Yamoussoukro, (Cote d'Ivoire), 1 September 2011 -- World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Director for Africa, Dr Luis Sambo, has proposed a strategy for the elimination of measles in the African Region by 2020.

Yamoussoukro, 29 August 2011 – The sixty-first session of the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Committee for Africa got underway on Monday in Yamoussoukro, Cote d'Ivoire, with a call on Member States to honour their commitment to the Abuja Declaration of allocating at least 15 % of their national budgets to health.

The call was made by Ivorian Minister of State and Minister of Foreign Affairs, His Excellency Mr. Daniel Kablan Duncan, who opened the meeting on behalf of President Allasane Ouattara.

The World Health Organization on Thursday 25th August 2011 donated various items worth more than US$155,000 to the Ministry of Health and Sanitation (MoHS). The donation included 3 Toyota Hilux vehicles, 30 Blue Trunk Libraries (BTL), 2 XL motor bikes and 36 pairs of rain gears to support the activities of dif-ferent programmes of the Ministry.

The items were handed over by Dr Wondimagegnehu Alemu, WHO Representa-tive to Dr Alhassan Seisay, Deputy Chief Medical Officer of MoHS.

The World Health Organization, in collaboration with UNAIDS, UNFPA, UNICEF and the Ministry of Health of Rwanda, organizes at Kigali, Rwanda, a three days workshop, from 24th to 26th August 2011, on the strengthening male involvement in the elimination of mother-to-child transmission of HIV.

As part of their continuing efforts aimed at improving the lives of mothers and children in Rwanda, and reducing the relatively high rate of deaths from complications of pregnancy and childbirth, WHO and UNFPA are currently providing both technical and financial support to the Rwanda Ministry of Health to evaluate the impact of the implementation of recommendations made following the conduct of maternal death audits (MDA) in Rwanda.

Nairobi-Kenya, 23rd August 2011 – Kenya held the First National Forum on Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) today in Nairobi. The forum was officially inaugurated by the Right Honorable Prime Minister, Hon. Raila Odinga at a colorful opening ceremony also attended by the Health Ministers; Hon. Prof Peter Anyang Nyong'o, the Minister for Medical Services and Hon. Dr. James Gesami, the Assistant minister for Public Health and Sanitation.

WHO Country Office in Sierra Leone conducted orientation for representatives of a coalition of civil society groups as part of ongoing efforts to increase public awareness on the prevention and control of Lassa fever in the country.

The orientation was to equip the coalition members from different parts of the coun-try with the basic facts about Lassa fever which they could use to sensitize communities in which they work.

The Executive Representative of the UN Secretary General (ERSG) in Sierra Leone, Mr Michael Voder Schulenburg and the WHO Representative Dr Wondimagegnehu Alemu, visited the National Reference Laboratory at Lakka on 8th August 2011.

The purpose was to acquaint the ERSG on the efforts of the MoHS in establishing a Public Health Reference Laboratory as part of the strengthening of national laboratory network. The site was refurbished with support from WHO, CDC, UNICEF and Global Fund through NAS and technical coordination by APHL.

Brazzaville, 16 August 2011 - The sixty-first session of the WHO Regional Committee for Africa is to be held from 29 August to 2 September 2011 in Yamoussoukro, Cote d’Ivoire.

This year’s meeting of the Regional Committee, WHO’s Governing Body in the African Region, will discuss among others, a report on the work of WHO in the African Region, to be presented by the Regional Director, Dr Luis Sambo.

High on the agenda of the meeting is WHO’s Programme Budget for the 2012 – 2013 biennium, and orientations for its implementation in the Region.

The Health Education Division of the Ministry of Health and sanitation with support from the World Health Organization is developing a Five year National Health Promotion strategic Plan 2012-2017 that will guide health promotion activities in the country. The plan hopes to address risk factors and determi-nants of health that contribute to ill-health and premature deaths. It also articulates advocacy for sustained health promo-tion practices, documentation and dissemination of evidence based health information.