Abuja, 27 September, 2019 - On 28 September every year, Nigeria joins the world to raise awareness about dog mediated human rabies and highlight progress made in defeating the disease. This year’s theme ‘Rabies: Vaccinate to Eliminate’, focuses on ‘vaccination as the foundation of all rabies control efforts’ and highlights the need at individual and community level to ensure that dog vaccination should be considered a routine activity.

The WHO Regional Office for Africa in collaboration with WHO Headquarters, UNICEF, UNFPA and other partners has organized an inter-country regional workshop aimed at training national adolescent health focal points and partners on Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health Services Barriers Assessment Methodology (AHSBA).

What has been your role in the response?

To see the impact on human health. As a consequence of the disaster the whole team is monitoring disease through epidemiological surveillance. For example, cholera prompted a massive vaccination campaign and other interventions in sanitation and the provision of clean drinking water that have contributed in a major way to lowering the number of cases.

As cholera goes down malaria becomes another public health issue of greater concern so we are also working on it.

The first World Patient Safety day was observed in Ghana on the 17th September 2019 with the opening of National Conference on Patient Safety and Healthcare Quality which took place from the 17-19 September 2019. The Ghana Health Service in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, agencies and Health Partners, such as WaterAid and Systems for health and WHO organized this conference to contribute to the Global effort in achieving Quality Universal Health Coverage by 2030.

Kampala, 25 September 2019:- It is a public health fact that routine data from health facilities expedites patient management, service utilization and treatment coverage. Data also facilitates planning and management of health services, monitoring performance on primary health care as well as health systems strengthening for Universal Health Coverage.

With support from the World Health Organization (WHO), South Sudan has developed and costed a National Action Plan for Health Security, which is a comprehensive, multisectoral blueprint to strengthen the country’s core capabilities to manage health risks (as well as save lives and avoid interference to international trade and travel) during emergency situations, as required by the legally binding International Health Regulations (2005).

Tubmanburg, 9^th September 2019: On 9^th September 2019, Liberia introduced a second

Abuja, 24 September, 2019 - An innovative technology using a mobile short message service (SMS)-based software is being used to improve the quality and sensitivity of Acute Flaccid Paralysis (AFP) surveillance in Nigeria. Known as AVADAR (Audio-Visual Acute Flaccid Paralysis Detection and Reporting), this innovative technology is greatly assisting health workers and key community informants to timely detect and report AFP cases.