Fiji recorded 2,003 new HIV diagnoses in 2025, a sharp rise from 1,583 reported in 2024, Health Minister Dr Ratu Atonio Lalabalavu told parliament, underscoring a rapidly worsening epidemic that the government has formally declared an outbreak. The ministry says the national diagnosis rate has surged to 226 per 100,000 people — a dramatic increase from just 13 per 100,000 in 2019 — prompting plans for a faster, larger and sustained national response.
Dr Lalabalavu warned lawmakers the epidemic is moving beyond traditional high‑risk groups into the broader community, with women and families increasingly affected. Antenatal HIV prevalence is now estimated at 3.1 percent nationally, the minister said, a signal that transmission is reaching pregnant women and raising concerns about mother‑to‑child transmission unless testing and treatment coverage is expanded and strengthened.
To coordinate the response, the government has established the National HIV Outbreak and Cluster Response Taskforce. The move formalises efforts to map clusters, accelerate testing, ensure rapid linkage to treatment and mount targeted prevention activities. But the minister cautioned that a critical staffing shortfall threatens the scale and speed of the response: only 23 of the 167 positions deemed necessary to support the national effort have been filled so far.
The latest figures extend a trend first flagged in 2024, when authorities reported 1,583 new infections and rising HIV‑related deaths. Earlier ministry briefings indicated the Central Division accounted for the bulk of cases and that young adults — particularly those aged 20 to 29 — were disproportionately affected, with men comprising a large share of diagnoses. Officials have previously acknowledged gaps in linking newly diagnosed people to sustained care even as many who reach services are started on antiretroviral treatment.
Health officials say the new taskforce is intended to rapidly scale up testing, contact tracing and cluster investigation, while coordinating with development partners and community organisations to expand prevention and treatment access. Dr Lalabalavu told parliament the government is intensifying outreach and surveillance to identify transmission hotspots and bring more people into care, but said manpower and resources remain the primary constraints to a timely, effective response.
Public health experts and community groups have urged an urgent push to fill the taskforce and frontline posts, increase access to antenatal testing, and broaden prevention messaging beyond traditionally targeted groups. The rise in antenatal prevalence heightens the need for routine testing in pregnancy, timely initiation of treatment, and strengthened interventions to prevent mother‑to‑child transmission.
The ministry did not provide a date for when the remaining positions will be filled or a detailed timeline for the taskforce’s rollout. The announcement marks the latest development in an unfolding public health emergency that officials say will require sustained national commitment and international support to reverse the recent surge in infections. By Litia Rabua Tukunia.
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