Fiji Declares National Emergency as HIV Cases Surge

Fiji has declared a national emergency over a sharp increase in HIV infections and is expanding access to testing, treatment and prevention services.

About one in 60 adults in the Pacific island nation is now estimated to be living with HIV, compared with one in 167 five years ago. Health authorities have also raised concerns over an increasing number of babies dying from HIV-related complications.

Fiji recorded 2,016 new HIV diagnoses in 2025, Health Minister Atonio Lalabalavu said, adding that “an outbreak-level response is no longer sufficient.”

Health experts and nongovernmental organisations have linked the surge to factors including drug use, unsafe sex, needle sharing and a practice known as “bluetoothing” or “hotspotting.”

The practice involves people who inject drugs using the blood of individuals who are already intoxicated. It is believed to have contributed to HIV outbreaks in parts of Africa and the Pacific.

One reason for the practice is that several people can contribute money toward one dose of drugs and share it. Limited access to clean syringes is also believed to be a factor.

As part of its response, the Fijian government plans to introduce a formal needle and syringe programme. Lalabalavu said the country already had sufficient supplies, while legislative amendments would be introduced in Parliament to enable the programme to begin.

The government is also expanding access to free and confidential HIV testing, treatment, prevention medicines such as pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, and harm-reduction services.

Lalabalavu urged residents to get tested and called for an end to stigma against people living with HIV.

“No one should be ashamed, threatened, or excluded because of their HIV status,” he said. “Stigma drives people away from the very services that can help them.”

According to the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS, an estimated 9,100 people were living with HIV in Fiji in 2025. However, only 39% knew their status, while just 22% were receiving antiretroviral treatment, compared with a global treatment average of 78%.

The crisis is placing additional pressure on Fiji’s health system. Jason Mitchell, who leads the country’s national HIV response task force, said it could take more than five years for Fiji to bring the epidemic under control.

UNAIDS welcomed the emergency declaration, saying it reflected the urgency required to strengthen the response across government and society.

“It is also a stark reminder to the world that AIDS is not over,” UNAIDS Executive Director Winnie Byanyima said. “HIV epidemics can change quickly, and countries need health and community systems that are ready to respond urgently.”