Eritrea News

To provide Eritrea’s HIV/AIDS stakeholders inputs into the development of the Global Health Sector Strategy for HIV/AIDS 2011-2015, the WHO Country Office in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and UNAIDS conducted a consultation meeting on 7th September 2010.

About 40 participants, including Heads of UN agencies, representatives of embassies, government officials, national associations, federations and societies and Members of the UN HIV/AIDS Joint Team Group took part to this consultation.

One of the targets of the Millennium Development Goals is to reduce child mortality by two third between 1990 and 2015. According to the 2008 assessment of countdown to 2015, Eritrea is on track to meet this goal, with consistent progress in reducing child deaths with an average annual reduction of around 4% over the last decade.

Still, infant and under5 mortality rates in Eritrea are considered high in reference to the MDG 4 target, which is 49/1000 Live Births by 2015.

This year’s theme, “Just 10 steps: The Baby Friendly Way”, emphasizes on the promotion of full practice of all the ten steps by all Maternity Services set out in the WHO/UNICEF joint statement for “Protecting, promoting and supporting breastfeeding: the special role of maternity services.”

The Innocenti Declaration in 1990 called upon the world to fully implement the Ten Steps in all maternities by 1995. Twenty years later, more than 150 countries have Baby-friendly hospitals that have implemented the Ten Steps.

Recent estimates of maternal mortality have shown that the WHO African region has made no important progress toward achieving the MDG target. To date 31 countries out of the 46 have a very high mortality ratio ranging from 550 to 100 per 100,000 live births. In Eritrea, there has been a marked reduction in maternal mortality from 998 per 100,000 live births in 1995 (EDHS) to 450 in 2005 (UN estimates).

To scale up the national mental health services Ministry of Health has finalized the national mental health strategic plan of action for 2010 - 2014 with the support of WHO Country Office.

The consensus building workshop held from 6 to 8 July 2010 brought together stakeholders from Ministry of Labour and Human Welfare, Ministry of Education, UNICEF, UNFPA, UNAIDS, College of Health Sciences, BIDHO Association (People living with HIV/AIDS) and other partners in health.

Eritrea celebrated World blood donor day on the 13th of June 2010 under the theme “Let’s Increase the Number of New Blood Donors” adopted from the global theme “New Blood for the World”.

Blood Donors Day was marked in Eritrea for the 6th time this year organized with the active participation of the donors clubs coordinated by the National Blood Transfusion Center (NBTC).

n a further fight against the risks of Tobacco the government made a call to all smokers to be aware of the harmful effects of Tobacco and stop smoking, to the non smokers to be careful not to fall into its dangerous traps.

This call was made during the commemoration of World No Tobacco Day held in Asmara on the 31st of May 2010 under the theme “Let us be careful not to be victims of tobacco and its producers” adopted from the global them “Gender and tobacco with an emphasis on marketing to women”.

World Health Day was nationally commemorated under the theme “Urbanization and Health” on the 11th of April 2010 at the Bahti Meskerem Square, in the capital city, Asmara.

The message from the Minister of Health was delivered by Dr Mismay Gebrehiwet, Advisor to the Minister. Dr Mismay said that this year’s theme arises from the fast growing health hazards associated with the rapid urban growth. These demand for a timely and careful urban planning which have the potential to meet the needs of the growing populations’ for basic public health and other services.

Eritrea Takes a Step Forward in Reducing Child Morbidity and Mortality Aimed at saving the lives of more children, a Pentavalent vaccine was officially launched by the Minister of Health, HE Mr Saleh Meky on the 18th of December at the Orota Referal Hospital Conference Hall in Asmara.

The Ministry of Health with the support of WHO and UNICEF is introducing the new vaccine to the routine Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) in the efforts to reach the MDG 4. 

WHO Eritrea, Asmara 1st December 2008: World AIDS Day 2008 was nationally commemorated under the theme “Enhancing Community Role in the Prevention of HIV/AIDS,” on December 1, 2008 in the town of Ghinda, Northern Red Sea Region.

In the occasion, representing the Honorable Minister of Health, Mr. Birhane Gebretensae, Director General of Health Services at the Ministry of Health, stated in his speech that Eritrea has registered encouraging achievements in stabilizing the prevalence of HIV/AIDS in the past years.