Stigma and misinformation about HIV/AIDS could be a contributing factor to its increase in the country, says UNAIDS Pacific Advisor and Fiji director Renata Ram.

Fiji, she said, had a generation of young people who had poor knowledge of HIV/AIDS.

“Because of this poor HIV knowledge, this fuels stigma,” Ms Ram said.

“Because when you don’t know something, and there’s so much information and misinformation available online as well, it becomes problematic.”

Ms Ram said she had met individuals would ask about HIV. “And they’re like, ‘oh, if I kiss someone, can I get HIV?’ So, basic HIV information is not out there, and we really need to do more.”

She said Fiji needed to revamp its education programs on HIV/AIDS in schools.

“This has fallen off, and we really need to have more out of school areas for information as well. And it’s not only about information, it’s about promoting behaviour change.”

She said a lot of effort was needed to address misinformation and strong sources of good information were needed.

“The Internet can be a vehicle for change, but it can also have its negative impacts for a space where misinformation is just thriving.”

She said COVID was a clear example of how misinformation prevented people from getting the services they needed.

Ms Ram made these comments during an interview with The Fiji Times online portal The Lens@177.