Honourable Cabinet Ministers
Members of Parliament
Members of the Diplomatic Corps
Traditional Leaders and Chiefs
Our disciplined forces and veterans
Representatives of civil society
Religious leaders, and,
Importantly – fellow Fijians
Bula vinaka. Namaste. Assalamu Alaikum. Good morning to you all.
Today marks an important step in our journey as a nation.
It is with great honour and humility that I stand before you today—as your Prime Minister—to launch a milestone in our national journey: Fiji’s first comprehensive National Security Strategy.
It fulfills a promise made by the Coalition Government: to assess our defence and security landscape, to listen to the people, and to act. Today, I am proud to say: that promise has been honoured.
This Strategy is the result of nearly two years of dedicated work. Not done in isolation, but with the people. We listened. We learned. We looked back, we looked inward. And we looked ahead.
This strategy was not written in isolation or in the comfort of offices. It was forged through consultations—with our people, our communities, and our experts. It draws strength from our history and wisdom from our vanua. It reflects na domo ni vanua—the voice of the people.
In 2023, we began a comprehensive review of our national security and defence systems. What we found was sobering.
There was no shared vision. Our agencies worked in silos. Coordination was lacking. Most importantly, our people neither feel heard nor valued.
We knew we needed change. Real change. Strategic change. People-centred change.
Gone are the days when we could think of security as just soldiers and police. The threats we face today are more complex: climate change, cyber attacks, organised crime, economic shocks, regional instability, and health emergencies. These are no longer future threats—they are here now. They are neither in distant lands, nor defined battlefields. They are in our midst, in our neighbourhoods, in our homes.
We must be ready. Not just to respond—but to anticipate, to prevent, and to build resilience.
A critical milestone was reached in October 2024 when we released the independently authored National Security and Defence Review Final Report.
It was prepared independently by a team of respected Fijians and academics—Mr James Sanday, Professor Satish Chand, Associate Professor Shailendra Singh, and Assistant Professor Ana Rokomokoti.
They gave us hard truths.
We are not shying away from these findings.
I can confirm today that every recommendation from that report has been taken forward in this Strategy. We are not here to defend the status quo. We are here to reform it.
This Strategy puts our people first. It is based on a broader understanding of what security means to us as Fijians. It recognises that security is not only about arms and uniforms—but about dignity, justice, and resilience.
Security is having a roof over our heads and food on the table. Security is knowing your children are safe from crime and drugs. Security is withstanding a cyclone. It is being safe from the impacts of climate change. It is resisting foreign interference. It is being able to speak your truth, to live free from fear, and to be heard.
At its heart, the Strategy sets three clear aims:
To do this, we will adopt a policy of ‘Constructive Engagement’. We will engage constructively—at home, and abroad. We will work with our communities, and with our international partners—but always on our terms, as equals.
We are not launching a paper strategy. We are launching an action plan. This strategy is a blueprint for action.
We will establish a Security Sector Reform and Governance Division under the Ministry of Defence and Veteran’s Affairs. Its role: to lead and coordinate the implementation of this Strategy.
We will focus on seven core priorities:
Responsibility for these areas does not lie with one agency alone. Progress will require a whole of government and whole of nation approach. That is why we will establish a new Senior Officials Committee on National Security to ensure better coordination, bringing together our civil service and security leadership.
We will also reform the National Security Council to improve our national security decision making architecture
Progress will require legal reform, institutional review, and policy renewal. It will also require the participation of every Fijian—from civil servants to chiefs, from security officers to civil society.
Let me be very clear: na dodonu ni tamata—the rights of our people—are sacred. Rights that are bundled with responsibilities by all as two sides of the same coin.
Security must serve the people. Not control them. And never silence them. Human rights will remain at the core of our national security policies.
We will continue working closely with women, youth, faith groups, and civil society. And for the first time, we will launch a Women, Peace and Security Action Plan, ensuring women are not only protected—but are included in shaping decisions that impact our nation’s safety.
A strong Fiji is one that embraces diversity and walks in unity.
Fiji is a sovereign nation—but we are not alone.
The National Security Strategy will sit alongside Fiji’s Foreign Policy White Paper as one of the capstone strategic documents guiding our work.
We will deepen our partnerships in the region and beyond—but we will do so with dignity, with equality, and with our interests at the centre. As the Foreign Policy White Paper establishes, Fiji wishes to remain friends to all and enemies to none. But we also have traditional partners in the security space.
Guided by our Foreign Policy White Paper, Fiji will always prioritise our “family first” Pacific regionalism. We will continue to work closely with our Pacific neighbours, through the Pacific Islands Forum and other regional mechanisms.
But let us be clear: Fiji will always stand on its own feet. Partnerships will be built on mutual respect, shared goals, and sovereignty.
My fellow Fijians, this Strategy is not the work of one Ministry, nor one Government.
It is a national covenant.
It asks of each of us:
Let this Strategy be our shared guide. Let it reflect our shared values. And let it carry us forward—not divided, but united.
Vinaka vakalevu. May God bless you all. May God bless our vanua. And may God bless our beloved Fiji.