“For all of these reasons, I have decided that the global monkeypox outbreak represents a public health emergency of international concern”, the World Health Organization’s Director, Tedros Adhanom Gebreyesus, announced on Sunday during a press conference. Tedros indicated that the current risk of Monkeypox is moderate globally and in all regions, except in the European region where the risk is… Read More

The plan prioritizes vaccinating 100 per cent of healthcare workers and vulnerable groups, including older persons and those with underlying conditions, in line with efforts to vaccinate 70 per cent of the global population.  More than 12 billion COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered worldwide to date, resulting in countries reaching 60 per cent of their populations on average.  Yet… Read More

The committee first met last month but decided against declaring it a public health emergency of international concern. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus acknowledged his “acute” awareness that any decision regarding the possible determination involves “the consideration of many factors, with the ultimate goal of protecting public health”. The committee has already helped “delineate the dynamics of this outbreak,” he… Read More

The warning from the World Health Organization (WHO) comes in its first ever report on the health of refugees and migrants, published on Wednesday.  It calls for urgent action to ensure people on the move can access healthcare services that are sensitive to their needs.  “Whether by choice or by force, to be on the move is to be human… Read More

The figures released by the World Health Organization (WHO) and UN Children’s Fund UNICEF, show the percentage of children who received three doses of the vaccine against diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (DTP3) – a marker for immunization coverage within and across countries – fell five points between 2019 and 2021, to 81 per cent. 1⃣8⃣ million children did not receive… Read More

“And more than 75 per cent of emerging infectious diseases, are caused by pathogens shared with wild or domestic animals,” WHO Regional Director for Africa Matshidiso Moeti told journalists at a media briefing. “They account for a substantial burden of disease, resulting in about a billion sick people, and millions of deaths globally every year”. Zoonotic spike The analysis finds that… Read More

The gender pay gap in the health and care sector: a global analysis in the time of COVID-19, was published by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the World Health Organization (WHO).   It documents a raw gender pay gap of roughly 20 percentage points which jumps to 24 percentage points when factors such as age, education and working time… Read More

According to a new update on Wednesday from the World Health Organization (WHO), 35 countries in five regions of the world have now reported more than 1,010 probable cases of unexplained severe acute hepatitis, or liver inflammation, in youngsters, since the outbreak was first detected on 5 April. So far, 22 children have died, and almost half of the probable cases have been reported in… Read More

He reported that the Emergency Committee on COVID-19 last Friday concluded that “the virus remains a Public Health Emergency of International Concern”. And while acknowledging that we are in a much better position than at the beginning of the pandemic, he reminded that new waves demonstrate the COVID-19 pandemic “is nowhere near over”.   Combined challenges Tedros outlined interlinked challenges… Read More