Contextualising Social Enterprise in Fiji

Drawing on theoretical literature and factual materials published by reputable sources, as well as local knowledge of the authors, the study considers how Fiji’s location, history and social, economic, political and cultural institutions affect social enterprise. Social enterprise is influenced by Fiji’s remote location and small economy which reduces access to external information, meaning the nation is slow to embrace new ideas. Fiji’s demographics, ethnic divisions and cultural arrangements create economic and political tensions that affect how support services and economic policies are delivered. Indians were brought to Fiji under the British colonial administration, and Fijians with Indian heritage now make up almost 40% of the population. Informal separation and growing tensions between these Fijian Indian citizens and indigenous Fijians has contributed to political instability. The resulting outmigration of skilled nonindigenous Fijians reduced levels of human capital and skills. This limits Fiji’s capacity to innovate, including developing a robust social enterprise sector. Social enterprise could be a very effective way to address social and economic problems in Fiji, but it seems unlikely that the government will embrace the concept without support and encouragement from external sources, especially international aid and UN agencies. This paper offers information to assist practitioners, researchers and policy makers understand and negotiate complexities in the institutional environment in remote locations, especially small Pacific island countries. As one of the first studies of a small Pacific island country, we extend scholarship in this region and also add to current understandings of social enterprise. In particular, the paper adds valuable new knowledge of the effects of geographic location, political instability and cultural and ethnic divisions. Social enterprise researchers will benefit from this study of a site that differs in many ways from others previously examined