Ba () is a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

in Fiji, 37 kilometres from Lautoka and 62 kilometres from

Nadi Nadi (pronounced ) is the third-largest conurbation in Fiji. It is located on the western side of the main island of Viti Levu, and had a population of 42,284 at the most recent census, in 2007. A 2012 estimate showed that the population had ...

, inland from the coast of

Viti Levu Viti Levu (pronounced ) is the largest island in the Republic of Fiji. It is the site of the nation's capital, Suva, and home to a large majority of Fiji's population. Geology Fiji lies in a tectonically complex area between the Australian ...

, Fiji's largest island. Covering an area of 327 square kilometres, it had a population of 14,596 at the 1996 census. The town is built on the banks of the Ba River, after which it is named. For a long time, Ba was famous for its soccer team which caused major traffic problems. The old bridge was washed away in the floods of 1990s and a new bridge built downstream. This resulted in the main highway (King's Road) bypassing Ba Town.

Jiaxing City Jiaxing (), alternately romanized as Kashing, is a prefecture-level city in northern Zhejiang province, China. Lying on the Grand Canal of China, Jiaxing borders Hangzhou to the southwest, Huzhou to the west, Shanghai to the northeast, and the p ...

in China is Ba Town's sister city.

Economy

Ba is an agricultural centre, populated mostly by

Indo-Fijians Indo-Fijians or Indian-Fijians (also known as Fiji Indians) are Fijian citizens of Indian descent, and include people who trace their ancestry to various regions of the Indian subcontinent.Girmit by Suresh Prasad Although Indo-Fijians constitu ...

, which makes it a cultural point for tourists.

Sugar cane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of (often hybrid) tall, perennial grass (in the genus '' Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with stout, jointed, fibrous stalk ...

has long been the mainstay of the local economy, but some manufacturing projects have been established over the past fifteen years. Ba is part of the larger

Ba Province Ba is a province of Fiji, occupying the north-western sector of Viti Levu, Fiji's largest island. It is one of fourteen provinces in the nation of Fiji, and one of eight based in Viti Levu. It is Fiji's most populous province, with a population o ...

, geographically the largest of Fiji's fourteen Provinces. The town is also the home of some of Fiji's wealthiest families who own some of the country's most successful business houses.

History

Ba was incorporated as a Town in 1939, and is governed by a 15-member Town Council, whose members elect a

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

from among themselves. In 1987,

Ahmed Bhamji Ahmed Bhamji is a Fiji Indian businessman and National Federation Party politician. At 37 he became the youngest mayor in the country when he was elected the mayor of Ba. In the 1987 general election for the House of Representatives, he won the ...

was elected mayor at the age of 37, which at the time made him the youngest mayor in the country. At the last municipal election held in 2005, 14 of the 15 seats were won by the

National Federation Party The National Federation Party is a Fijian political party founded by A.D. Patel in November 1968, as a merger of the Federation Party and the National Democratic Party. Though it claimed to represent all Fiji Islanders, it was supported, in p ...

, with the remaining seat going to an independent candidate. The mayor was

Parveen Bala Parveen or Parvin or Perveen or Pervin or Parween is a Persian-origin name meaning Pleiades. People Females * Parvin Ahmadinejad (born 1962), Iranian politician * Parvin Ardalan (born 1967), Iranian women's rights activist, writer and journalist ...

until the year 2010. Since then, the office of Mayor has been vacant, and Ba, along with other towns, has been under the control of an Administrator instead. Prominent landmarks include the Rarawai Mill (on the outskirts of the town) and a large

mosque A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...

near the river in the heart of the town. There is also a giant soccer ball in the heart of the town, which symbolizes that Ba is one of the best soccer teams in Fiji. Ba is also known as "Soccer Crazy Town" for its many wins in the national tournaments like IDC and BOG. Ba was also declared to have fallen in the red zone of

Cyclone Winston Severe Tropical Cyclone Winston was the most intense tropical cyclone in the Southern Hemisphere on record, as well as the strongest to make landfall on record, and the most intense tropical cyclone worldwide in 2016. Winston is also the costl ...

which made landfall on 20 February 2016 and claimed 49 lives across Fiji.

Notable people

* Joana Monolagi - artist.

References

Ba Province Populated places in Fiji {{Fiji-geo-stub