India to donate 10 ambulances to Fiji

Ten ambulances are on their way to the Ministry of Health and Medical Services and a second Jaipur Foot Camp is planned for September.

This was confirmed by the Indian High Commission during a media briefing on Friday, adding to a growing list of health support from New Delhi.

Bibhash Lahiri, Under Secretary for Technical Cooperation at India’s Ministry of External Affairs, said the ambulances are already in the procurement process and will be donated as a grant to Fiji.

“Now we are in the process of donating ambulances for the Ministry of Health – 10 ambulances,” he said.

The announcement comes months after India handed over more than three tonnes of antiretroviral (ARV) drugs worth $2.5 million to Fiji in November last year – the largest single medicine donation India has ever made to Fiji to bolster the country’s HIV response as cases continue to rise.

Mr Lahiri said Fiji can now access Indian medicines at significantly lower prices and that a wide range of medicines are already coming into the country through India’s supply chain.

The September camp will offer free Jaipur Foot fittings – a durable Indian-made prosthetic limb designed for barefoot and rural use to Fijians living with limb disabilities, following a first such camp held in Fiji in 2022.

He flagged growing concern over non-communicable diseases (NCDs), noting Fiji and India face identical pressures — rising obesity, diabetes, and high blood pressure driven by lifestyle changes.

“India and Fiji can work together on this front – we have a mechanism of joint working groups and we can always fight this together,” he said.

India has donated ARV drugs and other medical supplies to Fiji in 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2025, and organised a Jaipur Foot prosthetics camp in 2022, with another confirmed for later this year.