Litia Cava 
The challenges surrounding psycho-social support for Fijian children have seen a significant and troubling surge.
Permanent Secretary for Education Selina Kuruleca highlights that over the last three years, incidents of violence and bullying within primary schools have reached record-breaking numbers.
Kuruleca noted an alarming tally of approximately 90,000 reported cases.
“We have psychosocial challenges, and again, COVID-19 really brought this to the forefront, but anyone of you in the room, perhaps across the region, also knows that we have a Substance Abuse Advisory. It’s a statutory body that reports to the Ministry of Education, but its primary function is to support or provide psychosocial support to our children.”
Kuruleca states that this issue extends to our secondary schools, where cases of mental health concerns have seen a concerning uptick in the last three years.
The Substance Abuse Advisory Council recorded 50,000 reported cases.
Kuruleca says these statistics shed light on a critical issue affecting our education system and the well-being of our students.
Meanwhile, Substance Advisory Council Chief Josua Naisele has expressed grave concern over the persistent issue of bullying.
In 2021, there were 4,064 reported cases, a number only slightly lower than 4,034 in 2022.
“That is what we have seen, and the effects of violence are actually the violence cases that are happening in school, including punching, beating, slapping, swearing, disrespect, and name-calling.”
The gravity of these numbers highlights the urgency of addressing this issue in Fijian schools.
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