Time for a Visa-Free Pacific - Opinion by Hon. Professor Biman Prasad

This article is based on Professor Prasad's contribution to the Fiji Parliament on 6 November 2026 during the debate on the Fiji–Australia Vuvale Union and the Ocean of Peace Alliance (Veitacini Treaty).

An important evolution

The Fiji Parliament’s consideration of the Vuvale Union and the Ocean of Peace Alliance (Veitacini Treaty) with Australia represents an important moment in the

evolution of Fiji’s relationship with one of its closest and most enduring development partners.

In my contribution to Parliament, I expressed strong support for the strategic direction of these agreements. They offer significant opportunities to deepen our economic, political, security and people-to-people relationships with Australia.

I also acknowledged the important work of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and Defence, chaired by Honourable Lenora Qereqeretabua, in examining the agreements and identifying legitimate legal, constitutional, financial and strategic concerns.

Supporting these agreements does not mean that we should overlook those concerns. Parliamentary scrutiny is fundamental to good governance, and implementation must always protect Fiji’s sovereignty, independent foreign policy and national interests.

However, my central argument was that we should look beyond the immediate provisions of these agreements and consider the much larger possibilities for Fiji and the Pacific.

In particular, I believe two important policy initiatives deserve serious attention: the establishment of a visa-free Pacific and the development of a Closer Economic Relations agreement between Fiji and Australia, potentially extending to New Zealand and eventually other Pacific countries.

A relationship built over generations

Australia’s contribution to Fiji’s development extends far beyond diplomatic agreements and government-to-government relations.

Australian assistance has supported education, health, infrastructure, rural development, disaster recovery and economic opportunities for generations of Fijians.

For me, this relationship is also deeply personal.

I grew up in Dreketi in Vanua Levu, where Australian development assistance supported the Dreketi Irrigation Scheme in 1972. That investment transformed opportunities for hundreds of rural families. It helped create the economic foundations that enabled children from those communities to pursue education and careers far beyond their villages.

Many of those children and their descendants are today contributing to Fiji, Australia and other countries.

This is what meaningful development cooperation can achieve. Its benefits can extend across generations.

Today, thousands of Fijian families have relatives living, studying or working in Australia. Remittances, educational opportunities, employment and business relationships have made Australia an integral part of the economic and social lives of our people.

The challenge now is to transform this historically strong relationship into a much deeper and more comprehensive economic partnership.

Visa-free Pacific

First, it is time to seriously consider a visa-free travel for the Pacific Island countries.

For some time, including in my addresses in Canberra in 2023 and Melbourne in 2025, I have advocated the idea of a visa-free Pacific.

I believe this proposal deserves serious consideration by Australia, New Zealand and Pacific Island countries.

We frequently speak about the Blue Pacific family, regional solidarity and our shared future. Yet significant barriers continue to restrict the movement of people within our region.

If we genuinely believe in regional integration, we must begin translating those aspirations into practical arrangements that make a difference to ordinary citizens.

A visa-free Pacific could facilitate greater trade, tourism, investment, entrepreneurship, professional exchanges, educational opportunities and people-to-people connections.

It could enable Pacific businesses to explore regional markets more easily, encourage entrepreneurs to establish cross-border partnerships and provide young people with greater opportunities to develop their skills and professional networks.

More importantly, regional mobility should not be an opportunity available mainly to wealthy individuals, political and business elites, or selected categories of skilled workers.

It should progressively benefit ordinary Pacific citizens.

Existing labour mobility arrangements, including seasonal employment programmes and Australia’s Pacific Engagement Visa, are valuable initiatives. However, they should not represent the limits of our ambitions.

We should begin discussing a broader regional mobility framework that facilitates travel and exchanges while addressing legitimate immigration, border security and labour market considerations.

Visa-free travel would not automatically mean unrestricted rights to work or settle permanently. Those questions would require separate agreements and carefully designed safeguards.

But removing unnecessary barriers to short-term travel would itself be a major step towards a more connected and economically integrated Pacific.

It would also strengthen the long-term strategic relationship between Australia, New Zealand and Pacific Island countries.

The strongest foundation for regional security is not simply defence cooperation. It is also the economic opportunity, trust and enduring relationships created when our people can connect freely and meaningfully. This will be mutually beneficial to every country.

Closer Economic Relations

The second proposal I raised in Parliament is perhaps even more ambitious. I believe the time has come for Fiji and Australia to seriously explore a Closer

Economic Relations arrangement, drawing lessons from the Australia–New Zealand Closer Economic Relations Trade Agreement, commonly known as ANZCERTA.

The Australia–New Zealand CER arrangement has helped create one of the world’s most integrated bilateral economic relationships. It is a good model to explore and emulate.

Its significance extends beyond reducing tariffs. It has facilitated closer cooperation in trade, investment, services, business regulation and economic activity.

Why should Fiji and Australia not begin exploring a similar long-term framework, adapted to our respective economic circumstances?

Such an arrangement would not simply replicate the Australia–New Zealand model. Fiji is a small island developing state with a different economic structure, level of development and set of vulnerabilities.

Any agreement would therefore need to recognise these differences, provide appropriate safeguards and ensure that integration creates opportunities for Fijian businesses, workers and communities.

Potential benefits are considerable

A Fiji–Australia Closer Economic Relations framework could progressively address barriers to trade in goods and services, facilitate investment, improve regulatory cooperation, support professional qualifications recognition, encourage technology transfer and strengthen education and skills partnerships.

It could also create new opportunities for agriculture, tourism, manufacturing, digital services and small and medium enterprises.

We should examine how such an arrangement could build on existing regional trade agreements rather than duplicate them.

In time, New Zealand could become part of a broader economic integration framework, with opportunities for other Pacific Island countries to participate according to their own circumstances and development priorities.

This would give practical economic meaning to the idea of a more integrated Blue Pacific region.

It would also strengthen Fiji’s role as an economic and commercial hub of the Pacific.

From aid dependence to economic partnership

Fiji’s National Development Plan sets an ambitious objective of becoming a high-income country by 2050.

Realising this will require more than business as usual in our economic policy thinking and implementation.

We must improve productivity, strengthen institutions, develop skills, attract quality investment and create new economic opportunities.

Australia will remain an important development partner. However, our long-term ambition should be to move progressively from a relationship characterised substantially by development assistance towards one based increasingly on trade, investment, innovation and mutual economic opportunity.

This transformation will also require significant thinking, planning and action on Fiji’s part.

We must strengthen our capacity to negotiate, implement and benefit from regional agreements. Our government agencies, policymakers, businesses and educational institutions must be prepared to identify and pursue the opportunities that deeper integration can provide.

International agreements are only as valuable as the benefits they ultimately deliver to our people.

A new vision for Pacific regionalism

The Pacific faces increasingly complex challenges arising from climate change, geopolitical competition, economic vulnerability, natural disasters and transnational crime.

The Prime Minister’s Ocean of Peace initiative is an important contribution to regional thinking about peace, stability and cooperation.

But peace and security cannot be separated from economic development and human opportunity.

A prosperous, economically integrated and socially connected Pacific will also be a more resilient and secure Pacific.

This is why I believe the Vuvale Union and the Veitacini Treaty should be viewed not merely as diplomatic or security arrangements, but as platforms for a much broader and more ambitious regional partnership.

The relationship between Fiji and Australia has matured over decades. It has survived, coups, changes in government, political challenges, economic difficulties and regional challenges.

We should now have the confidence to take it to another level.

A visa-free Pacific and a Fiji–Australia Closer Economic Relations framework are ambitious proposals, but they are worthy of serious policy discussion and long-term commitment.

They need not happen overnight. They can begin with structured dialogue, technical studies, consultations with businesses and communities, and progressively negotiated arrangements.

The important thing is to begin.The ultimate test of our relationship with Australia should not be the number of agreements we sign, but the opportunities we create for our people and future generations.

The Vuvale Union and the Ocean of Peace Alliance provide an important foundation.

Now is the time to build upon that foundation and pursue a Pacific in which our people, businesses and economies are more closely connected, where opportunities are more widely shared, and where regional partnership delivers tangible improvements in people’s lives.

That, I believe, should be the next significant chapter in Fiji–Australia relations.