Education Minister Aseri Radrodro has declared the growing impact of drugs on young people and schools in Fiji a “national emergency”, warning Parliament that criminal networks are increasingly targeting children to act as carriers and couriers. His comments mark a heightened focus on schools as frontline sites in the country’s widening drug crisis and signal a push for intensified prevention and protection measures.
“We cannot and we will not allow our children to be used as pawns in the drug trade,” Radrodro told MPs. He warned that the recruitment of students into distribution chains not only threatens children’s safety and futures but also risks driving a rise in HIV infections linked to drug-related behaviours. “We cannot and will not allow drugs to destroy the future of this nation,” he said, adding that protecting students and schools must remain a national priority.
Radrodro said the Education Ministry is working closely with police, health authorities and community organisations on a package of responses aimed at keeping drugs out of schools. Measures he listed include school-based drug awareness programmes, expanded counselling services, early warning systems within schools and targeted HIV prevention campaigns. He urged rapid implementation, saying the country must act quickly to prevent further harm to young people.
The minister’s statement deepens a national conversation that has already seen the government mobilise faith groups, traditional leaders and communities in a “whole-of-nation” approach to the drug problem. Policing Minister Ioane Naivalurua has been among officials pressing for collaborative responses and for stronger international partnerships; Cabinet recently approved a memorandum of understanding to formalise anti-drug cooperation with Indonesia’s National Narcotics Board, aiming to boost intelligence exchange and technical support.
The urgency of Radrodro’s warning is underscored by recent data and initiatives. Police reported 2,446 drug-related incidents between May 2024 and May 2025, including 50 cases involving children, while schools recorded some 3,500 substance-abuse incidents in 2023, according to government and education sector figures cited in prior briefings. International partners have begun to respond: a Japan-UNICEF alliance announced a four-year, US$5.48 million programme in March to reach more than 150,000 young people with prevention and support services.
Radrodro’s intervention shifts attention from broader community mobilisation back into classrooms and student-focused prevention. Education sector officials will face pressure to roll out awareness curricula, counselling and monitoring tools in coordination with health and policing agencies, and to ensure that HIV prevention messaging is integrated where drug use and unsafe behaviours intersect.
As the government expands both enforcement and prevention efforts, the minister reiterated that schools must be shielded from criminal exploitation. “We cannot and will not stand by while HIV infections rise because of preventable, dangerous behaviours linked to drug use,” Radrodro said, calling on MPs and stakeholders to support immediate, school-centred action to protect Fiji’s children.
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