Category: Development

“In this early stage of the worldwide inoculation programme, Israel has delivered the vaccines to a higher percentage of its citizens than any other country”, said Special Rapporteurs Michael Lynk and Tlaleng Mofokeng.  While noting that Israel has offered Palestinians with resident status in occupied East Jerusalem the vaccines, they noted however, that it has not ensured that those under occupation… Read More

Alongside monitoring, virus and serum samples should be shared via globally agreed mechanisms so that critical research can be promptly initiated each time, according to the agency.  “Our collective goal is to get ahead of the game and have a global mechanism to quickly identify and study variants of concern and understand their implications for disease control efforts,” said Ana… Read More

“Despite overwhelming evidence of the impact of school closures on children, and despite increasing evidence that schools are not drivers of the pandemic, too many countries have opted to keep schools closed, some for nearly a year”, Henrietta Fore said in a statement.  A high cost  “As we enter the second year of the COVID-19 pandemic, and as cases continue… Read More

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) was briefing journalists in Geneva, a year on from the first ever recorded COVID-19 death. Today, there are more than 1.93 million dead, and nearly 90 million confirmed cases. Limiting #COVID19 transmission limits the chance of dangerous new variants from developing. We need to:-Keep physical distance as much as possible-Keep… Read More

“And we also have the right of first refusal on an additional one billion doses”, World Health Organization (WHO) head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus,  updated journalists in a regular media briefing.  Level playing field  He highlighted however, that of the 42 countries already rolling out the various COVID-19 vaccines which have been cleared for use, 36 are in high income nations.  “There’s… Read More

“We were prepared for a challenging start to 2021 and it has been just that”, Dr. Hans Kluge, WHO Regional Director for Europe, said on Thursday during a virtual press briefing from Copenhagen.  Although new tools against the disease are now available, including several vaccines, and knowledge about the virus has increased, “we remain in the grip of COVID-19”, he… Read More

Throughout the year, the maritime transport industry has managed stay afloat, allowing food, medicine and other essential goods to be transported across the world, to stock the shelves even during the strictest lockdowns. However, many seafarers were forced to stay at sea for several months longer than planned, sometimes for over a year: as 2020 comes to a close, the… Read More

In his first regular media briefing of the new year, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, told journalists that WHO was also “picking up and analyzing hundreds of potential signals every week”, concerning other life-threatening illnesses.   But he made clear the pandemic remains “a major public health crisis”, while assuring that WHO is “working day… Read More

“The children born today enter a world far different than even a year ago, and a New Year brings a new opportunity to reimagine it”, UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta Fore said.  Sorting logistics  As always, the Pacific island nation of Fiji will welcome the first baby of the new year and the United States the last one.  Over half of… Read More

Regulatory experts convened by the World Health Organization (WHO) from around the world and UN agency’s own teams reviewed the data on the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine and found on Thursday that it met WHO’s must-have criteria for safety and efficacy – with its benefits offsetting any potential risks.  “This is a very positive step towards ensuring global access to COVID-19 vaccines,”… Read More