he Minister for Trade and Tourism, Honorable James Bule met with the VFIPA Team at a brief on Wednesday 3rd of March for an update on the Agency’s current plans and activities.
The meet was also to brief the Minister on the amendments that will be made to the current Foreign Investment Act No. 25 of 2019.

VFIPA CEO updated the Minister on key progress that the Agency has undertaken and also presented key challenges that exist for the Agency.
The Minister was made aware of key performance indicators of Vanuatu’s Ease of Doing Business ranking trend over the past years and was alarmed to see the continued drop in the country’s performance.

As key performance indicators under the Ease of Doing Business ranking, Starting a Business indicator is one key area of performance that Vanuatu needs to look at thoroughly to see how it can further improve this performer to ensure its overall ranking is essential.
The Minister and his team which included his 1st Political Advisor, Mr Maurice Michel, and Advisor to the Minister, Mr Thompson Pakoa provided their support through suggestions on key recommendations that the Agency can undertake to contribute to the country’s improved business environment.

The CEO highlighted key challenges which included working relations with key Government departments and the need to have a shared vision of what is best for Vanuatu’s business environment across all agencies and departments of the Government.
This challenge comes at a critical time when Vanuatu is bounded by COVID restrictions and interest in new FDI has all but dwindled.

Therefore, preparations to ensure Vanuatu’s doing business viability remains attractive is paramount for the Agency’s undertakings.
The Minister was pleased with the overall presentation and assured the CEO of the continued support and working relation that the Agency and the Ministry will foster.