Description : Suva is the capital and largest metropolitan city in Fiji. It is located on the southeast coast of the island of Viti Levu, in the Rewa Province, Central Division. In 1877, it was decided to make Suva the capital of Fiji, as the geography of former main European settlement at Levuka on the island of Ovalau, Lomaiviti province proved too restrictive. The administration of the colony was moved from Levuka to Suva in 1882. In return for a promise to pay off debts owed to the United States by the Bauan chieftain, Seru Epenisa Cakobau, the Australian-based Polynesia Company was granted 5,000 km2 (1,900 sq mi) of land, 575 km2 (222 sq mi) of it near what was then the village of Suva, in 1868. The original intention was to develop a cotton farming industry, but the land and climate proved unsuitable. Following the cession of the Fiji Islands to the United Kingdom in 1874, the colonial authorities decided to move the capital to Suva from Levuka, Ovalau, Lomaiviti in 1877, as Levuka's location, between a steep mountain and the sea, made any expansion of the town impractical. The transfer was made official in 1882. Colonel F.E. Pratt of the Royal Engineers was appointed Surveyor-General in 1875 and designed the new capital, assisted by W. Stephens and Colonel R.W. Stewart. Following the promulgation of the Municipal Constitution Ordinance of 1909, Suva acquired municipal status in 1910. The town initially comprised one square mile; these boundaries remained intact until 1952 when the Muanikau and Samabula wards were annexed, expanding its territory to 13 km2 (5.0 sq mi). In October that year, Suva was proclaimed a city – Fiji's first. Tamavua was subsequently annexed; the most recent extension of the city boundaries has been to incorporate the Cunningham area to the north of the city. Urban sprawl has resulted in a number of suburbs that remain outside of the city limits; together with the city itself, they form a metropolitan area known as the Greater Suva Area. The city hosted the 2003 South Pacific Games, being the third time in the event's 40-year history that they had been held in Suva. As part of the hosting of the event, a new gymnasium and indoor sports centre, swimming pool, and stadium; field hockey pitch; and stands were built in the area around Suva, funded by the government and a $16 million People's Republic of China aid package.
See on map »