Vaileka

Vaileka commonly known as Rakiraki town is an

urban Urban means "related to a city". In that sense, the term may refer to: * Urban area, geographical area distinct from rural areas * Urban culture, the culture of towns and cities Urban may also refer to: General * Urban (name), a list of people ...

centre in

Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...

, in the

Rakiraki Rakiraki () is a district in Fiji's Ra Province. It is located between Tavua and Korovou when travelling along the Kings Road, on the northern coast of Viti Levu, Fiji's largest island. At the 1996 census, the Rakiraki district had a population ...

region of

Ra Province Ra is one of the fourteen provinces of Fiji. Occupying the northern area of Viti Levu, the largest island, it is one of eight Viti Levu-based Provinces. With a land area of 1341 square kilometers, it had a population of 30,432 at the 2017 census. ...

. It had a population of 3,361 at the 1996

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

, the last to date. It is not officially a "town," however: that term is legally reserved for urban centres with organized

municipal A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

governments. The status of the area may be changed. The

Fiji Times ''The Fiji Times'' is a daily English-language newspaper published in Suva, Fiji. Established in Levuka on 4 September 1869 by George Littleton Griffiths, it is Fiji's oldest newspaper still operating. ''The Fiji Times'' is owned by Motibhai G ...

reported on 4 October 2006 that Uraia Waqa, Chairman of the

Rakiraki Local Government Authority Rakiraki () is a district in Fiji's Ra Province. It is located between Tavua and Korovou when travelling along the Kings Road, on the northern coast of Viti Levu, Fiji's largest island. At the 1996 census, the Rakiraki district had a population ...

, had called for Vaileka to be officially incorporated as 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 ...

, to be known as Rakiraki Town, in order to attract government investment. Local Government and Urban Development Minister

Chaitanya Lakshman Chaitanya Lakshman (born in 1968) is a Indians in Fiji, Fiji Indian lawyer, social worker and politician who served in the multi-party cabinet of the Laisenia Qarase, Qarase Government as Minister for Local Government. Lakshman was elected from t ...

was reported to be sympathetic to the proposal. Street scene Vaileka

The Penang Sugar Mill is being operated by the

Fiji Sugar Corporation Fiji Sugar Corporation (FSC) is the government-owned sugar milling company in Fiji having monopoly on production of raw sugar in Fiji. It is also the largest public enterprise in the country employing nearly 3,000 people, while another 200,000 o ...

on the banks of the

Penang River This is a list of the rivers of Fiji. They are listed by island in clockwise order, starting at the north end of each island. Tributaries are listed under the parent stream. Gau * Wailevu River (Gau) Ovalau * Lovoni River Taveuni * Somoso ...

, about one kilometer outside of the township. FSC Mill Penang

Vaileka is twinned with

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

town

Kenmare Kenmare () is a small town in the south of County Kerry, Ireland. The name Kenmare is the anglicised form of ''Ceann Mara'', meaning "head of the sea", referring to the head of Kenmare Bay. Location Kenmare is located at the head of Kenmare ...

since 2015. {{Coord, 17, 22, S, 178, 9, E, region:FJ_type:isle, display=title Ra Province