COVID-19 pandemic in Fiji

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The COVID-19 pandemic in Fiji is part of the ongoing worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first case of the disease in Fiji was reported on 19 March 2020 in Lautoka. as of 3 January 2022^[update], the country has had a total of 55,009 cases as of which 2,417 are currently active and 702 deaths, with cases reported on all divisions of the country. Apart from the COVID-19 deaths, 621 COVID-19 positive patients have died from pre-existing non-COVID-19 related illnesses. In March 2021, Fiji became the first Pacific island country to receive COVID-19 vaccines through the COVAX initiative with frontline workers and first responders the first to be vaccinated. As of 2 January 2022, more than 600,000 (98%) Fijians have received their first jab of the vaccine and almost 560,000 (92%) Fijians have received their second jab and are fully vaccinated. To date, only the AstraZeneca vaccine, Moderna vaccine and the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine have been deployed in the country. The country have also administered booster shots. Vaccination is mandated, however only to the adult population.

In the early stages of the pandemic, Fiji imposed travel bans on highly affected countries. As the pandemic worsened, Fiji closed all borders and ports to non-residents. Ports were closed on 16 March 2020 and the main international airport in Nadi was closed on 26 March 2020. Returning citizens were required to self-isolate at a government funded facility for 14 days, supervised by Health Officials and the Military. Domestically, the government responded by imposing a national curfew, restricting large gatherings and closing down schools and non-essential services. The government imposed lockdowns in the two largest cities of Lautoka and Suva and developed a contact tracing app named careFIJI. The government established a Centre for Disease Control for COVID-19 testing and built fever clinics nationwide for temperature checks. Such measures helped eliminate local transmissions of the virus for more than a year.

From July 2020 to April 2021, Fiji only recorded cases from managed quarantine facilities at the border as repatriation flights brought stranded citizens back home. This has allowed the country to relax its COVID-19 restrictions to boost its economic recovery however on 19 April 2021, Fiji confirmed its first community case as a result of a breach in protocol.^[3] In response, the township of Nadi and the city of Lautoka went into a lockdown and previous health restrictions were re-imposed all over the country with the national curfew restored. As local transmission cases soared exacerbated by the Delta variant, the Government sealed off the main island of Viti Levu establishing Suva, Lautoka, Nadi, Nausori, Rakiraki and Lami as containment areas which meant that over 70% of the population was now in lockdown. The government also activated FEMAT (Fiji Emergency Medical Assistance Team) in Suva and Lautoka. The virus penetrated prominent hospitals of Fiji including the Fiji CDC, Lautoka Hospital and the headquarters of the Ministry of Health which prompted senior health officials to go into self isolation. High number of cases continue to be recorded from the Western and Central division, with daily records being broken almost every second day. Despite this, the government has ruled out any possibility of a nationwide lockdown adding that their directive would be on targeted lockdowns instead.^[4]

The government rolled out unemployment benefits and provided food rations to targeted communities that were under lockdowns. In August 2021, the Ministry of Health suspended its contact tracing efforts and as a result, the daily number of confirmed cases dropped. The country's fastest vaccination rate was also another factor that contributed to the decrease in cases. By 10 October, the country surpassed the 80% threshold for fully vaccinated individuals which prompted the government to ease restrictions nation-wide and announcing the re-opening of the country's domestic and international border to fully vaccinated individuals. The government also announced the resumption of school as the country has also begun vaccinating its younger population aged 12 to 17 with the Pfizer BioNtech and Moderna COVID-19 vaccine.

The pandemic forced Fiji to reduce its interest rate. The country's economy is expected to contract after decades of economic growth due to the pandemic's impact on tourism, retail, manufacturing and trade. The International Labour Organisation and the Asian Development Bank issued reports about workers being affected and warned about the rising youth unemployment rate and child labour. The impacts has also prompted residents to leave the country for short term employment overseas. There were even reported incidents of racism and xenophobia against Chinese people or to those perceived as such. Misinformation and conspiracy theories surfaced about the COVID-19 vaccines, the origin of the virus and the government's response to the pandemic. Domestic violence and assault cases against women also increased as a result of lockdowns. Protests also broke out in lockdown communities due to the delay of delivering rations as well as unemployment.

As of 24 February 2023, a total of 1,553,053 vaccine doses have been administered.^[5]