Feature Stories

Campo—In Campo, a humid forest town in southern Cameroon, daily life revolves around fishing and farming. Some vector borne diseases, despite having declined sharply, still persist—including sleeping sickness, also known as human African trypanosomiasis. Caused by a parasite transmitted by the bite of the tsetse fly, the disease can affect the nervous system and become fatal if left untreated.

Douala —Along with Senegal, Cameroon is implementing the “Healthy Food Market” project in the city of Douala through two pilot markets: New Deido and Ndogpassi. Coordinated by the urban municipality, this project aims to strengthen the prevention of foodborne diseases and improve hygiene, sanitation and food safety, with the goal of gradually spreading these good practices to all markets in the city.

Freetown—When Sierra Leone confirmed its first mpox case in January 2025, few anticipated the scale of the health emergency. By November of that year, more than 5400 cases and 60 deaths were reported across the country.

While most survivors recovered with standard supportive care, a small number developed severe complications, including extensive body tissue destruction and chronic, non-healing wounds requiring specialized treatment not widely available in the country.

Nouakchott—In the Hodh El Chargui region in eastern Mauritania, where mental health services were previously limited, a listening and psychosocial support space has gradually been established in Timbedra town’s health centre. Today, it offers dedicated support to those who wish to talk about their difficulties in a safe environment. Set up in May 2025 with the support of the World Health Organization (WHO), it responds to a long‑expressed need from the communities.

Douala—Since June 2023, Cameroon has been implementing the “Healthy Food Market” project in two pilot markets in Douala: Ndogpassi and New Deido. Described as a transformational and social initiative, the project is based on scientific evidence to encourage behaviour change within the community of traders. 

Busuma, Burundi—Burundi is facing a growing humanitarian emergency as thousands of people fleeing violence in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo continue to cross the border, placing increasing strain on health services and infrastructure in refugee-hosting communities.

Freetown—Sierra Leone has scored a major public health milestone by exceeding national targets in a recent human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination campaign, helping to accelerate progress towards eliminating cervical cancer as a public health threat by 2030.