Category: Development

The death toll in 2019 was 50 per cent higher than a historic low reached in 2016, and all WHO regions saw an increase in cases, adding up to a global total of 869,770.   This year there have been fewer cases, but the COVID-19 pandemic has further set back vaccination efforts, with more than 94 million people at risk… Read More

“We now have the consensus and the commitment of every country to work in an integrated, cross-cutting manner in tackling all the neglected tropical diseases”, said Dr Ren Minghui, WHO Assistant Director-General for Universal Health Coverage, Communicable and Noncommunicable Diseases. 2030 targets The freshly-inked roadmap sets global targets and milestones to prevent, control, eliminate and eradicate 20 neglected tropical diseases… Read More

Marking World Pneumonia Day, on 12 November, UNICEF chief Henrietta Fore, highlighted the coronavirus factor, noting that “while the world grapples with the pandemic and the severe consequences it poses for the most vulnerable, we must not lose sight of the fact that pneumonia continues to claim more than 2,000 young lives every day.”  Every breath counts   UNICEF pointed out… Read More

Arguing that no-one is safe until everyone is safe, the World Health Organization (WHO) has, for several months, been urging countries and scientists to collaborate, in a bid to bring the pandemic under control. This has involved the creation, alongside governments, scientists, foundations, the private sector and other partners, of a groundbreaking platform to accelerate the development of tests, treatments… Read More

Amina Mohammed began her mission in Nigeria on Monday, where she met with President Muhammadu Buhari in the capital, Abuja.  Ms. Mohammed later joined the Vice-President, Finance Minister and UN colleagues to launch the UN Plus Offer, which will support Government efforts to address the socio-economic impact of the pandemic.  The offer seeks to mobilize close to $250 million which will… Read More

Addressing the World Health Assembly, which resumed proceedings on Monday after its annual session in May was cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic, Tedros said the world had achieved a “great convergence” in 2015 when governments adopted the Sustainable Development Goals, the Paris Agreement and the Addis Ababa Action Agenda on finance for development. It’s time to forge a new… Read More

“Many countries heard our call back in January when we rang our highest alarm by calling a public health emergency of international concern”, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) told a regular press briefing in Geneva.  Since then, he explained that they have been working closely with the UN agency, following parameters set out in its… Read More

According to the two UN agencies, immunization rates in some countries have fallen by as much as 50 per cent, with people unable to access health services because of lockdown and transport disruptions, or unwillingness due to fear of contracting COVID-19.  Polio and measles vaccination campaigns, designed to fill gaps in essential services, also had to be paused to prevent… Read More

 One hundred thousand households in Somaliland in northwest Somalia have better access to water, protecting them not just from the ravages of climate change but also against the spread of COVID-19, thanks to a project supported by the UN Development Programme.   Read More

The reminder comes ahead of next week’s World Health Assembly, the annual meeting of the UN agency’s decision-making body, which normally takes place in May but had to be cut short this year due to the pandemic.  There are more than 47 million COVID-19 cases, and over 1.2 million deaths, according to latest figures.  The Assembly will chart the course for… Read More