Fiji is now listed amongst nations such as Canada, France, the United Kingdom and the US, who are faced with the more infectious Delta strain of the COVID-19 virus.
In its latest epidemiological update, the World Health Organization has relocated Fiji from Delta Plus to Delta.
Delta Plus reflects the B.1.617 strain without further specification of lineage, which was the case of Fiji last week.
Recent studies of the Delta variant in the United Kingdom suggest a possible increased risk of severe disease and support previous observations of increased transmissibility.
Delta and Alpha variant confirmed cases in the United Kingdom from 29 March to 20 May 2021 showed the Delta variant was associated with a possible increased risk of hospitalization.
Fiji’s transmission classification also is still listed as sporadic cases.
WHO says global case and death incidences continued to decrease with over three million new weekly cases and over 73 000 new deaths, a 15% and an 8% decrease respectively, compared to the previous week.
