Malawi declares polio outbreak

Polio vaccination

Brazzaville/Lilongwe – The health authorities in Malawi have declared an outbreak of wild poliovirus type 1 after a case was detected in a young child in the capital Lilongwe. This is the first case of wild poliovirus in Africa in more than five years.

WHO Ethiopia and UNFPA Ethiopia launch training on clinical management of rape for first-line service providers

AWUOR, Ochieng at the training
WHO, in collaboration with UNFPA, Ministry of Health, and Ethiopian Public Health Institute (EPHI), has launched training on the clinical management of rape for health care professionals. The training series includes two 5-day training that took place the weeks of 31 January and 7 February 2022 in Addis Ababa aiming to improve the technical capacity of healthcare professionals to provide comprehensive clinical management to survivors of sexual violence and intimate partner violence. A total of 50 healthcare professionals from Addis Ababa, Afar, Amhara, and Oromia regional health bureaus, hospitals, universities, NGOs, and UN agencies were trained at the end of the series. These are health coordinators, medical doctors, clinical officers, midwives, and nurses working in emergencies.

Stakeholders prioritize cancer awareness and sensitization in Borno state

Group photograph at the commemoration of the World Cancer Day, 2022, Photo Credit_Kingsley Igwebuike_WHO

Maiduguri, 15 February, 2022 - “I now have more information about breast and cervical cancer. Before now, I knew cervical cancer is deadly, but I had no knowledge of how to prevent it. Now I do and I intend to share the knowledge with my co-wives and other women in my locality. Women are mothers of the society and we need to take our health seriously. We also need to be healthy so that we can keep our families healthy”, says Fatima Musa, a 45 years old housewife living in Jere Local Government Area, Borno State. 

Uganda's Minister of Health urges the People of Karamoja to get vaccinated against COVID-19

Ministry of Health leadership and partners led by the Minister of Health Hon Dr Jane Ruth Achieng (yellow) observe as a community member receives her COVID-19 vaccine shot at the launch in Moroto District. ©WHOUganda

The Ministry of Health, with support from the Irish Government, the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF, recently launched an accelerated COVID-19 vaccination campaign at the Boma Grounds in Moroto, to drive up the COVID-19 vaccine uptake. The campaign is targeting 9 districts in the Karamoja region to increase vaccine uptake from the current 16% to more than 90%.

Launching of the national survey report on people who use drugs by the Prime Minister of Mauritius in the presence of UN Resident Coordinator and WHO Representative

Hon. Prime Minister of Mauritius, P.K. Jugnauth handing over a copy of the national survey report on people who use drugs to the WHO Representative, Dr L. Musango in the presence of UNRC, H. E. Mrs C. Umutoni and the Coordinator, National Drug Secretariat, Dr S. Appadoo
P. Louis. Honorable Prime Minister of Mauritius, Pravind Kumar Jugnauth launched the national population-based survey report among people who use drugs on 10 February 2022 at the Sir H. Vaghjee Hall in Port Louis. Her Excellency Mrs Christine Umutoni, UN Resident Coordinator for Mauritius and Seychelles; WHO Representative, Dr Laurent Musango; Dr S. Appadoo, Coordinator, National Drug Secretariat and other personalities attended the official ceremony. The World Health Organization and the UNRC office collaborated with the national authorities in addressing the lack of evidence-based information on drug use at the national level through the recruitment of an international expert to conduct the survey as well as several Integrated Biological and Behavioral Surveillance Surveys among drug users, from December 2020 to May 2021. The Prime Minister said that the Government alone cannot fight the drug war and the magnitude of the drug problem requires all stakeholders to engage in collaborative platforms to ensure that policies and strategies are implemented based on evidence-based information.

African Development Bank and WHO strengthen South Sudan’s emergency response with phase two of public health emergency operations center

Delegates gathers for ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Public Health Emergencey Operations Centre in Juba

Juba, 10 February 2022 – The government of South Sudan today inaugurated its Public Health Emergency Operations Center designed to respond promptly and effectively to public health risks and emergencies of international concern.

The center is part of a $4.2 million African Development Bank grant-financed COVID-19 response project that included procuring an oxygen plant, vehicles, a wide range of essential medicines, lifesaving biomedical equipment and personal protective equipment. The World Health Organization (WHO) implemented the project.

Tailoring COVID-19 messages to unique community groups

Hand hygiene demonstration by a Maasai woman

8 – 10 February 2022, Morogoro: Risk communicators must customize messaging to meet the needs and values of specific target audiences. This is because message design can influence the effectiveness of a message and ultimately behavior change.

Africa on track to control COVID-19 pandemic in 2022

Africa on track to control COVID-19 pandemic in 2022
Almost two years after Africa identified its first case of COVID-19 (14 February 2020), the World Health Organization (WHO) finds that, if current trends continue, the continent can control the pandemic in 2022. However, WHO warned that continued vigilance is key.

Opening of New Covid-19 Testing Centre in Black River, Mauritius

Opening of New Covid-19 Testing Centre in Black River, Mauritius
A new COVID-19 Testing Centre is operational at Dr Yves Cantin Community Hospital in Black River since last year to enable the people living in the West part of the island to benefit from appropriate screening for COVID-19. The newly launched COVID-19  Testing Centre has a well-equipped isolation ward to accommodate positive COVID-19 patients with symptoms while waiting for the transfer to Regional Hospitals. The Minister of Health and Wellness, Dr Hon K. K. Jagatpul participated in the soft opening of the Centre in the presence of the Minister of Land Transport and Light Rail, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade, Hon. A. Ganoo; the World Health Organization Representative in Mauritius, Dr Laurent Musango and other personalities on 18 December  2021.