Fiji has approximately 7000 HIV cases, according to Finance Minister Biman Prasad.
He told the parliamentary budgetary session on Friday the HIV epidemic was a serious growing threat to Fiji.
“We cannot afford to ignore this rising trend,” Prof Prasad said.
“This is a very serious issue, which, if not managed well, could be a health disaster in the making.”
Mr Prasad said drug use and needle-sharing were responsible for 50 per cent of the increase in HIV cases.
“So, while we continue to struggle with the drug issue, this new threat is rising rapidly, induced by the sharing of needles and drug-related blood transfusion or what is known as blue-toothing.”
To fight this, he said the Government has allocated $10million for a comprehensive approach to testing, prevention, public awareness and control of the illness.
“We are determined to tackle this emergency before it becomes an uncontrollable national crisis.
“These actions represent a clear and coordinated response to crime, drugs and public health threats.”
Prof Prasad said Government had made it clear that safety, security and the health of our people were national priorities and it “will act decisively to uphold them”.
St Giles Hospital’s principal medical officer Dr Sheetal Singh said in just one year, they had seen approximately 98 HIV cases in patients at the hospital.
“Over the past five years, we have seen more than 120 child and adolescent cases,” Dr Singh said.
“That means these 120 cases are under 18 years of age and they have a diagnosis of mental illness.”
Speaking during the launch of the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking on Monday, she said more than 85 per cent of the 120 cases had a history of substance use.
