FBC News 
The growing reliance on overseas workers should not be treated simply as an immigration issue, says Fiji Hotels and Tourism Association Chief Executive Fantasha Lockington.
She says it reflects a deeper disconnect between education and training of locals and the actual workforce needs of businesses. Lockington says tourism businesses want to employ and develop more Fijians but having vacancies available does
not mean there are candidates with the skills, qualifications and practical experience to fill them.
She says businesses have operations to maintain and visitors to serve, and when local recruitment cannot meet those needs, they have little choice but to look elsewhere.
The FHTA CEO says the tourism industry has consistently called for stronger alignment between training institutions and industry demand.
She says this includes greater employer involvement in determining training priorities and accessing funds for workforce development.
Lockington says the scholarship issue where more than 33,000 scholarship recipients either failed or had their awards terminated highlights the scale of the challenge that the tourism industry faces in finding the right people to fill
roles.
She says tourism is a people-dependent industry, with employment opportunities spanning accommodation, food and beverage, culinary services, marine operations, engineering, maintenance, aviation, finance, administration and management.
Lockington says despite the many opportunities, businesses continue to face difficulties filling positions across these areas
