Category: Development

“We’re asking you to make these urgent donations by August and to set out a roadmap to scale up donations as supplies increase”, wrote the celebrities, influencers and activists.  Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Billie Eilish were among those highlighting that the Summit provides a vital opportunity for the G7 intergovernmental group of leading countries to agree actions that will get… Read More

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director General of the World Health Organization (WHO), said unequal distribution of vaccines has allowed the virus to continue spreading, thus increasing odds of a variant emerging that could render these treatments ineffective.  Increasingly, we see a two-track #COVID19 pandemic: many countries still face an extremely dangerous situation, while some of those with the highest vaccination rates… Read More

The seventh Sustainable Development Goal (SDG), SDG7, aims to ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all.   However, those nations which remain most off the grid, are set to enter 2030 without meeting this goal unless efforts are significantly scaled up, warns the new study entitled Tracking SDG 7: The Energy Progress Report, published by the International… Read More

“This week, we’ll probably pass the two billion doses – if we have not already passed it…in terms of number of doses of these vaccines, these new COVID vaccines that have actually been developed. And these have been distributed now in over 212 countries,” said Dr Bruce Aylward, Head of the Access to COVID-19 Tools Accelerator (ACT-A) Hub. Dr. Aylward,… Read More

The plan seeks to scale-up supplies of vaccines, tests and treatments, thus reducing the “equity gap” in developing countries, the leaders of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank Group (WBG), the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Trade Organization (WTO) said in a joint statement.  Vaccine access key  They warned that unless governments act now, continued waves… Read More

According to the UN health agency, the finding that smokers were more likely to develop severe disease with COVID-19 compared to non-smokers, triggered millions of people to want to quit tobacco. But without adequate support, quitting can be incredibly challenging. On World No Tobacco Day 2021, the agency reminded that the nicotine found in tobacco is highly addictive and creates… Read More

In closing comments to the WHO’s annual week-long high-level assembly, Tedros said that a potential international treaty will be discussed in a special session of WHO members in November. Although COVID cases and deaths are declining globally, Tedros insisted that the “way out” was through “tailored and consistent” public health measures in combination with equitable vaccination. Vaccination call The WHO… Read More

Speaking during his latest briefing from Geneva, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus pushed for more developers to support the COVID-19 Technology Access Pool (C-TAP), the voluntary platform for sharing scientific knowledge, data and intellectual property.   “We’re holding the door open for pharmaceutical companies that have become household names, although too few households have benefited from the life-saving tools they have developed”,… Read More

Participating in the Global Solutions Summit 2021, the UN chief stressed the need to defeat the virus through doubling the number of doses produced and ensuring their fair distribution among countries.  We are in an unprecedented crisis that requires unprecedented action. Collaboration between countries, communities, public & private sectors is key. By working together, we can vaccinate the world, end… Read More

“This is indeed much more than a health crisis. It’s a social crisis and an economic crisis, with dramatic long-term consequences for livelihoods, businesses, and for economies”, he said to a virtual roundtable event – part of the UN’s global campaign, #OnlyTogether – hosted jointly with the IKEA Foundation and Purpose – the social mobilisation organization which partners with the Department… Read More