Fiji

Parliament

Political system Political systems: Presidential, Parliamentary, Presidential-Parliamentary, Monarchy, Communist, Transitional.
Parliamentary system
Compare data of this field.
Structure of parliament Structure of parliament: Unicameral, bicameral
Unicameral
Compare data of this field.
IPU membership Current membership status
Yes
See historical data for this field. Compare data of this field.

Data on women

empty

Basic information > About parliament

Speaker

Speaker
Ratu Naiqama Lalabalavu (Male)
Year of birth
1953
Additional information
Although the Speaker is elected among persons who are qualified for election as a member of parliament s/he does not become member of parliament. The Deputy Speaker is, however, elected amongst members of parliament (excluding Ministers).
See historical data for this field.

Secretary general

Secretary General
Jeanette Emberson (Female)
Notes Additional information about the Secretary General, in particular regarding their term.
Appointed on 16 Sep. 2021 for a five-year term.

Members

Current number of members, by sex
Men The number of male parliamentarians who currently hold seats in parliament.
49
See historical data for this field.
Women The number of female parliamentarians who currently hold seats in parliament.
6
See historical data for this field.
Percentage of women Calculated by dividing the current number of women by the current number of members.
10.91% See historical data for this field.

Age

Average age of all members Age at the time of the last election or renewal.
54.34
Youngest member (years) Age at the time of the last election or renewal.
29
Compare data of this field.
Youngest member
Rinesh Sharma (Male)
Oldest member (years) Age at the time of the last election or renewal.
74
Oldest member
Sitiveni Ligamamada Rabuka (Male)
Total number of MPs, 45 years of age or younger
11 See historical data for this field.
Total number of MPs, 46 years of age or older
44 See historical data for this field.
Total per sex
Total of male
49 See historical data for this field.
Total of female
6 See historical data for this field.
Total per age interval
18-20
0
21-30
1 See historical data for this field.
31-40
6 See historical data for this field.
41-45
4 See historical data for this field.
46-50
5 See historical data for this field.
51-60
23 See historical data for this field.
61-70
14 See historical data for this field.
71-80
2 See historical data for this field.
81-90
0
91 and over
0
Number of members, by age
Breakdown of members by age and gender
18 - 20 21 - 30 31 - 40 41 - 45 46 - 50 51 - 60 61 - 70 71 - 80 81 - 90 91 and over Totals per gender
Totals per age interval 0 1 6 4 5 23 14 2 0 0
Total <= 45: 11 Total >= 46: 44
Male 0 1 6 3 3 21 13 2 0 0 49
Female 0 0 0 1 2 2 1 0 0 0 6
Percentage of members, by age
Age as last election or renewalOverallMaleFemale
Percentage of MPs 30 years of age or younger1.82%1.82%0%
Percentage of MPs 40 years of age or younger12.73%12.73%0%
Percentage of MPs 45 years of age or younger20%18.18%1.82%

Reserved seats and quotas

Electoral quota for women Quotas to promote the representation of women in parliament.
No
Compare data of this field.
Elections > Historical data on women

Women's suffrage

Date of independence For countries that become independent after 1940
1970
Women’s right to vote
Women’s right to vote Year in which women obtained the right to vote
1970
National or local Suffrage: National or Local
National
Restricted or unrestricted suffrage Suffrage: Restricted or Universal
Universal
Notes Suffrage: Additional Notes on right of suffrage
Prior to independence, under British administration, women were granted the right to vote on 17 April 1963. This right was confirmed at independence.
Women’s right to stand for election
Women's right to stand for election Year in which women obtained the right to stand for election
1963
National or local Stand for Election: National or Local
National
First woman in parliament
First woman in parliament Year in which first woman entered parliament
1970
First woman speaker
Year of first woman speaker Date at which, for the first time in the country's parliamentary history, a woman became Presiding Officer of Parliament or of one of its Houses.
2014

Specialized body - Women's caucus

Commonwealth Women’s Parliamentary (CWP) Fiji Group
(May 2019)
Formal or informal
Informal
The caucus is open to male MPs
No
The caucus is cross-party
Yes
Notes
The CWP is considered an informal group as opposed to a women’s caucus.
There are rules governing the functioning of the caucus
Yes

Activities

Issues dealt with by the caucus
• Gender-sensitising training for all Members of the Fijian Parliament
• Raising awareness on breast cancer and calling on all Fijian women and girls to get screened early for breast and cervical cancer.
• Working with women Parliamentarians from the Pacific region on gender equality and women’s political participation. This includes mentoring and encouraging other women and young women to stand for elections and participate actively in politics.
The caucus has a strategic plan or plan of action
Yes
The caucus has a communication plan
Yes

Contact information for the Committee

Address
Rukalisi Vecena, Senior Protocol Officer
P.O. Box 2352, Government Buildings
Suva
Fiji
Phone
+679-9907790
E-mail
[email protected]