Fiji’s Northern Vanua Levu Set To Transform Into Sustainable Tourism Hub By 2027: Here Is What You Need To Know

Published on September 10, 2025

Fiji’s bluish island, Vanua Levu, is connected nan brink of a awesome transformation. The Fiji Ministry of Tourism has launched a groundbreaking Integrated Tourism Master Plan aimed astatine turning nan land into a starring sustainable tourism destination. The eager scheme will span 25 years, laying nan instauration for semipermanent maturation and development.

Also referred to arsenic nan Nа Vualiku Project, nan Fiji Tourism Development Program is supported by nan activity of nan HIDRIA-IOS joint, based HIDRIA Ciencia Ambiente y Desarollo from Spain and IOS Partners from nan United States. This squad will activity pinch EcoConsult Pacific, a Fijian section consulting partner. The sponsorship of nan World Bank does thing but boosts nan estimation of nan sponsorship.

The Integrated Tourism Master Plan will heighten Savusavu, Labasa, Taveuni, and nan Natewa Peninsula regions, promoting ambiance smart growth. It intends to heighten tourism improvement while ensuring ambiance smart maturation and organization empowerment.

Unlocking Vanua Levu’s Tourism Potential

Though nan land seems to tie successful high-spending tourists, Vanua Levu presently has a disproportionately mini stock of nan island’s wide tourer traffic. This Master Plan intends to unlock nan island’s unthinkable potential. This Plan’s attraction connected enhanced access, acquisition diversification, and nan formulation of community-based, ecologically sustainable tourism initiatives serves nan unlocking purpose.

Community Based Tourism is nan attraction of this plan, particularly moving pinch women entrepreneurs and supporting section organizations that actively beforehand tourism, truthful that nan benefits of tourism improvement are shared equitably crossed nan region.

The extremity of nan Master Plan is not conscionable to summation visitor numbers but to amended nan wide quality of life for nan section population. The scheme ensures that nan island’s natural and taste assets are preserved, making judge that tourism benefits are shared and sustainable for generations to come.

Phased Approach to Development

Like we mentioned before, nan full process should return astir 16 months and will dwell of 8 steps. Their first measurement will beryllium collecting and analyzing information to fig retired nan existent information of tourism. Then, they will look into maturation predictions, imaginable development, and building nan town. Phases will besides see constructing nan needed municipality infrastructure, processing nan marketing, and administrative changes to guarantee nan due implementation of nan plan.

One of nan cardinal phases will attraction connected training section communities, ensuring that they tin actively participate successful and use from nan tourism growth. The collaboration pinch section stakeholders and community engagement will guarantee that nan scheme is grounded successful nan realities of Vanua Levu’s people.

Community Engagement astatine nan Heart of nan Plan

The occurrence of nan scheme relies heavy connected extensive stakeholder engagement. This will see workshops and talanoa sessions to prosecute section communities, civilian society, and nan backstage sector. This attack guarantees that nan views and concerns of nan group of Vanua Levu will beryllium cardinal to nan improvement process.

Acting Prime Minister Viliame Gavoka, besides nan Minister for Tourism and Civil Aviation, expressed his excitement astir nan project. He stated that this Master Plan will people a important milestone for Vanua Levu and nan Northern Division. The goal, according to Gavoka, is to supply a clear and sustainable guidance for tourism maturation that simultaneously protects nan environment and creates economical opportunities for future generations.

The Minister emphasized that nan scheme would not only attraction connected expanding tourer numbers but besides connected preserving nan island’s unique culture and natural beauty. He highlighted that nan business betwixt world experts and local knowledge would create a balanced, inclusive approach to tourism development.

The Role of International Expertise

In collaboration and guided by HIDRIA’s wealthiness of acquisition successful sustainable tourism and biology planning, nan consultancy squad will employment champion lawsuit practices successful tourism development. The members’ all-encompassing acquisition pans retired to Europe, Latin America, Africa, and Asia, thereby assuring that nan scheme is globally oriented yet tailored to nan circumstantial requirements of Fiji.

IOS Partners will bring its expertise successful infrastructure and aviation planning, having antecedently worked connected projects successful Small Island Developing States (SIDS), including Fiji. EcoConsult Pacific’s section knowledge will guarantee that nan scheme is culturally applicable and aligned pinch nan aspirations of Vanua Levu’s communities.

Anticipated Benefits and Timeline

The scheme completion day is astir January 2027 and immunodeficiency successful nan semipermanent extremity for nan maturation successful nan section of tourism development. The Master Plan will service arsenic a reference successful this lawsuit for some nan nationalist and backstage sectors investments. This will guarantee that nan maturation of tourism successful Vanua Levu is some financially and ecologically sustainable.

Fiji’s tourism manufacture stands to use importantly from this Master Plan. The accent connected community-based tourism will thief dispersed nan benefits of tourism to agrarian areas, creating caller occupation opportunities and helping to sphere Fiji’s cultural heritage.

Final Thoughts

Fiji’s tourism future is group to go much sustainable and inclusive pinch nan motorboat of this broad Master Plan for Vanua Levu. By bringing together world expertise, section insights, and a attraction connected sustainable tourism practices, this inaugural promises to toggle shape Vanua Levu into a cardinal subordinate successful global tourism.

Integrated Tourism Master Plan has encouraged nan citizens of Taveuni and Vanua Levu to deliberation astir and actively participate successful nan improvement of their region. This plan, which incorporates sustainability, inclusivity, organization empowerment, and commitment, tin beryllium utilized arsenic a benchmark by different destinations crossed nan world that wishes to grow and create their tourism, while besides conserving nan earthy and taste resources of nan region.