Fiji remains on U.S trafficking watch list for third year: Report

Fiji has remained on the United States’ Tier 2 Watch List for human trafficking for the third consecutive year.

A new U.S State Department report cites a lack of convictions, corruption and insufficient action to protect victims.

The 2026 Trafficking in Persons Report says the Fijian Government does not fully meet the minimum standards for eliminating trafficking and “did not demonstrate overall increasing efforts compared with the previous reporting period”.

The report says Fiji received a waiver from an otherwise required downgrade to Tier 3 because the Government had devoted sufficient resources to a written plan which, if implemented, would constitute significant efforts to meet the minimum standards.

Despite some progress, the report says the Government did not convict any traffickers for the third consecutive year.

It recorded six trafficking investigations and two prosecutions , the first since 2023, while the Government identified 50 trafficking victims and allocated funding for anti-trafficking activities.

The Government also launched an online reporting tool for law enforcement, developed with support from an international organisation.

However, the report identified continuing weaknesses in victim protection and coordination between agencies.

It says the Government did not formally approve or fully implement standard operating procedures for identifying victims, which had been developed during the previous reporting period.

The Government’s interagency working group also did not meet independently to coordinate anti-trafficking efforts, according to the report.

In a particularly serious finding, the report says the Government “did not take sufficient law enforcement or victim protection actions” regarding a religious organisation facing longstanding and significant trafficking allegations involving its businesses across key sectors.

The report further states that “official complicity and corruption undermined anti-trafficking efforts and allowed traffickers to operate with impunity”.

The Tier 2 Watch List classification indicates that Fiji does not fully meet the minimum standards for eliminating trafficking and has not demonstrated the level of increasing efforts required to move off the watch list.

The report says the waiver was granted because the Government had committed sufficient resources to a written plan intended to address the shortcomings.

Fiji’s continued placement on the watch list means the concerns outlined in the report remain unresolved.