Fiji now ranks as the second fastest-growing HIV epidemic in the Asia-Pacific region, only behind the Philippines, with HIV killing 25 people in 2021.

The number rose to 46 in 2022 and 82 in 2023, with 13 deaths recorded so far this year.

The Minister for Health and Medical Services, Dr. Atonio Lalabalavu, while responding to a statement in parliament on the National HIV Surge Strategy, says this has forced the government to unveil its National HIV Surge Strategy for 2024-2027, aimed at combating a significant rise in new HIV infections in the country.

Dr. Lalabalavu says the alarming HIV statistics reveal a staggering 260 percent increase in new HIV cases since 2010.

He also highlighted that, for the first time since reporting the first HIV case in 1989, the Ministry has recorded new infections in the hundreds.

“There were 121 new cases in 2021, 245 in 2022, and 115 in 2023. The first half of 2024 has already seen a dramatic rise, with 552 new cases reported from January to June. Alarmingly, 97 percent of these new cases were diagnosed in adults, while the remaining three percent were in children under ten.”

A breakdown of the cases reveals a regional disparity in the prevalence of HIV.

The Central and Eastern Division accounted for 69% of the new infections, equating to 380 cases, while the Western Division saw 151 new cases or 27 percent, and the Northern Division reported 90 cases or three percent.

69% of those newly diagnosed were male, and mother-to-child transmission has seen a rise, with 14 new infections in 2022, 8 in 2023, and six so far in 2024.

Dr. Lalabalavu also addressed the concerning trend in age-related deaths associated with HIV, which have increased over recent years.