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FIJI Post-Disaster Needs Assessment<br />

2002/2003 and the 2013/2014 HIES, 25,26 whereas the incidence of poverty in urban areas declined from 28 to 18 percent<br />

between 2002/2003 and 2008/2009 before increasing slightly to 20.8 percent as reported by the 2013/2014 survey. 27 The<br />

growing population living in more than 200 informal settlements in major towns and cities is contributing to this increase.<br />

Additionally, rural poverty increased slightly between the 2002/2003 and the 2008/2009 surveys due to the decline in the<br />

sugar industry and reduced loans to agriculture. However, the 2013/2014 HIES indicated a decline in the incidence of rural<br />

poverty, taking it below the 2002/2003 level, which is a result of the broader spread of economic opportunities emanating<br />

from the various government programmes that have targeted rural communities through training programmes and job<br />

creation. 28<br />

Table 8: Incidence of Poverty (percent) by Division<br />

Household<br />

Income<br />

Expenditure<br />

Surveys<br />

2002/2003 2008/2009 2013/2014 Total Population<br />

Population<br />

Living below<br />

the Basic<br />

Needs Poverty<br />

Line during<br />

the Period<br />

2013/2014<br />

Urban Central 24 16 8.0 259,941 20,795<br />

Eastern 42 30 29.3 3,661 1,073<br />

Northern 39 38 34.8 33,205 11,555<br />

Western 33 17 22.1 133,944 29,602<br />

Rural Central 29 36 35.8 98,335 35,204<br />

Eastern 35 40 42.5 35,824 15,225<br />

Northern 57 51 52.1 101,116 52,681<br />

Western 38 43 26.5 179,239 47,498<br />

National 35 31 28.4 845,265 240,055<br />

Source: <strong>Fiji</strong> Bureau of Statistics. Household Income Expenditure Surveys 2002/2003, 2008/2009 and 2013/2014.<br />

In examining the incidence of poverty by division, the Northern Division continues to record the highest rate. 29 While the<br />

Western Division has the highest absolute number of rural people falling below the basic needs poverty line, the division has<br />

the lowest incidence of rural poverty (26.5 percent) as a proportion of the population. This level is half that of the rural north<br />

and almost ten percent less than the rural parts of the Central Division. The rural poverty rate fell sharply in the Western<br />

Division between 2009 (43 percent) and 2013/2014 (26.5 percent), which largely reflects the increase in employment<br />

associated with the tourism sector.<br />

Social Protection<br />

The government has put in place a range of social protection programmes to help those families struggling to meet their<br />

basic needs, including the: Poverty Benefit Scheme (PBS); Child Protection Allowance (CPA); Food Voucher Programme<br />

(FVP); Social Pension Scheme (SPS); the Bus Fare Subsidy; and the Expanded Food Voucher Programme for pregnant<br />

women in rural areas. These programmes are monitored by the Ministry of Women, Children and Poverty Alleviation, which<br />

ensures that assistance reaches the targeted groups.<br />

Since 2012, the government has allocated more than F$125 million to the four major social protection programmes, with<br />

a similar amount every year since then (Figure 14). While overall basic needs poverty levels have improved slightly, these<br />

figures show that the demand for social protection from vulnerable families has remained constant over time. It also shows<br />

the government’s commitment to provide social protection for the poor and vulnerable sectors of the population. Annex<br />

3: Supplementary Material for Employment, Livelihoods and Social Assessment provides a comprehensive overview of<br />

the various poverty alleviation programmes implemented by the government since 2009 and the corresponding budget<br />

allocations for each programme.<br />

27<br />

According to the National Housing Policy 2011, over 15 percent of the urban population resides in over 200 informal settlements<br />

(squatters) in <strong>Fiji</strong>’s major towns and cities. The Greater Suva area, including Nasinu, has the largest number of squatters.<br />

28<br />

Draft National Development Plan.<br />

29<br />

The BNPL has two components; the Food Poverty Line (FPL) and the Non-Food Poverty Line. The FPL consists of a basket of foods which<br />

for the 2002/2003 analysis was derived from the expenditure patterns derived from the middle quintile (20 percent) of the rural and urban<br />

groups of the major ethnic groups.<br />

Tropical Cyclone Winston, February 20, 2016<br />

31

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