Nairobi - Dementia is increasingly becoming a major public health challenge in Africa, with an estimated 1.9 million people currently living with the condition across the region. The number is expected to rise significantly as populations grow and life expectancy increases. Beyond its health impact, dementia places a heavy economic burden on families and societies, costing an estimated US$15.6 billion annually in the African Region.

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia — The WHO Representative to Ethiopia, the African Union (AU) and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), Professor Francis Chisaka Kasolo, held a bilateral meeting with the Director General of the Ethiopian Food and Drug Authority (EFDA), Ms. Heran Gerba, to discuss strengthening Ethiopia’s regulatory systems for medicines and medical devices.

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 15 September 2026 – Ethiopia has achieved a major milestone in strengthening national health emergency preparedness and response following the successful World Health Organization (WHO) verification of its National Emergency Medical Team (EMT), positioning the country as the first civilian Emergency Medical Team in the WHO African Region to achieve international WHO classification, alongside Senegal’s classified military EMT.

Moyale - Located along the Ethiopia–Kenya border, Moyale Hospital provides essential health services to a catchment population of more than three million people. Its strategic location and role as a Point of Entry health facility make it important not only for routine healthcare delivery, but also for the prevention, detection and management of public-health threats that could spread across borders.

Kampala, Uganda – Every day across Uganda, health workers face life-or-death emergencies: a child struggling to breathe from severe pneumonia, a mother experiencing postpartum haemorrhage, a victim of a road traffic crash, or a patient arriving with severe asthma or diabetic complications. In many of these situations, survival depends on what happens in the first few minutes of care.

Around 30 participants and experts from Africa, the Eastern Mediterranean Region, and Europe gathered in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for a four-day workshop designed to strengthen multidisciplinary collaboration for outbreak response. Provided by the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), with technical and operational support from the World Health Organization (WHO), the workshop was organized within the framework of the Emergency Medical Teams (EMT) initiative.

Haruna Darboe stood beside the weighing scale, watching closely as a health worker recorded his three-month-old daughter's weight before administering her routine vaccinations at Serekunda Health Centre. As a first-time father, the moment carried more meaning than a routine clinic visit. It was reassurance that he was doing everything he could to protect his child.

“As a first-time father, I want to do everything possible to protect my child,” he said. “Seeing my baby receive vaccines gives me confidence that she is growing up with the protection she needs.”

Nairobi - "We knew Ebola was in Congo and Uganda not much more than that," said Dekens Okoth Ojera, member of the Busia Cross Border Women Traders Sacco, which has 257 registered members. "We were not equipped or aware of how to handle it if it reached us, or sure that anything was being done."

Nairobi- Kenya is preparing for possible health risks linked to the anticipated 2026/2027 El Niño season, with forecasts indicating that parts of eastern Africa could receive more rainfall than usual between October and December.

 In Kebbi State, Surajuddeen Lukman has seen how delayed or incomplete information can slow a public health response.

“In Kebbi State, I have seen how delayed or incomplete data can affect response efforts. This training is helping me better analyse information so health teams can reach communities faster and protect more children,” she said.