UNAIDS Warns Laws Are Blocking HIV Prevention

Fiji’s HIV outbreak is a public health emergency. Pacific neighbours must step up

AFP via Getty ImagesDelegates attending the Pacific HIV Symposium in Fiji next week will be confronting one of the region’s most urgent health challenges: the fastest growing HIV outbreak in the world. HIV prevalence among adults in Fiji is now 1.6%. This means about one in 60 adults lives with the virus. This is likely the tip of the iceberg: just one-third of people living with HIV in Fiji know their status, and only a quarter are receiving tr…

UNAIDS warns laws are blocking HIV prevention

Fiji’s laws are restricting one of the measures UNAIDS says could help slow the country’s rapidly growing HIV epidemic. UNAIDS Pacific HIV Adviser Renata Ram says a national harm-reduction programme is urgently needed to address the outbreak, which is largely driven by injecting drug use and sexual transmission. She says health workers and community groups […]

New Australian-Backed $8 Million Initiative to Tackle Pacific HIV Crisis Announced

A new Australian-backed programme will support Fiji and neighbouring Pacific nations to strengthen HIV prevention, testing, treatment and community-led care. The 30-month Australian Support for Pacific HIV Action (ASPHA) programme is funded by the Australian Government and will initially focus on Fiji, where new HIV infections have risen sharply. New infections in Fiji increased tenfold […] The post New Australian-Backed $8 Million Initiative to…