A tale of two island nations

An old Pastor told me decades ago, “People should focus on what they do have, not what they don’t have“. This gem stayed with me and is the central component of this column.

Island nation number 1 - Fiji

Nestled in the tropics, this nation treads water in its prosperity with tourism, agriculture, and export of products such as bottled water. The people are benefitting from British colonisation. They’re mainly Christian, infectiously happy and welcoming. The legal system is steady, fair, and equitable.

Although the limited job opportunities in fishing, forestry, and minerals are causing migration to larger neighbouring countries, the nation possesses significant potential for deep-sea mineral resources, particularly seafloor massive sulphides (SMS). These deposits are rich in copper, gold, lead, silver, and other valuable metals — but this, of course, needs enormous investment to mine.

Like any remote tropical nation, the untimely arrival of cyclones, typhoons, or hurricanes can immediately cause a negative impact on tourism and agriculture, and indeed, the lives of local inhabitants.

Another problem for Fiji, like all remote island nations, is the high cost of importing fossil fuels necessary to feed the nation’s generators and fuel stations. The distribution to all remote parts of the country increases this cost significantly. In Fiji, the importation cost of fuel is already above one billion dollars per annum. This, of course, is the major economic handbrake on the nation’s prosperity.

With all the advantages and disadvantages of any nation, the biggest element in their prosperity is the calibre of leadership — and luckily for Fiji, Sitiveni Rabuka, an ex-military man with bravery awards, is a true leader.

Addressing his nation’s largest economic handbrake, Rabuka announced last month that Fiji is engaged in dialogue with Deployable Energy of Houston, Texas, about the possibility of using Micro Modular Nuclear Reactors (MMRs), with Lloyd’s Register of London undertaking the approvals process. High-level numbers already show that these MMR nuclear solutions will give economic and proven base load power for his two main islands and distant remote islands such as Rotuma. Controlling Fiji’s own energy security is far more important than risking their prosperity with expensive fossil fuel importation, which could be quickly cut off in an increasingly troubled world, and would bring Fiji to its knees.

Focusing on what Fiji has, Rabuka is revitalising shipbuilding to address skills shortages. Fijians have a long history of peacekeeping in the Middle East, are known for their hardworking and friendly attitude, and of course, their rugby skills. The new shipyard in Lautoka will train steel and aluminium welders, electricians, carpenters, plumbers, draftsmen, technicians, and administrators. Ships are a key element in any island nation’s transportation network.

Islan nation number 2 - Australia

This huge island nation is actually a continent but is failing to tread water in its prosperity, despite a huge inherent wealth of minerals, agriculture, tourism, and exports. The people are still benefitting from British colonisation, being mainly Christian, but are becoming increasingly unhappy and angry. The legal system is weak, woke, has difficulty defining a woman, and issuing penalties that remotely resemble deterrents in the ever-increasing crime sweeping our country.

Although there are many job opportunities in all sectors, the industrial relations imposts by this present government have caused the collapse of over 32,000 businesses during its tenure, and many other businesses have already moved to other countries.

Australia is rich in copper, gold, lead, silver, uranium, thorium, and other valuable metals — but investment in mining is significantly and constantly stifled by obstructive red and green tape.

Weather events in this huge nation cause regional negative impacts, but these often pale in comparison to government-imposed policies.