Fiji declares HIV emergency. One in 60 people now have the virus as drug crisis fuels outbreak

The small Pacific nation of Fiji has declared a national HIV emergency as it grapples with surging case numbers, partly driven by a growing methamphetamine problem.

One in every 60 adults in the archipelago of less than a million people are now estimated to have Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) –– bucking a global trend of falling rates of the incurable, but treatable, virus.

A tourism hotspot famed for its friendly culture, white sand beaches and teeming coral reefs, Fiji first declared an outbreak of the virus in January 2025 and ramped up testing, revealing the scale of the spiraling public health crisis.

Declaring the emergency on Tuesday, Health Minister Dr. Atonio Lalabalavu said the country had 2060 new diagnoses of HIV in 2025, calling it a sign of the “seriousness of the epidemic and the urgent, coordinated response our country now needs.”

The epidemic has reached the country’s newborns, with a two-month-old baby becoming the youngest identified patient living with both HIV and tuberculosis (TB), Save the Children Fiji said this week. HIV attacks the immune system and makes it easier to contract TB. Last year, 59 babies acquired HIV from their mother, the organization said.

Five years ago, one in 167 Fijians were estimated to be living with HIV. But in recent years, Fiji has seen a surge in intravenous drug use as the islands have emerged as a crucial transit point for narcotics being trafficked from the Americas to lucrative markets in Australia, New Zealand, and parts of Asia.

This, along with persistent sexual transmission spurred by low condom use and stigma, has made the outbreak difficult to tackle.

The alarming statistics do not capture the full scale of the crisis, said Renata Ram, Fiji Advisor for the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS).

“What concerns me most is the speed of the epidemic and the number of people who may be living with HIV without knowing it,” Ram told CNN.

Only around 39% of people living with HIV in Fiji know their status, and less than a quarter (22%) are on treatment, Ram said.

When left untreated, the virus can progress to Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS), making the body highly susceptible to fatal illnesses and cancers.

Fiji reported 117 HIV-related deaths in 2025, up from 25 in 2021, according to national health statistics.

Fiji’s HIV crisis is caused by multiple factors “but injecting drug use has become a major and rapidly accelerating route of transmission,” Ram said, adding that it is common to share needles.

Massive stockpiles of methamphetamine smuggled onto the islands by cartels have seeped into the local communities, spurring a widespread addiction crisis and straining the local health system.

In 2025, people who inject drugs made up roughly half of new HIV cases in Fiji where a transmission mode was identified, while the other half contracted the virus through sexual transmission, according to national health statistics.

Ram said low condom use, multiple sexual partners, limited testing and stigma are contributing factors.

HIV is spread through the exchange of body fluids from an infected person into the bloodstream of an uninfected person.

One in 50 pregnant women in Fiji are infected with the virus, said Lalabalavu, the health minister. Infected mothers can also pass HIV to their infants during pregnancy, labor and delivery, and breastfeeding.

Fiji’s growing epidemic bucks the trend globally, where enormous progress has been made against HIV.

UNAIDS estimates the number of new HIV infections worldwide has declined by an estimated 42% between 2010 and 2025, Ram said.

“Fiji has experienced an extraordinary increase over essentially the same period,” Ram said.

Fiji’s low rate of people receiving treatment also stands in contrast to the global average, where 78% of people with HIV are accessing treatment.

HIV is “not only a health issue,” said Joeli Colati, Executive Director of Fiji Network Plus, a community organization that supports and advocates for people who are HIV positive.

“It’s also connected to stigma, poverty, transport, confidentiality, fear.”

Colati, who has been living with HIV for 19 years, said there are many reasons why someone may be hesitant to get treatment.

“The reason is not always that somebody does not want treatment,” he said. “It can be fear of being recognized at the HIV clinic.”

Fiji is a deeply religious society, where premarital or casual sex is generally considered taboo.

Colati said there is also a major information gap about HIV in Fiji, with many people not understanding how the virus is transmitted or how effective treatment can be.

In his address Tuesday, Lalabalavu said Fiji will be moving “quickly” to respond to the emergency, expanding testing, treatment and access to pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) –– a preventative medication –– as well as introducing a formal needle and syringe program.

“I ask anyone who may have been exposed to HIV, including through sharing needles or other injecting equipment, or sex without a condom, to come forward for testing. Do not wait until you feel unwell.”

Lalabalavu also encouraged Fijians not to shame, exclude or threaten anyone because of their HIV status, saying “stigma drives people away from the very services that can help them.”

Colati said he knows firsthand what “treatment, support and hope can do.”

“Please don’t let fear make decisions for you,” he said. “Knowing your HIV status gives you the power to do something about it.”

太平洋岛国斐济宣布进入国家艾滋病紧急状态，该国正努力应对不断激增的艾滋病病例，部分原因是日益严重的冰毒问题。

在这个人口不足百万的群岛国家，每 60 名成年人中就有 1 人感染了人类免疫缺陷病毒 (HIV)——这与全球范围内这种无法治愈但可治疗的病毒感染率下降的趋势背道而驰。

斐济是著名的旅游胜地，以其友好的文化、白色沙滩和丰富的珊瑚礁而闻名。2025 年 1 月，斐济首次宣布爆发病毒疫情，并加大了检测力度，揭示了这场不断恶化的公共卫生危机的规模。

卫生部长阿托尼奥·拉拉巴拉武博士周二宣布进入紧急状态，称该国2025年新增2060例艾滋病毒感染病例，并称这表明“疫情的严重性以及我国现在需要采取紧急、协调的应对措施”。

斐济救助儿童会本周表示，疫情已蔓延至该国新生儿，一名两个月大的婴儿成为目前已确诊的感染艾滋病毒和结核病的最年轻患者。艾滋病毒会攻击免疫系统，使人更容易感染结核病。该组织称，去年有59名婴儿从母亲那里感染了艾滋病毒。

五年前，据估计每167名斐济人中就有一人感染艾滋病毒。但近年来，随着斐济成为毒品从美洲走私到澳大利亚、新西兰和亚洲部分地区利润丰厚的市场的重要中转站，斐济的静脉注射吸毒现象激增。

再加上避孕套使用率低和社会歧视导致性传播持续存在，使得疫情难以控制。

联合国艾滋病规划署（UNAIDS）斐济顾问雷纳塔·拉姆表示，这些令人震惊的统计数据并不能反映危机的全部规模。

“我最担心的是疫情蔓延的速度，以及可能有很多感染了艾滋病毒却不自知的人，”拉姆告诉 CNN。

拉姆说，斐济只有约 39% 的艾滋病毒感染者知道自己的感染状况，而接受治疗的人不到四分之一（22%）。

如果不加治疗，病毒会发展成获得性免疫缺陷综合征（艾滋病），使人体极易患上致命疾病和癌症。

根据国家卫生统计数据，斐济2025年报告了117例与艾滋病毒相关的死亡病例，高于2021年的25例。

拉姆表示，斐济的艾滋病危机是由多种因素造成的，“但注射吸毒已成为主要的、且传播速度迅速加快的途径”，他还补充说，共用针头的情况很普遍。

贩毒集团向岛屿走私的大量冰毒已经渗入当地社区，引发了广泛的毒瘾危机，并给当地医疗系统带来了压力。

根据国家卫生统计数据，到 2025 年，在斐济已确定传播途径的新增 HIV 病例中，注射毒品者约占一半，而另一半则通过性传播感染了该病毒。

拉姆表示，避孕套使用率低、性伴侣众多、检测有限以及社会歧视都是造成这种情况的因素。

艾滋病毒是通过感染者体液进入未感染者血液而传播的。

斐济卫生部长拉拉巴拉武表示，斐济每50名孕妇中就有1人感染了艾滋病毒。感染艾滋病毒的母亲在怀孕、分娩和哺乳期间都可能将病毒传染给婴儿。

斐济的艾滋病疫情日益严重，这与全球抗击艾滋病取得巨大进展的趋势背道而驰。

拉姆表示，联合国艾滋病规划署估计，2010 年至 2025 年间，全球新增艾滋病毒感染人数预计下降了 42%。

“在同一时期，斐济的人口增长速度惊人，”拉姆说。

斐济接受治疗的人数比例较低，这与全球平均水平形成鲜明对比，全球有 78% 的艾滋病毒感染者正在接受治疗。

斐济网络加强组织（Fiji Network Plus）执行主任乔利·科拉蒂（Joeli Colati）表示，艾滋病毒“不仅仅是一个健康问题”。该组织是一个支持和倡导艾滋病毒感染者的社区组织。

“它还与污名、贫困、交通、隐私和恐惧有关。”

感染艾滋病毒 19 年的科拉蒂表示，人们不愿接受治疗的原因有很多。

他说：“原因并不总是因为有人不想接受治疗，也可能是害怕在艾滋病诊所被人认出来。”

斐济是一个宗教氛围浓厚的社会，婚前性行为或随意性行为通常被认为是禁忌。

科拉蒂表示，斐济在艾滋病毒方面的信息也存在重大缺口，许多人不了解病毒是如何传播的，也不清楚治疗的有效性。

拉拉巴拉武在周二的讲话中表示，斐济将“迅速”采取行动应对紧急情况，扩大检测、治疗和暴露前预防（PrEP）——一种预防性药物——的获取途径，并推出正式的针头和注射器计划。

“我呼吁所有可能接触过艾滋病毒的人，包括通过共用针头或其他注射器械，或无保护性行为等途径接触过艾滋病毒的人，都主动接受检测。不要等到感觉不适才去做检测。”

拉拉巴拉武还鼓励斐济人不要因为某人的艾滋病毒感染状况而羞辱、排斥或威胁他们，他说：“污名化会使人们远离那些可以帮助他们的服务。”

科拉蒂说，他亲身经历了“治疗、支持和希望”的作用。

“请不要让恐惧左右你的决定，”他说。“了解自己的艾滋病毒感染状况能让你有能力采取行动。”