- After being victorious in the last elections, on December 24, Sitiveni Rabuka, a pro-Bitcoin politician, swore in office as Fiji’s prime minister.
- Fiji could be the second country in the South Pacific to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender as Tonga plans to make it official in 2023.
After two terms of Frank Bainimarama, the people decided a change and the destinies from now on will be commanded by, Sitiveni Rabuka, who on December 24, took office as Prime Minister of the nation.
The news was celebrated by Lord Fusitu’a, a former member of Tonga’s parliament, who expressed himself on social media:
“Congratulations to brother Sitiveni Rabuka and Biman Prasad for winning the Fiji elections. We have a new Bitcoin-friendly PM in the South Pacific. Let’s go 2 of 2: Bitcoin as legal tender for the Pacific in 2023”he highlighted.
And it is that the two sister nations, Fiji and Tonga, have planned to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender as El Salvador did. In this sense, Tonga is taking a more advanced path compared to Fiji because according to its calendar for introduce Bitcoin as legal tender this would take place in the second quarter of 2023. In turn, it would start mining at the end of next year, taking advantage of the 21 volcanoes in its territory.
A new crypto government
As explained by the media BitcoinistRabuka will be responsible for Foreign Affairs, Climate Change, Environment, Civil Service, Information and Public Companies, and heads a cabinet made up of 19 ministers and 10 deputy ministers.
From the outset, Rabuka had the support of Lord Fusitu’a, with whom he had a phone call in mid-November to follow the path marked out by El Salvador. Rumors indicate that they also talked about the use of renewable energy to mine digital gold, just like the Central American country does.
On Thursday, December 29, the Prime Minister spoke to the public for the first time, although he did not make any reference to BTC. It is expected that in early 2023 he will touch on the subject in greater depth.
South Pacific islands are creating a crypto zone
The Bitcoin plan is part of a global strategy in the South Pacific Islands. These, led by Fiji, aim to generate all energy from renewable sources by 2030. It is worth noting that the Fijians have the advantage of having a “huge hydroelectric capacity”, as the authorities themselves commented.
Also included in this plan is the possible launch of a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) in the short term. According to the count of Atlantic Council, Fiji and Tonga are in the search phase; the work is being carried out in conjunction with the private Japanese company Soramitsu.
Fiji has a nominal GDP in dollars of $5 billion, making it the 152nd largest producing country in the world. 11% of this is due to remittances from abroad. With BTC as legal tender, shipping costs will be significantly reduced. The case of El Salvador, once again, is an example.
The other two large countries in Oceania have not shown the same interest as the rest in terms of cryptocurrencies, but they are behind their CBDC. Australia is carrying out pilot tests of what will be its virtual dollar, while New Zealand is in the research stage.
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