Brazzaville — To mark Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Day on 19 November, World Health Organization (WHO) in the African region launched the AFRO Geodatabase (AFRO GDB) to enhance the use of trusted administrative boundary data to strengthen geospatial governance and empower data-driven health decisions across Africa. 

Gaborone—The World Health Organization (WHO) Botswana, in collaboration with the Botswana Public Health Institute (BPHI), organized a one‑week workshop on the validation and costing of Botswana’s National Action Plan for Health Security (NAPHS), and development of NAPHS narrative that will be signed by One Health sectors during the launch, marking a critical milestone in the country’s efforts to strengthen national and global health security.

Freetown—Sierra Leone has reached a significant milestone in its efforts to eliminate cervical cancer, achieving 100% district coverage for screening and treatment services.

The Speaker of the Senate of the Republic of Kenya, Rt. Hon. Amason Jeffah Kingi, has called for bold, African-led strategies to tackle the continent’s health challenges. Speaking as Chief Guest at the Inaugural Africa Health Summit in Kampala, held under the theme “Reclaiming Africa’s Health Future: From Dependency to Sovereignty through Innovation and Solidarity”, Hon. Kingi emphasized that Africa must move beyond diagnosing problems to delivering solutions at scale.

On 13 November 2025, the WHO Country Office in Zambia led a walk-through visit to the Virology Laboratory at the University Teaching Hospital (UTH) in Lusaka. The visit, attended by WHO Country Representative, Dr Clement Peter Lasuba, WHO staff from the EPI cluster, the GPEI Coordinator, and representatives from the Ministry of Health’s Laboratory Services, aimed to review progress on the refurbishment of the National Polio Laboratory, a cornerstone of Zambia’s disease surveillance and outbreak preparedness.

Freetown—Sierra Leone has accelerated national efforts to combat antimicrobial resistance (AMR) by transitioning from fragmented initiatives to a coordinated, data-driven national response that is already delivering measurable impact.