SUVA, Nov. 2 (Xinhua) -- Fiji's Micro and Small Business Grant (MSBG) has significantly improved the lives of at least 83,425 Fijians over the past years.
Speaking at the disbursement of business grants in Levuka on Thursday, a town on the eastern coast of the Fijian island of Ovalau, Fiji's Minister for Industry and Trade Faiyaz Siddiq Koya said that since the inception of this event in 2014, the Fijian government had invested a total of 16 million Fijian dollars (7.7 million U.S. dollars) to support 16,685 recipients all over the island nation.
Through the MSBG, 15,000 micro and small business entrepreneurs had been formalized.
According to a press release by Fiji's Department of Information on Thursday, the minister was in Levuka to give another 80 Fijians a total grant of 82,528.96 Fijian dollars (39,724.00 U.S. dollars) for business projects.
This grant can be invested and utilized in different ways, such as, sole trader business, agriculture, edible farming of crops.
Recipients will be monitored by the ministry, six months from now and training or additional support will be offered to allow these small business ventures to grow.
Koya said that the continuous support given to the MSBG initiative portrayed the Fijian government's commitment to improving the standard of living and providing sustainable livelihood for all Fijians.
The Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) contributed up to 60 percent of total employment and up to 40 percent of national income in emerging economies, said Koya.
By formalizing MSMEs, the Fijian government was able to account for everyone's actual contribution to the economy.
According to Koya, the MSMEs in Fiji were present in all the 21 Industries that contributed towards Fiji's Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
With strong and resilient MSMEs, Fijians would grow the economy by being empowered, and being resilient to external shocks and market fluctuation, said the minister.
