It's a 'Stark Reminder That AIDS Is Not Over'

Fiji has put an alarming number on paper: one in every 60 adults is now living with HIV. The government this week labeled the virus a national health crisis after logging 2,016 new diagnoses in 2025—16 times the 2019 figure—in a country of just over 900,000 people. Officials say infections, once concentrated among sex workers and people who inject drugs, are now spreading more broadly, though the AP reports that some analysts say the crisis has been partly fueled by a surge in injected methamphetamine use. One in every 500 pregnant women is now infected, and 59 babies were born with HIV last year, reports AFP.

In response, Fiji is expanding free and confidential testing, prevention drugs, harm-reduction services, and treatment, backed by partners including Australia, New Zealand, India, the UN, and the Global Fund. UNAIDS, which estimates only 39% of Fijians with HIV know their status and only 22% are receiving antiretroviral treatment, welcomed the move as urgent but stressed it is "a call for action, not fear." Fiji's crisis is "a stark reminder to the world that AIDS is not over," says UNAIDS Executive Director Winnie Byanyima.