Problem overview:

     International commitments: International requirements pose difficulties but at the same time offer competitive advantages to those who respond quickly. Here is a case in point.

Background:

     Meeting international commitments to gain a competitive edge

     The importance of the agriculture industry to Fiji: The agricultural sector in Fiji accounts for 50% of the total formal employment. Main crops that generate income are Coconuts, Ginger, Tropical fruits, Dalo, Yaqona and Vegetables are the major crops being produced for commercial development whereby Fiji has a comparative advantage in production (Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, forests and Alta, Fiji).

     International demands: Recently, the inauguration of the Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer and the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer has imposed a strain on Fijis agricultural industry due to the global ban on the purchase of agricultural products that use certain chemical pesticides in the production process.

     Fijis response: For example, the fumigant ethylene dibromide (EDB) (a carcinogen) was unlisted as a valid quarantine treatment (fruits and vegetables) in 1992. Fiji responded quicker than most of its competitors, including Australia, to the loss of EDB by obtaining non-chemical quarantine treatment technology (HTFA). This gave Fiji a competitive advantage. Unfortunately HTFA is unlikely to be a suitable quarantine treatment for root crops and commodities such as copra and cocoa. Thus the PICs, and their competitors, will need to develop alternative quarantine treatments for Methyl Bromide