45th SESSION of the APO GOVERNING BODY MEETING
3-5 September 2003, Korolevu, Fiji
Inaugural Address
by Hon. Laisenia Qarase
Prime Minister of the Republic of Fiji
The chairman of the Asian Productivity organization
and Director for Thailand, Mr. Manu Leopairote;
The APO Secretary-General, Mr. Takashi Tajima;
Delegates from the APO Member Countries;
Your Excellencies,
Members of the Diplomatic corps;
Distinguished observers;
Ladies and gentlemen.
Ni sa bula vinaka.
On behalf of My Government and all the people of
Fiji, a very warm welcome everyone.
For many of you, this will be the first visit to
our shores. I recommend that you find a little time,
if at all possible, to relax and enjoy our country.
I am sure you get a similar sales pitch wherever your
duties take you - but this time you are in one of
the world's legendary holiday destinations!
Tourism is Fiji's number one generator of foreign
earnings, and we see enormous opportunity for further
growth and diversification.
If you ARE able to spend some leisure time with us,
I think you will see why we are so confident.
This is the second time Fiji has had the honour of
hosting this forum, and we very much welcome this
opportunity to do so again.
During almost 20 years of our association, like all
APO members, we have experienced the positive effects
of programmes developed over more than four decades
at the forefront of the international productivity
movement.
We understand the need to lift the quality and quantity
of our national output, and we greatly value your
contribution towards achieving this. But let me be
quite honest. Here in Fiji there is a very long hill
to climb before we fully inculcate a culture of product
excellence and high performance.
At the Fiji Australia Business Forum on Monday, the
Governor of the Reserve Bank said Fiji's productivity
is estimated to have increased by just one per cent
in ten years. That underlines the extent of our challenge.
It underscores the urgent need for radically changed
attitudes. with your assistance I believe we CAN succeed.
But it will take strong will and concentrated effort
to emulate the great transformations seen, for example,
in Singapore and Mauritius. I spoke about this earlier
this year, at the launch of our revitalised NPO, the
Training and Productivity Authority of Fiji.
As I said then, my experience in commerce has armed
me with a very clear understanding of the need for
a business to be productive and efficient. An enterprise
that is inefficient, that takes too much time, at
too high a cost, to make something the market may
not be happy with, will quickly find itself in trouble.
Nations, too, must operate profitably. The lifeblood
of any economy is its exports, and as international
trade moves towards open markets, small countries
like Fiji must learn to compete with the biggest and
best.
Our products will need to be as good as, or better
than, their global competition. So how do we nurture
in our people an understanding and acceptance that
productivity - or the lack of it - can make us, or
break us? We need to invest significant resources
in convincing the unions and the workers of the truth
of this.
Talk of improved efficiency, and productivity pay,
routinely meets with a negative response from unions
- and consequently the employees they represent.
To them, productivity seems to mean having to work
harder, with less job security and fewer benefits.
Looking at the international scene, where corporations
shed employees by the thousands so they can produce
an acceptable return on investment, perhaps this is
understandable. It is for us to allay their fears.
We must let our workers know they are not just statistics
to be dispensed with at will - and that companies
and their management should not be automatically regarded
as heartless exploiters.
I see a picture in which employers and employees
are -mutually dependent on one another, and their
goals are the same: to generate more wealth for everyone.
The old 'us' and 'them' attitude must be cast out,
and replaced with a spirit of mutual support and trust.
Productivity must be viewed as a way of PRESERVING
and CREATING jobs, instead of destroying them, a key
to IMPROVING benefits, and a chance to SHARE better
earnings, fairly.
The crucial importance of a nation's productivity
is made more so by globalisation.
Today each of us must utilise all the available resources
of our respective countries in a way that will generate
the maximum output - and income.
Some will argue that small countries such as Fiji
can never compete on the global market. I believe
we should resist attempts to push us into the new
borderless world of commerce before we are completely
ready.
This should not stop us looking for opportunities
within our existing capabilities. After all, where
there is a will, there is a way. A handful of Fiji
companies have achieved almost star status on the
world stage.
Look at Natural Waters of Viti, and Sandollars. Consider
Fiji tourism. See the thriving business done in Japan,
the world's second largest economy, by our tuna industry.
There is one aspect to the productivity challenge
that affects all economies. It is the manner in which
their institutions operate.
When markets and cultures alter themselves to the
degree that existing institutions are no longer relevant,
or not productive enough to satisfy changing demands,
the institutions themselves must be open to change.
Flexibility is the key to survival.
Institutional nimbleness is not always found in the
developing world. But where it IS present, we generally
find economic growth at a rate greater than that of
nations with similar resources, but with a rigid institutional
mindset.
We can NEVER lift our economic performance by locking
.land, labour or capital into low-yield activities.
Achieving growth will INEVITABLY mean continuing review
and change.
Here in Fiji, one of our key enterprises faces the
most difficult challenge in its long history.
In its present form, our sugar industry cannot compete
without the preferential arrangements we currently
have with Europe.
It is outdated and inefficient. One estimate puts
annual losses from poor practices and lack of productivity
at close to $50 million a year. However, with commitment
by all stakeholders we believe this industry can be
turned around. Comprehensive restructuring, including
the introduction of new technology and work practices,
can bring it up to international competitiveness.
Let me return briefly to globalization. Recently,
Fiji hosted the 8th Special ACP Ministerial Conference
on Sugar. Among the issues discussed were dilemmas
faced by the island nations, stemming from the effects
of globalization and policies of the world Trade Organization.
There is a need for the international community to
recognize and address issues of special-concern to
the developing countries. Our colleagues in the ACP
are united with us in this.
Productivity enhancement strategies utilized within
individual nations must be given space to bear fruit,
and bring about the developments that will allow us
to attain a quality of life our people deserve, and
have every right to expect.
I have noted with great interest the concept of Green
Productivity championed by the APO. This focuses on
strengthening competitiveness while protecting the
environment and maintaining social fairness. We in
Fiji are in the midst of finalising a Sustainable
Development Bill, encompassing identical notions.
The concept is highly relevant here.
TPFA has just held an international Green Productivity
workshop, which took in a field visit to our largest
sugar mill, at Lautoka. There is also an ongoing APO
Demonstration Project in progress at the Labasa mill,
concerned with the productive utilisation of baggasse,
the prime waste product of the sugar making process
Green Productivity teaches that increased output need
not have negative consequences for the environment.
Rather than a trade-off between opposing considerations,
we can develop a relationship of harmony between the
two. And it is absolutely critical that we do so.
We in the Pacific have very real concerns about the
effects of greenhouse gases, and global warming, on
sea levels.
The populations of low-lying Pacific island countries,
such as Kiribati and Tuvalu are becoming increasingly
alarmed, because their homes and their lives face
a very 'real and imminent threat.
They, and other Pacific island countries, need the
industrialised nations to understand their plight.
If there is one message above all that I would like
to leave you with, it is that we must always remember
it is the aim of the productivity movement to enhance
the quality of life for the people. This cannot happen
where life itself is not sustainable.
Ladies and gentlemen, in planning your strategies
for the future, I hope you will take into account
the issues I have raised. Co-operation and understanding
has been the hallmark of the APO throughout its existence,
and this has provided a sound basis for many worthwhile
achievements.
On behalf of all the less advanced member countries,
allow me to thank the organisation for its past support.
Long may our relationship continue!
It is now my very great pleasure to declare the 45th
Session of the APO Governing Body Meeting... underway.
Vinaka vakalevu, and may God bless you all.
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