File Photo

The National HIV Outbreak Response Taskforce is urging the public and media to interpret HIV data carefully.

It stresses that statistics based on ethnicity should not be seen as a sign of higher risk or blame toward any group.

Senior official Dashika Balak explained that while most recorded HIV cases are among the iTaukei population, this reflects higher testing rates and engagement with health services, not differences in behavior or risk.

She says that according to last year’s statistics, around 90% of reported cases were among the iTaukei population, 8% among Indo-Fijians, and about 1% in other groups.

Health authorities cautioned that these numbers reflect testing coverage and outreach reach, not infection prevalence.

“Again, it is very crucial that how we narrate this graph as well or this test as well. We are not saying that we have high-risk behaviours or it’s the Fijian population that is spreading the disease in the country. Because again, these are the populations who are openly coming and accessing services in our clinics. These are the populations that are getting more tested in our clinics or hospitals. Therefore, the numbers obviously in this population will be higher because there’s more intervention happening in this population.”

Balak says that conversations around sexual health remain a sensitive topic across all communities in Fiji. Cultural norms, stigma, and taboos surrounding sex and drug use continue to pose challenges for public health education.

She adds that conversation regarding sex is still a bit taboo in the country, regardless of the population however, some populations, it’s more acceptable to talk about these things which makes it easier to provide intervention, whereas in some populations, it is not.

UNAIDS country Director Renata Ram says that providing support to every person should be the priority.

“Reducing harm, reducing infection, so that a person doesn’t need to have HIV for the rest of their life. And then if they decide to stop, how will this happen? And do we support that to happen.”

Health experts reiterated that HIV affects people of all backgrounds and that access to testing and treatment is vital for everyone. They also reminded the public that stigma and misinformation can discourage people from seeking care, ultimately harming the fight against HIV.

Stream the best of Fiji on VITI+. Anytime. Anywhere.