News Releases

COVID-19 transmission in Africa has been marked by relatively fewer infections, which have been on the decline over the past two months, owing to a variety of socio-ecological factors as well as early and strong public health measures taken by governments across the region.

The Regional Expert Committee on Traditional Medicine for COVID-19 formed by the World Health Organization (WHO), the Africa Centre for Disease Control and Prevention and the African Union Commission for Social Affairs has endorsed a protocol for phase III clinical trials of herbal medicine for COVID-19 as well as a charter and terms of reference for the establishment of a data and safety monitoring board for herbal medicine clinical trials.

The World Health Organization (WHO) commends the government of South Africa for its determined efforts that have helped to bend the COVID-19 pandemic curve. WHO is greatly encouraged by the ongoing measures to suppress the spread of SARs-COV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

There is increasing evidence that Africans living with noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) such as hypertension and diabetes are more likely to suffer severe cases of COVID-19 and die.

With several African countries now expanding COVID-19 testing, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) have launched a network of laboratories to reinforce genome sequencing of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus that causes COVID-19, in Africa.

While the race to find safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines continues, African countries are signing up to a ground-breaking initiative, which aims to secure at least 220 million doses of the vaccine for the continent, once licensed and approved.

Togo has received validation from the World Health Organization (WHO) for having eliminated human African trypanosomiasis or “sleeping sickness” as a public health problem, becoming the first country in Africa to reach this milestone.

Health Ministers and representatives from African countries gathered this week for the annual World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Committee for Africa voiced concern over the impact of COVID-19 and stressed that the pandemic was a poignant reminder for countries to bolster health systems.

The independent Africa Regional Certification Commission (ARCC) for Polio Eradication officially declared on Tuesday that the World Health Organization (WHO) African Region is free of wild poliovirus.