Botswana News

Malaria elimination has been an agenda that the country has been pursuing for at least a decade now. During that time, the country had experienced fluctuations in malaria case numbers, some years recording increases, while others achieved case rates within elimination targets. These inconsistencies have been attributed to various factors, including the impacts of climate change on breeding seasons, programmatic weaknesses in other areas and the surveillance and Gaps in robust surveillance and timely follow up of cases.

The World Health Organization (WHO) plays a pivotal role in supporting countries in strengthening their regulatory systems, and promoting equitable access to quality, safe, efficacious, affordable medical products, and health products. WHO mandated by Resolution WHA 67.20, supports countries to strengthen regulatory systems by building regulatory capacity in member states consistent with good regulatory practices and promoting regulatory cooperation, convergence and transparency through networking, work-sharing, and reliance.

Botswana’s ARV Program has been hailed as one of the successful treatments around the world, that have been running for more than a decade. Given the number of people living quality lives on treatment for a long time, it was imperative to ensure that the treatment program does not encounter resistance strains, to the current robust ARVs in the country. In an ongoing effort to strengthen Botswana's role in HIV drug resistance surveillance, WHO expert from Geneva, Dr.

For several years, Botswana has made significant strides in its HIV treatment program, managing to control the spread of the virus effectively. However, with longevity of the program, introduces the potential for the virus to mutate and thus resistance to the current medications not work as effectively to suppress. , thus a growing concern over the rise of drug resistance now threatens this progress.

The Multi-Country Assignment Team (MCAT) - South Africa Hub, covering South Africa, Lesotho, Eswatini, and Botswana, held a significant retreat from March 6-8, 2024. This event, hosted in South Africa, aimed to strengthen the coordination and operational modalities of MCATs to deliver strategic high-level technical assistance to these countries.

The Government of Botswana, with partners and key stakeholders supported by WHO, conducted a Joint External Evaluation (JEE) self-assessment in a stride towards enhancing Botswana’s health security.

The WHO-led Epidemic Intelligence from Open Sources (EIOS) training program equips public health specialists to strengthen Botswana’s public health infrastructure. In the ever-evolving landscape of public health, timely and accurate health emergency monitoring is a vital resource to track and respond to outbreaks. 

The Ministry of Health, WHO, and U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) launched the National Laboratory Strategic Plan for Botswana. The Strategic Plan holds the promise of numerous benefits for the country. It aims to modernize and upgrade laboratory infrastructure to better standards, ensuring the safe and efficient handling of samples. By expanding and improving diagnostic services, Botswana will be better equipped to detect, diagnose, and manage diseases promptly.