The Fiji government was urged to raise the level of the influenza pandemic alert to phase six.

With this announcement, Fiji's Health Minister Neil Sharma said on Friday that Influenza A/H1N1 was a moderate disease but more alertness needed to be activated as the movement of people in and out of Fiji continued to grow.

Sharma said the Ministry of Health was alerted by the World Health Organization representative in Fiji, Chen Ken, on Friday about the alert from phase 5 to 6.

"Fiji recognizes the continuing spread of the virus around the world," he said.

Sharma said the designation of this phase indicates that a global pandemic is underway and that it is no longer possible to contain the virus in a particular geographical area.

"Based on knowledge from other affected countries in the world Fiji recognizes that the current H1N1 infection is of mild to moderate severity which varies from country to country," he said.

The Fiji government will continue to monitor the situation closely.

"At this stage Fiji is making adjustments to tailor its response measures to the new phase of H1N1 transmission and clinical spectrum," Sharma said.

He added that during this period the capacity of the health sector in the country will be emphasized to cater for any confirmed cases.

Information too will continue to be disseminated so people are made aware and their families protected.

"We will also monitor the presence of flu like illness in the communities and continue work with technical partners like WHO, Secretariat of the Pacific Community and AUSAid," said Sharma.

He said the Health Department in Fiji will check borders for incoming sea vessels and aircraft to ensure health declarations are issued before people step on land.

They will also continue to screen at the rival lounges at the Nadi International Airport.

"While all this is happening educational materials and alerts will be disseminated at ports of entries to warn travelers about the virus and the precautionary measure they need to take," said Sharma.

So far, there is no confirmed cases of Influenza A/H1N1 in Fiji.

(Xinhua News Agency June 12, 2009)