Tourism Fiji has announced the appointment of three new highly experienced and knowledgeable directors to its board. The three are Josephine Smith-Moffat, Loretta St Julian-Ooms and Tammie Tam.

They join the existing board members of Andre Viljoen (chair), Shaheen Ali, Neeraj Chadha, Petaia Tuimanu and Ajay Raniga. The appointments come at a very critical time for the organisation and the tourism industry.

Tourism Fiji chairman, Andre Viljoen, welcomed the appointments and said: “I am delighted to welcome the three new directors to our board. As we navigate a way forward through the disruption caused by COVID-19, their contributions to ensure Tourism Fiji delivers the leadership required to get our industry back on track will be invaluable.”

Director Josephine Smith-Moffat said: “I thank the Fijian government for their continued support of the tourism industry and I look forward to serving on the board of Tourism Fiji as it forges ahead during these incredibly challenging times.”

Tammie Tam added: “To be appointed as a director of Tourism Fiji at this time is very challenging for me but I am honoured. I have never experienced anything like this in my 40 years in the hotel business and no one has. We are now all experiencing the pain under the current crisis with Fiji without tourism. However, I am confident we can overcome this crisis and revive Fiji tourism to pre-COVID-19 level with our faith, hard work, dedication, and commitment.”

“Although we are facing a very challenging period, I am committed to working with the board, Tourism Fiji staff and tourism partners to rebuild our industry and be able to share again with the world our Bula spirit,” said director Loretta St Julian-Ooms.