A landowner in Niue wants an overhaul of land laws to encourage development.
Hiva Levy says the absence, off island, of many owners, is a major problem for those still on Niue who want to develop the land but can't move forward when families living offshore object.
He also says developers lose interest when the approval process takes too long.
Currently the constitution supports communal land titles but Hiva Levy says it needs updating to ensure local people's needs are being met.
"But there are absentees who've been away for 20 to 30 years. And that's the point for me alone, I don't like y'know because our land tenure is such that regardless of how long you went away, you still have an interest in the land that I propose to put my project on"
Hiva Levy.
Most Niueans now live in New Zealand.
