The Ministry of Finance would like to express its hearty congratulations to PS Shiri Gounder for his reappointment as the Permanent Secretary for Finance for his second term.
Minister for Finance, Commerce and Business Development, Hon. Esrom Immanuel welcomed the reappointment by the Public Service Commission and acknowledged the stability and continuity that this will provide to the Ministry of Finance.
Mr Gounder is a loyal and dedicated civil servant of Fiji who has served in the public sector for almost 2 decades, including around 5 years as the PS Finance.
During his tenure, he has shown great leadership in steering the nation through the COVID-19 pandemic and post pandemic economic recovery and supporting various public financial management and socio-economic reforms.
Given his vast exposure at the Ministry of Finance, he has a wealth of knowledge and expertise in areas like budget formulation & execution, macroeconomic policy, monetary policy, development planning, debt financing, management of Government guarantees and fiscal risks, taxation and customs policies, financial reporting, accounting policy advise, internal and external audit management, public procurement and overall public administration.
His involvement as a director on key Government Boards like the Reserve Bank of Fiji, Fiji National Provident Fund, Fiji Revenue and Customs Service, Energy Fiji Limited, Fiji Airways, Unit Trust of Fiji, USP Council has provided him with a lot of exposure in complex commercial and investment decision making.
As Fiji’s lead representative dealing with multilateral institutions like the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, International Monetary Fund and other major development/donor partners, Mr Gounder has an excellent knowledge on international financial architecture and development finance. Mr Gounder has a great reputation amongst our development partners and donors.
Apart from his leadership and technical expertise, he is valued amongst his staff, peers and stakeholders for his integrity, professionalism, impartiality, strong moral foundations, team spirit and patriotism. His problem-solving skills, out of the box thinking, ability to deliver under extreme pressure and firm decision making is commendable and admired by many.
Mr Gounder is a recipient of the 2024 Civil Service Award given by His Excellency, the President of Fiji for his great contribution and leadership in the civil service.
Mr Gounder has a Master’s with High Distinction in International and Development Economics from the Australian National University and a Post Graduate Diploma and Bachelor of Arts in Accounting and Economics from the University of the South Pacific.
