas as hotspots for poverty, signaling the urgent need for the government to reevaluate its policies and expand their scope to encompass a wider segment of the population.
Naiqama’s call for inclusive policies aims to address the escalating poverty rates and ensure a more equitable future for the nation.
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