Brazzaville, 2 September 2004 -- Dr Luis Gomes Sambo was today nominated by the WHO Regional Committee for Africa for the post of WHO Regional Director for Africa.

Dr Sambo, 52, of Angolan nationality, is currently the Director of Programme Management at the WHO Regional Office for Africa (AFRO), where he is responsible for the management and operation of the programmes of WHO in the African region.

Brazzaville, 2 September 2004 -- Over the next decade, maternal deaths and disabilities in the African region could reach 2.5 million and 49 million, respectively, if urgent action is not taken to improve maternal health, says a report by the World Health Organization (WHO).

Brazzaville, 2 September 2004 -- Child and sexual abuse can be prevented and better managed through a set of priority interventions such as vigorous advocacy and communication, enhanced law enforcement and the development of a standardized protocol for clinical care and management.

Child and sexual abuse has been defined as the involvement of a child in sexual activity that the child cannot comprehend, is unable to give informed consent to, or for which the child is not developmentally prepared or which violates the social taboos of society.

Brazzaville, 2 September 2004 -- Several rounds of nationwide mass immunization are planned for Nigeria and neighboring Niger Republic in 2004 to interrupt the remaining chains of indigenous wild poliovirus transmission in those countries.

Strengthening presence in countries for strategic support to effective national health systems and service - EPI component

Rationale and justification

Major challenges:

• Sustain the reduction in morbidity and mortality of vaccine preventable diseases
• Stagnating immunization coverage for vaccine preventable diseases
• Poor access to, and quality of immunization and surveillance activities in priority districts and sub-districts.

Vision of country office:

Brazzaville, 31 August -- The Director General of the World Health Organisation (WHO), Dr LEE Jong-wook, has proposed a 9% increase in assessed contributions by WHO's Member States.

Brazzaville, 30 August -- Congolese President Denis Sassou- N'Guesso on Monday in Brazzaville opened the 54th session of the WHO Regional Committee for Africa with a tribute to the outgoing WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr Ebrahim Samba, for his contribution to health development in the region in the past ten years.

"We would like to convey our deep gratitude to Dr Samba who is leaving behind an image of a man devoted to duty and action," Dr Sassou N'Guesso told the meeting.

Brazzaville, 30 August 2004 -- Leprosy prevalence in the African region has witnessed a sharp decline of about 90% over the last decade, from 560,000 cases in 1992 to below 60,000 in 2003, the Word Health Organization (WHO) reports.

Brazzaville, 30 August 2004 -- African countries can improve access to care and treatment for HIVAIDS by strengthening their health systems, undertaking greater advocacy, decentralizing and integrating treatment programmes into health sector policies, and mobilizing resources and communities.

This is contained in a report by WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr Ebrahim Samba, on scaling up access to HIV/AIDS care and treatment under the "3 by 5" Initiative which aims at reaching three million people needing antiretroviral therapy worldwide by the year 2005.

Brazzaville, 30 August 2004 -- African countries must reposition family planning services if they are to significantly reduce maternal mortality in the region, the World Health Organization (WHO) says in a report.