Juba – South Sudan is taking a significant step forward in protecting its children from Measles with the nationwide introduction of the second dose of the Measles Containing Vaccine (MCV2) into the routine immunisation schedule. The two-dose regimen is part of the 2017 recommendations by the World Health Organisation to all countries. As of 12 August 2025, South Sudan will be the 45th country in the African Region to introduce MCV2.

The Federal Ministry of Health, in partnership with the World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and World Food Programme (WFP), officially launched the Joint UN Initiative for the Prevention of Wasting (JUNIPr) in Ethiopia. The initiative aims to accelerate national efforts to prevent child wasting—a severe and life-threatening form of malnutrition that affects more than 11% of Ethiopian children under five.

Juba – South Sudan faces recurring public health threats from infectious disease outbreaks to climate-related emergencies such as floods, drought and heat waves. As of August 2025, South Sudan had active outbreaks of Anthrax, Cholera, Circulating Vaccine Derived Polio Virus Type 2 (cVDPV2), Viral Hepatitis E, Measles and Mpox. At the same time, floods had inundated 16 health facilities and displaced more than 56,000 households with nearly 200,000 people.

Kampala – Every year the first week of August is designated as the World Breastfeeding Week and the Ministry of Health, WHO, UNICEF, and partners in Uganda join the rest of the world in Commemorating the World Breastfeeding Week.

Juba, 12 August 2025 – Malaria is endemic across all regions of South Sudan. As part of the efforts to prevent and control this disease, the Ministry of Health, with support from the World Health Organisation (WHO), UNICEF, Gavi and JSI, launched the introduction of the malaria vaccine in 28 counties with the highest malaria burden in July 2024.

Kampala, Uganda –  Uganda joined the global community in commemorating World Breastfeeding Week 2025 with a high-level breakfast meeting in Kampala under the theme: “Invest in Breastfeeding, Invest in the Future.” The theme aligns with World Health Organization (WHO)’s ongoing campaign dubbed  “Healthy beginnings, hopeful futures”, that urges governments and the health community to intensify efforts to end preventable maternal and newborn deaths and prioritize women’s long-term health and well-being.  

On 24 May 2025, Moyale Hospital reported a suspected case of Mpox in a 21-day-old female newborn presenting with generalized skin lesions and high-grade fever, resulting from exposure to her parents. Subsequent testing confirmed Mpox virus infection in five individuals aged from less than one month to 30 years. 

With his staff in hand and the firm voice of someone on a mission, Reverend Manuel Miranda, leader of the Prophetic Union of Angels Church in Camama, Luanda, addresses a group of parents who are sceptical about the new polio vaccination campaign. "Reverend, we don’t understand the reason for yet another campaign. Won’t so many vaccines harm our children?” Ask one of the parents. Calmly, the pastor replies: “The vaccine is protection, not a threat. Polio can paralyse a child for the rest of their life.

Makeni, Sierra Leone – July 2025