Small business in small islands: a case study from Fiji.(Global Perspectives)

Journal of Small Business Management, October, 1999 by Baldacchino, Godfrey

Historically, the economic performance of small island states has been viewed in a critical, often fatalistic, light. Smallness brings with it an inability to exploit domestic scale economies, a lack of commercial or diplomatic clout, and given that small island nations are often distant from major commercial hubs, they often incur the added costs associated with insularity and remoteness. Small territories have high import sensitivities and relatively narrow export bases which render them especially vulnerable to exogenous shocks, such as fluctuations in world commodity price levels, military interventions, and environmental mishaps. With gross national expenditure often outpacing local value added, aid and personal remittances are often sought to balance budgets....