Praneeta Prakash 
Fiji is witnessing a disturbing surge in HIV infections among adolescents, with the number of young people diagnosed in just six months matching the total adolescent cases recorded in all of last year.
Suva Sexual and Reproductive Health Clinic’s Senior Medical Officer, Dr. Dashika Balak revealed this during the Needle and Syringe Programme Implementation Workshop.
According to Dr. Balak, last year they diagnosed 174 adolescents with HIV and in the first six months of this year alone, they have already diagnosed 174 cases.
Dr. Balak says the escalating infections among adolescents represent one of the most urgent red flags in HIV response.
“The interest age group is 10 to 19, or what we call the adolescents.”
We are diagnosing cases from all age groups.
However, this age group is something that has come up really rapidly.
Dr Balak adds that all divisions in the country are reporting increases, and adolescent diagnoses have doubled within six months.
“So just taking you back, in 2022, we diagnosed only six adolescents. In 2023, we diagnosed 33. And all of last year, it had jumped to 174 diagnoses among the adolescent age group, and majority of the cases among the adolescents are either through sexual transmission or from adolescents who inject drugs.”
Dr. Balak says Fiji has recorded 1,226 new HIV cases between January and June 2025, a 77 percent increase compared to all of 2024, with adolescents now representing one of the most rapidly growing segments of the epidemic.
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