Harare, Zimbabwe – The first global assessment of the burden of Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) revealed that nearly 5 million deaths in 2019[1] were associated with drug-resistant infections. A major driver of AMR is the overuse and misuse of antimicrobials in the human and animal health sectors.[2] Zimbabwe, as other countries of the world, has not escaped…

Abuja, 8 April 2022 - As Nigeria joins the world to commemorate the 2022 World Health Day, the World Health Organization (WHO) and stakeholders call for multisectoral approach towards climate change and other environmental threats to public health in the country. This call came at the Ministerial Press conference organized by the Federal Ministry of…

Lilongwe, 8 April 2022- Malawi has received 1.9 million doses of Oral Cholera Vaccine (OCV) from the Global Emergency Stockpile to support the first round of the oral cholera vaccination campaign. With support from the World Health Organization (WHO), UNICEF, and partners, Malawi is planning to conduct an oral cholera vaccination campaign over the next…

Brazzaville – Masks. Gloves. Personal protective equipment. Vaccines. These items have become ubiquitous during the COVID-19 pandemic: as protection against the virus itself, but also as medical waste, burdening Africa’s already clogged landfills. Before the onset of the pandemic, Africa produced an estimated 282 000 tonnes of medical waste each year, according to a 2021…

Lilongwe, 7 April 2022- The World Health Organization Malawi Country Office (WCO) in collaboration with the Ministry of Health held World Health Day commemoration under the theme ‘Our Planet, Our Health’ at the Ministry of Health headquarters in Lilongwe. The World Health Day commemoration involved a special press briefing which was hosted by the Minister of…

Brazzaville – Up to 65% of Africans have been infected by SARS-CoV-2, the virus which causes COVID-19, a World Health Organization (WHO) analysis finds. The study finds that true infections on the continent were 97 times larger than reported confirmed cases. The analysis, which is available as a pre-print under peer review, synthesized 151 studies published on seroprevalence…

The Ministry of Health and Social Services with support from World Health Organization (WHO) and funding from the Government of Japan concluded a one-year project to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health services.  The programme was implemented against the backdrop where COVID-19 threatened the country’s ability to meet its…

Abuja, 7 April, 2021 - On a sunny afternoon in Dukpa village, a community at Gwagwalada Area Council in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), a 35- year-old housewife Mrs Asia Abdulkarim, was seated on a small stool beside the open firewood stand turning a pot of “tuwo”. (Tuwo is a local delicacy made from guinea…

Akwa, 6 April, 2022 - When 29 years old Mr Ede John Chimobi, a native of Mgbiji in Isuuzor Local Government Area (LGA), Enugu state, tested positive for tuberculosis (TB), he was shocked as he never considered himself to be at risk.  Mr Chimobi, who works as security personnel, had been feeling unwell - coughing…

Brazzaville – Climate-related health emergencies are on the rise in Africa, accounting for more than half of public health events recorded in the region over the past two decades, a new analysis by World Health Organization (WHO) shows. The analysis found that of the 2121 public health events recorded in the African region between 2001…

Juba, 5 April 2022 – Two years ago on 5 April 2020, South Sudan recorded its first COVID-19 case. The virus was first declared in Juba before spreading to other locations. So far, the country has recorded 17 144 cases and 138 deaths. “South Sudan with support from partners since the start of COVID-19 pandemic…

Major antibiotic donation moves African countries closer to defeating yaws Bangui/Brazzaville/Yaoundé – A major donation of azithromycin, an antibiotic, is being delivered to Cameroon, Central African Republic and the Republic of Congo to contribute to the ongoing efforts to eradicate yaws in the three countries that are among nine in Africa where the disfiguring and…