Source: World Health Organzation (WHO) - Zimbabwe |

United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and World Health Organization (WHO) Representatives Visit Henderson Clinic to Ensure Quality of Polio Vaccination Campaign in Zimbabwe

The campaign, aimed to vaccinate all children under the age of five against the poliovirus, is part of Zimbabwe’s effort to eradicate the virus, which can cause paralysis and even death

On 25 May 2023, high-level officials from the World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), and the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GEPI) visited the Henderson Clinic in Mazowe, Mashonaland Central Province to monitor the progress and quality of the third round of the nationwide polio vaccination campaign in…

Source: United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) |

Brazil hosts the announcement of the Global Council on Inequality, AIDS and Pandemics

UNAIDS launching group to generate evidence on the inequalities driving pandemics and advocate for the adoption of multisectoral approaches to strengthen the response to AIDS and other pandemics

Brazil is hosting the announcement of the new Global Council on Inequality, AIDS and Pandemics chaired by The First Lady of Namibia, Monica Geingos, the Director of the University College London Institute for Health Equity, Sir Michael Marmot and the Nobel prize winning economist, Joseph E. Stiglitz. Brazil’s Minister of…

Source: World Health Organization (WHO) - Nigeria |

Nigeria: Imo State Government vaccinates over 3000 missed children in the ‘The Big Catch-Up’ campaign

To address the situation, Imo State Government, in collaboration with the World Health Organization and other partners, is intensifying efforts to reach the Zero dose children

In 2020, approximately 50,000 children below age one in Imo State, South East Nigeria, missed the uptake of the Pentavalent Vaccine due to COVID-19 disruption. A single dose of the Pentavalent vaccine is expected to have been taken at the sixth week of age. The Pentavalent vaccine protects a child…

Source: National Institute for Communicable Diseases, South Africa (NICD) |

South Africa: Increase in Flu Cases Across the Country

The 2023 influenza season started in week 17 (week starting 27 April 2023) when the influenza detection rate (3-week moving average) breached the seasonal threshold

Influenza cases at sentinel influenza-like illness (ILI) and pneumonia surveillance sites have been steadily increasing since week 15 (starting 10 April 2023) (figure 1). Private laboratories have also detected increasing numbers of influenza cases, and NICD has received reports of influenza clusters in schools and workplaces. The 2023 influenza season…

Source: World Health Organization - United Republic of Tanzania |

Marburg Virus Disease outbreak in Tanzania declared over

The last confirmed case tested negative for the second test of Marburg on 19 April, setting off the 42-day mandatory countdown to declare the end of the outbreak

Tanzania today declared the end of the Marburg Virus Disease outbreak which was confirmed just over two months ago in the north-western Kagera region. It was the country’s first outbreak of the disease. A total of nine cases (eight confirmed and one probable) and six deaths were recorded in the…

Source: UNICEF South Africa |

New podcast series reflects on childhood in South Africa through and beyond COVID-19

‘Phezulu: Looking Up’ a new eight-part podcast series released today features the stories of the impact of the COVID-19 years on children and youth and the ongoing response to accelerate the recovery for every child – for everyone

The ‘Phezulu: Looking Up’ podcast series launched today by UNICEF South Africa (https://www.UNICEF.org/southafrica/) tells the stories of the impact of the COVID-19 years on children and young people and how,with the right support and opportunities, children and young people are determined to build a safer, fairer and better post pandemic…

World Health Organization (WHO) - Democratic Republic of Congo
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    • First large-scale campaign in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) using innovative polio vaccine
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Source: World Health Organization (WHO) - Democratic Republic of Congo |

First large-scale campaign in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) using innovative polio vaccine

Starting on 1 June 2023, more than 17 million children under the age of five are being targeted in a three-day drive covering 20 provinces

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) today launches its first major immunization campaign using the novel polio vaccine type 2 (nOPV2), to protect children against the devastating consequences of the virus. Although used previously in the country to halt outbreaks of circulating variant poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2), this is…

Source: Médecins sans frontières (MSF) |

Looming health catastrophe in Kenya’s Dadaab refugee camps

The three refugee camps which make up the Dadaab complex, located in Kenya’s north-eastern region, are home to over 300,000 refugees, most from neighbouring Somalia

More funding is urgently needed to avert a looming health catastrophe in Kenya’s Dadaab refugee camps, warns Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) today. A cholera outbreak in the camps has affected 2,786 people so far and there is an imminent risk of outbreaks of other gastro-intestinal diseases. MSF calls for immediate action from donors…

Source: World Health Organzation (WHO) - Zimbabwe |

Zimbabwe starts developing its 2.0 One Health Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) National Action Plan

Zimbabwe was one of the first African countries to put in place its NAP with the objective of reducing the drug resistance index standing at 66.6 per cent against a benchmark of 25 per cent

The Government of Zimbabwe has commenced updating its antimicrobial resistance (AMR) National Action Plan (NAP) 2023-2027, to replace the previous NAP (2017-2021) which had lapsed. The process is being led by the Ministry of Health and Child Care (MoHCC), Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water, Climate and Rural Development and…

FIND
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    • From left to right: Dr Bill Rodriguez (FIND CEO), Dr Ayoade Alakija (WHO Special Envoy for the Access to COVID-19 Tools (ACT) Accelerator, Chair of the African Vaccine Delivery Alliance (AVDA) and Chair of FIND), Bawelile Philomena Sibili Simelane (Government of the Kingdom of Eswatini and lead negotiator of the WHA Resolution on diagnostics), and Dr Kenneth Fleming (Chair, The Lancet Commission on diagnostics) are speaking at a session on a World Health Assembly (WHA) Resolution on diagnostics during Diagnostics Day, an event organized by FIND on the sidelines of WHA at Musée Ariana, Geneva, Switzerland on 24 May 2023
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Source: FIND |

FIND welcomes adoption of historic World Health Assembly Resolution on diagnostics as the organization enters its 20th anniversary year

The Resolution ranges widely, covering testing for infectious and non-communicable diseases and health conditions, for pandemic prevention and preparedness, and to combat antimicrobial resistance

WHA Resolution formally recognizes the vital role of diagnostics in delivering health for all, enabling countries to prioritize the resources needed to ensure everyone who needs a test can get one; A country-led International Alliance for Diagnostics will be formed to support implementation of the Resolution; Adoption of the Resolution…