In an effort to address the gravity of suicide among youth, the Ministry of Education has taken a stand to champion the fight against suicide.

Permanent Secretary for Education, Selina Kuruleca says students and teachers will wear an article of yellow or orange accessory or clothing to advocate on the prevention of suicide.

Kuruleca says they have undertaken the initiative as the statistics have been alarming, with at least five attempts for every completed suicide.

“We have over 207,000 children registered from ECE to year 13 in our schools throughout Fiji. And for us, this fight against suicide is extremely, extremely important.”

Permanent Secretary for Education, Selina Kuruleca

Kuruleca says they have also taken a stance to change the narrative on suicide, with the provision of counselling hubs to provide support for students struggling with mental health.

According to Fiji Police Force, there has been a slight decline in suicide overall; with 63 cases recorded between January and August this year compared to 66 cases for the same period last year.

It was noted that there was a higher prevalence of suicide among males with 50 cases, while there were eight cases of suicide and five cases of suicide among individuals below the age of 18.