Fiji

Parliament

Political system
Parliamentary system
Structure of parliament
Unicameral
IPU membership
Yes

Openness and transparency

Information about access to parliamentary documents, parliament’s reporting to the public, parliament’s relation to Freedom of Information laws, and lobbying.

Parliamentary documents

The agendas of plenary meetings are published online in advance
All
The agendas of committee meetings are published online in advance
None
Results of votes on draft legislation are published on the parliamentary web site
None
Draft legislation is published on the parliamentary website
All
Citizens can submit comments on draft legislation on the parliamentary web site
No

Annual reporting by parliament

Parliament publishes an annual report on its activities
The annual report is available on the parliamentary web site
Yes
Parliament publishes the parliamentary budget
Yes
Level of detail of the parliamentary budget made available to the public
Only the total amount
The parliamentary budget is available on the parliamentary web site
Yes

Access to parliament

Plenary meetings are open to the public
Yes

Notes: The Speaker can select to hold a closed session if the grounds are reasonable and justified (Constitution, art. 72). For e.g., given COVID-19 health protocols, plenary meetings were not accesible to the public from September 202 to March 2022.

Committee meetings are open to the public
Yes

Notes:

The restrictions to access the Committee meetings are stated under Standing Order 111(2).

In accordance with section 72(2) of the Constitution, a committee may, after consultation with the Speaker, conduct a meeting that is closed to the public and media where the committee is considering a matter related to national security, third-party confidential information, personnel or human resources; or deliberations and discussions conducted in the development and finalization of committee recommendations and reports.

There is a dedicated channel for broadcasting parliamentary meetings
Yes
Media used for the dedicated channel
TV
Meetings broadcast on the dedicated channel
Plenary sittings

Freedom of information

There is a freedom of information law in the country
Yes
Parliament is subject to the freedom of information law
Yes
Parliament has an office/division dedicated to FOI requests
No
Categories of Information that are exempt from disclosure

Information Act 2018, Section 20 outlines the categories of information that are exempt from disclosure.

https://www.laws.gov.fj/Acts/DisplayAct/2460

Lobbying

There are rules about the activities of lobbyists in parliament
Yes

Notes: The Parliament of Fiji Standing Order allows for the presentation of a petition by a Member of Parliament under Standing Order 37, which could include a petition for a special interest/lobbyist to provide their input in Parliament.

There is a register of accredited lobbyists
No

Historical data for IPU membership

Historical data for IPU membership
Year IPU membership
2020-09
List of values for 2020-09
No
2019-04
List of values for 2019-04
No
2018-06
List of values for 2018-06
No