First WHO Regional Director Takes Leave To Run for Director-General 04/08/2026 Felix Sassmannshausen Eastern Mediterranean Regional Director Dr Hanan Balkhy will take immediate leave effective Tuesday to formally launch her campaign in the WHO Director-General Election, according to an internal notice from DG Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus seen by Health Policy Watch. Balkhy becomes the first serving regional director required to take leave after Tedros issued newly tightened […] Continue reading -> The HIV Deaths Nobody Can Count 04/08/2026 Mukesh Kapila VITAL SIGNS COLUMN: Eighteen months into the dismantling of the global AIDS response, how many have died? The honest answer is that nobody knows. Rio’s numbers are inferences, its assumptions and projections disputable. But 30 years and tens of billions of dollars into the HIV/AIDS pandemic, we should not still be guessing. The week’s Vital […] Continue reading -> Scientists Warn Drug-Resistant Malaria Mutation Is Spreading Across Lake Victoria Basin 03/08/2026 Kizito Makoye KARAGWE, Tanzania – Maria Mwijage had barely reached the footpath home from the village well when mosquitoes began circling her legs. Overnight rain had filled roadside puddles and cattle hoof prints with stagnant water, turning them into breeding grounds. She brushed the insects away, balanced the yellow jerry can on her head and continued towards […] Continue reading -> US Government Burns Goodwill With Incorrect Map of Africa 01/08/2026 Kerry Cullinan RIO DE JANEIRO – The United States’ rapid dismantling of its HIV funding since January 2025 has caused the worst financial crisis for the sector in decades – but the US government’s willingness to host an information session on its new America First Global Health Strategy on the eve of the International AIDS Conference earned […] Continue reading -> Fear and Fatigue Grip Congo’s Health Workers as Ebola Response Crumbles 31/07/2026 Anicet Kimonyo BUNIA, Democratic Republic of Congo – Victorine Ngwobu Kasemi is the director of nursing at the Evangelical Medical Centre in Bunia, the epicentre of the Democratic Republic of Congo’s record-breaking Ebola epidemic. In recent weeks she’s had to watch colleagues succumb to the virus, and her children isolate themselves from her to keep safe. “I’m afraid […] Continue reading -> Climate Crisis in ‘Overdrive’ as Fossil Fuels Fan El Niño, UN Chief Warns 31/07/2026 Disha Shetty As wildfires rage across continents, heatwaves claim thousands of lives and ocean temperatures shatter records, UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned on Friday that the climate crisis has entered “overdrive.” “This is only a warm-up act,” he said. “El Niño is strengthening, adding fuel to a planet already on fire with scorching heat domes, apocalyptic wildfires […] Continue reading -> Fiji Has The World’s Fastest Growing HIV Epidemic – And it is Struggling 30/07/2026 Kerry Cullinan RIO DE JANEIRO – A graph showing the progression of HIV infections in Fiji resembles a cobra poised to strike. For years, the 330+ islands that make up Fiji had almost zero HIV cases, but the country’s 14-fold increase in infections over the past five years is represented by a near-vertical line rearing up over […] Continue reading -> Gavi Welcomes Restoration of US Funding – But No Clarity on How Agency will Phase out Thimerosal 30/07/2026 Felix Sassmannshausen The United States has unlocked frozen Gavi funding, resolving a bitter political impasse in Washington while doubling down against the WHO. But can the alliance eliminate thimerosal, a mercury-containing preservative, from its stockpiles without leaving millions of vulnerable children unprotected? The United States will immediately release $600 million for fiscal years 2025–2026 in frozen Gavi […] Continue reading -> Sexual Violence Surges in Eastern DRC as Conflict and Ebola Overwhelm Health System 30/07/2026 Stefan Anderson Panzi Hospital, a facility in South Kivu province in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), a region overrun by a civil war that has displaced millions, recorded an 85% increase in newly reported survivors of sexual violence in the first six months of 2026 compared with the same period last year, according to a […] Continue reading -> Adjusting to a Post-PEPFAR World 30/07/2026 Kerry Cullinan RIO DE JANEIRO – Zambia is hopeful that it can reach an agreement with the United States to salvage funds for its HIV programme, but South Africa remains frozen out of any new US funding for its HIV programme, government officials told journalists at a media briefing at the International AIDS Conference on Wednesday. Last […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older posts
The HIV Deaths Nobody Can Count 04/08/2026 Mukesh Kapila VITAL SIGNS COLUMN: Eighteen months into the dismantling of the global AIDS response, how many have died? The honest answer is that nobody knows. Rio’s numbers are inferences, its assumptions and projections disputable. But 30 years and tens of billions of dollars into the HIV/AIDS pandemic, we should not still be guessing. The week’s Vital […] Continue reading -> Scientists Warn Drug-Resistant Malaria Mutation Is Spreading Across Lake Victoria Basin 03/08/2026 Kizito Makoye KARAGWE, Tanzania – Maria Mwijage had barely reached the footpath home from the village well when mosquitoes began circling her legs. Overnight rain had filled roadside puddles and cattle hoof prints with stagnant water, turning them into breeding grounds. She brushed the insects away, balanced the yellow jerry can on her head and continued towards […] Continue reading -> US Government Burns Goodwill With Incorrect Map of Africa 01/08/2026 Kerry Cullinan RIO DE JANEIRO – The United States’ rapid dismantling of its HIV funding since January 2025 has caused the worst financial crisis for the sector in decades – but the US government’s willingness to host an information session on its new America First Global Health Strategy on the eve of the International AIDS Conference earned […] Continue reading -> Fear and Fatigue Grip Congo’s Health Workers as Ebola Response Crumbles 31/07/2026 Anicet Kimonyo BUNIA, Democratic Republic of Congo – Victorine Ngwobu Kasemi is the director of nursing at the Evangelical Medical Centre in Bunia, the epicentre of the Democratic Republic of Congo’s record-breaking Ebola epidemic. In recent weeks she’s had to watch colleagues succumb to the virus, and her children isolate themselves from her to keep safe. “I’m afraid […] Continue reading -> Climate Crisis in ‘Overdrive’ as Fossil Fuels Fan El Niño, UN Chief Warns 31/07/2026 Disha Shetty As wildfires rage across continents, heatwaves claim thousands of lives and ocean temperatures shatter records, UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned on Friday that the climate crisis has entered “overdrive.” “This is only a warm-up act,” he said. “El Niño is strengthening, adding fuel to a planet already on fire with scorching heat domes, apocalyptic wildfires […] Continue reading -> Fiji Has The World’s Fastest Growing HIV Epidemic – And it is Struggling 30/07/2026 Kerry Cullinan RIO DE JANEIRO – A graph showing the progression of HIV infections in Fiji resembles a cobra poised to strike. For years, the 330+ islands that make up Fiji had almost zero HIV cases, but the country’s 14-fold increase in infections over the past five years is represented by a near-vertical line rearing up over […] Continue reading -> Gavi Welcomes Restoration of US Funding – But No Clarity on How Agency will Phase out Thimerosal 30/07/2026 Felix Sassmannshausen The United States has unlocked frozen Gavi funding, resolving a bitter political impasse in Washington while doubling down against the WHO. But can the alliance eliminate thimerosal, a mercury-containing preservative, from its stockpiles without leaving millions of vulnerable children unprotected? The United States will immediately release $600 million for fiscal years 2025–2026 in frozen Gavi […] Continue reading -> Sexual Violence Surges in Eastern DRC as Conflict and Ebola Overwhelm Health System 30/07/2026 Stefan Anderson Panzi Hospital, a facility in South Kivu province in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), a region overrun by a civil war that has displaced millions, recorded an 85% increase in newly reported survivors of sexual violence in the first six months of 2026 compared with the same period last year, according to a […] Continue reading -> Adjusting to a Post-PEPFAR World 30/07/2026 Kerry Cullinan RIO DE JANEIRO – Zambia is hopeful that it can reach an agreement with the United States to salvage funds for its HIV programme, but South Africa remains frozen out of any new US funding for its HIV programme, government officials told journalists at a media briefing at the International AIDS Conference on Wednesday. Last […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older posts
Scientists Warn Drug-Resistant Malaria Mutation Is Spreading Across Lake Victoria Basin 03/08/2026 Kizito Makoye KARAGWE, Tanzania – Maria Mwijage had barely reached the footpath home from the village well when mosquitoes began circling her legs. Overnight rain had filled roadside puddles and cattle hoof prints with stagnant water, turning them into breeding grounds. She brushed the insects away, balanced the yellow jerry can on her head and continued towards […] Continue reading -> US Government Burns Goodwill With Incorrect Map of Africa 01/08/2026 Kerry Cullinan RIO DE JANEIRO – The United States’ rapid dismantling of its HIV funding since January 2025 has caused the worst financial crisis for the sector in decades – but the US government’s willingness to host an information session on its new America First Global Health Strategy on the eve of the International AIDS Conference earned […] Continue reading -> Fear and Fatigue Grip Congo’s Health Workers as Ebola Response Crumbles 31/07/2026 Anicet Kimonyo BUNIA, Democratic Republic of Congo – Victorine Ngwobu Kasemi is the director of nursing at the Evangelical Medical Centre in Bunia, the epicentre of the Democratic Republic of Congo’s record-breaking Ebola epidemic. In recent weeks she’s had to watch colleagues succumb to the virus, and her children isolate themselves from her to keep safe. “I’m afraid […] Continue reading -> Climate Crisis in ‘Overdrive’ as Fossil Fuels Fan El Niño, UN Chief Warns 31/07/2026 Disha Shetty As wildfires rage across continents, heatwaves claim thousands of lives and ocean temperatures shatter records, UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned on Friday that the climate crisis has entered “overdrive.” “This is only a warm-up act,” he said. “El Niño is strengthening, adding fuel to a planet already on fire with scorching heat domes, apocalyptic wildfires […] Continue reading -> Fiji Has The World’s Fastest Growing HIV Epidemic – And it is Struggling 30/07/2026 Kerry Cullinan RIO DE JANEIRO – A graph showing the progression of HIV infections in Fiji resembles a cobra poised to strike. For years, the 330+ islands that make up Fiji had almost zero HIV cases, but the country’s 14-fold increase in infections over the past five years is represented by a near-vertical line rearing up over […] Continue reading -> Gavi Welcomes Restoration of US Funding – But No Clarity on How Agency will Phase out Thimerosal 30/07/2026 Felix Sassmannshausen The United States has unlocked frozen Gavi funding, resolving a bitter political impasse in Washington while doubling down against the WHO. But can the alliance eliminate thimerosal, a mercury-containing preservative, from its stockpiles without leaving millions of vulnerable children unprotected? The United States will immediately release $600 million for fiscal years 2025–2026 in frozen Gavi […] Continue reading -> Sexual Violence Surges in Eastern DRC as Conflict and Ebola Overwhelm Health System 30/07/2026 Stefan Anderson Panzi Hospital, a facility in South Kivu province in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), a region overrun by a civil war that has displaced millions, recorded an 85% increase in newly reported survivors of sexual violence in the first six months of 2026 compared with the same period last year, according to a […] Continue reading -> Adjusting to a Post-PEPFAR World 30/07/2026 Kerry Cullinan RIO DE JANEIRO – Zambia is hopeful that it can reach an agreement with the United States to salvage funds for its HIV programme, but South Africa remains frozen out of any new US funding for its HIV programme, government officials told journalists at a media briefing at the International AIDS Conference on Wednesday. Last […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older posts
US Government Burns Goodwill With Incorrect Map of Africa 01/08/2026 Kerry Cullinan RIO DE JANEIRO – The United States’ rapid dismantling of its HIV funding since January 2025 has caused the worst financial crisis for the sector in decades – but the US government’s willingness to host an information session on its new America First Global Health Strategy on the eve of the International AIDS Conference earned […] Continue reading -> Fear and Fatigue Grip Congo’s Health Workers as Ebola Response Crumbles 31/07/2026 Anicet Kimonyo BUNIA, Democratic Republic of Congo – Victorine Ngwobu Kasemi is the director of nursing at the Evangelical Medical Centre in Bunia, the epicentre of the Democratic Republic of Congo’s record-breaking Ebola epidemic. In recent weeks she’s had to watch colleagues succumb to the virus, and her children isolate themselves from her to keep safe. “I’m afraid […] Continue reading -> Climate Crisis in ‘Overdrive’ as Fossil Fuels Fan El Niño, UN Chief Warns 31/07/2026 Disha Shetty As wildfires rage across continents, heatwaves claim thousands of lives and ocean temperatures shatter records, UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned on Friday that the climate crisis has entered “overdrive.” “This is only a warm-up act,” he said. “El Niño is strengthening, adding fuel to a planet already on fire with scorching heat domes, apocalyptic wildfires […] Continue reading -> Fiji Has The World’s Fastest Growing HIV Epidemic – And it is Struggling 30/07/2026 Kerry Cullinan RIO DE JANEIRO – A graph showing the progression of HIV infections in Fiji resembles a cobra poised to strike. For years, the 330+ islands that make up Fiji had almost zero HIV cases, but the country’s 14-fold increase in infections over the past five years is represented by a near-vertical line rearing up over […] Continue reading -> Gavi Welcomes Restoration of US Funding – But No Clarity on How Agency will Phase out Thimerosal 30/07/2026 Felix Sassmannshausen The United States has unlocked frozen Gavi funding, resolving a bitter political impasse in Washington while doubling down against the WHO. But can the alliance eliminate thimerosal, a mercury-containing preservative, from its stockpiles without leaving millions of vulnerable children unprotected? The United States will immediately release $600 million for fiscal years 2025–2026 in frozen Gavi […] Continue reading -> Sexual Violence Surges in Eastern DRC as Conflict and Ebola Overwhelm Health System 30/07/2026 Stefan Anderson Panzi Hospital, a facility in South Kivu province in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), a region overrun by a civil war that has displaced millions, recorded an 85% increase in newly reported survivors of sexual violence in the first six months of 2026 compared with the same period last year, according to a […] Continue reading -> Adjusting to a Post-PEPFAR World 30/07/2026 Kerry Cullinan RIO DE JANEIRO – Zambia is hopeful that it can reach an agreement with the United States to salvage funds for its HIV programme, but South Africa remains frozen out of any new US funding for its HIV programme, government officials told journalists at a media briefing at the International AIDS Conference on Wednesday. Last […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older posts
Fear and Fatigue Grip Congo’s Health Workers as Ebola Response Crumbles 31/07/2026 Anicet Kimonyo BUNIA, Democratic Republic of Congo – Victorine Ngwobu Kasemi is the director of nursing at the Evangelical Medical Centre in Bunia, the epicentre of the Democratic Republic of Congo’s record-breaking Ebola epidemic. In recent weeks she’s had to watch colleagues succumb to the virus, and her children isolate themselves from her to keep safe. “I’m afraid […] Continue reading -> Climate Crisis in ‘Overdrive’ as Fossil Fuels Fan El Niño, UN Chief Warns 31/07/2026 Disha Shetty As wildfires rage across continents, heatwaves claim thousands of lives and ocean temperatures shatter records, UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned on Friday that the climate crisis has entered “overdrive.” “This is only a warm-up act,” he said. “El Niño is strengthening, adding fuel to a planet already on fire with scorching heat domes, apocalyptic wildfires […] Continue reading -> Fiji Has The World’s Fastest Growing HIV Epidemic – And it is Struggling 30/07/2026 Kerry Cullinan RIO DE JANEIRO – A graph showing the progression of HIV infections in Fiji resembles a cobra poised to strike. For years, the 330+ islands that make up Fiji had almost zero HIV cases, but the country’s 14-fold increase in infections over the past five years is represented by a near-vertical line rearing up over […] Continue reading -> Gavi Welcomes Restoration of US Funding – But No Clarity on How Agency will Phase out Thimerosal 30/07/2026 Felix Sassmannshausen The United States has unlocked frozen Gavi funding, resolving a bitter political impasse in Washington while doubling down against the WHO. But can the alliance eliminate thimerosal, a mercury-containing preservative, from its stockpiles without leaving millions of vulnerable children unprotected? The United States will immediately release $600 million for fiscal years 2025–2026 in frozen Gavi […] Continue reading -> Sexual Violence Surges in Eastern DRC as Conflict and Ebola Overwhelm Health System 30/07/2026 Stefan Anderson Panzi Hospital, a facility in South Kivu province in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), a region overrun by a civil war that has displaced millions, recorded an 85% increase in newly reported survivors of sexual violence in the first six months of 2026 compared with the same period last year, according to a […] Continue reading -> Adjusting to a Post-PEPFAR World 30/07/2026 Kerry Cullinan RIO DE JANEIRO – Zambia is hopeful that it can reach an agreement with the United States to salvage funds for its HIV programme, but South Africa remains frozen out of any new US funding for its HIV programme, government officials told journalists at a media briefing at the International AIDS Conference on Wednesday. Last […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older posts
Climate Crisis in ‘Overdrive’ as Fossil Fuels Fan El Niño, UN Chief Warns 31/07/2026 Disha Shetty As wildfires rage across continents, heatwaves claim thousands of lives and ocean temperatures shatter records, UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned on Friday that the climate crisis has entered “overdrive.” “This is only a warm-up act,” he said. “El Niño is strengthening, adding fuel to a planet already on fire with scorching heat domes, apocalyptic wildfires […] Continue reading -> Fiji Has The World’s Fastest Growing HIV Epidemic – And it is Struggling 30/07/2026 Kerry Cullinan RIO DE JANEIRO – A graph showing the progression of HIV infections in Fiji resembles a cobra poised to strike. For years, the 330+ islands that make up Fiji had almost zero HIV cases, but the country’s 14-fold increase in infections over the past five years is represented by a near-vertical line rearing up over […] Continue reading -> Gavi Welcomes Restoration of US Funding – But No Clarity on How Agency will Phase out Thimerosal 30/07/2026 Felix Sassmannshausen The United States has unlocked frozen Gavi funding, resolving a bitter political impasse in Washington while doubling down against the WHO. But can the alliance eliminate thimerosal, a mercury-containing preservative, from its stockpiles without leaving millions of vulnerable children unprotected? The United States will immediately release $600 million for fiscal years 2025–2026 in frozen Gavi […] Continue reading -> Sexual Violence Surges in Eastern DRC as Conflict and Ebola Overwhelm Health System 30/07/2026 Stefan Anderson Panzi Hospital, a facility in South Kivu province in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), a region overrun by a civil war that has displaced millions, recorded an 85% increase in newly reported survivors of sexual violence in the first six months of 2026 compared with the same period last year, according to a […] Continue reading -> Adjusting to a Post-PEPFAR World 30/07/2026 Kerry Cullinan RIO DE JANEIRO – Zambia is hopeful that it can reach an agreement with the United States to salvage funds for its HIV programme, but South Africa remains frozen out of any new US funding for its HIV programme, government officials told journalists at a media briefing at the International AIDS Conference on Wednesday. Last […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older posts
Fiji Has The World’s Fastest Growing HIV Epidemic – And it is Struggling 30/07/2026 Kerry Cullinan RIO DE JANEIRO – A graph showing the progression of HIV infections in Fiji resembles a cobra poised to strike. For years, the 330+ islands that make up Fiji had almost zero HIV cases, but the country’s 14-fold increase in infections over the past five years is represented by a near-vertical line rearing up over […] Continue reading -> Gavi Welcomes Restoration of US Funding – But No Clarity on How Agency will Phase out Thimerosal 30/07/2026 Felix Sassmannshausen The United States has unlocked frozen Gavi funding, resolving a bitter political impasse in Washington while doubling down against the WHO. But can the alliance eliminate thimerosal, a mercury-containing preservative, from its stockpiles without leaving millions of vulnerable children unprotected? The United States will immediately release $600 million for fiscal years 2025–2026 in frozen Gavi […] Continue reading -> Sexual Violence Surges in Eastern DRC as Conflict and Ebola Overwhelm Health System 30/07/2026 Stefan Anderson Panzi Hospital, a facility in South Kivu province in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), a region overrun by a civil war that has displaced millions, recorded an 85% increase in newly reported survivors of sexual violence in the first six months of 2026 compared with the same period last year, according to a […] Continue reading -> Adjusting to a Post-PEPFAR World 30/07/2026 Kerry Cullinan RIO DE JANEIRO – Zambia is hopeful that it can reach an agreement with the United States to salvage funds for its HIV programme, but South Africa remains frozen out of any new US funding for its HIV programme, government officials told journalists at a media briefing at the International AIDS Conference on Wednesday. Last […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older posts
Gavi Welcomes Restoration of US Funding – But No Clarity on How Agency will Phase out Thimerosal 30/07/2026 Felix Sassmannshausen The United States has unlocked frozen Gavi funding, resolving a bitter political impasse in Washington while doubling down against the WHO. But can the alliance eliminate thimerosal, a mercury-containing preservative, from its stockpiles without leaving millions of vulnerable children unprotected? The United States will immediately release $600 million for fiscal years 2025–2026 in frozen Gavi […] Continue reading -> Sexual Violence Surges in Eastern DRC as Conflict and Ebola Overwhelm Health System 30/07/2026 Stefan Anderson Panzi Hospital, a facility in South Kivu province in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), a region overrun by a civil war that has displaced millions, recorded an 85% increase in newly reported survivors of sexual violence in the first six months of 2026 compared with the same period last year, according to a […] Continue reading -> Adjusting to a Post-PEPFAR World 30/07/2026 Kerry Cullinan RIO DE JANEIRO – Zambia is hopeful that it can reach an agreement with the United States to salvage funds for its HIV programme, but South Africa remains frozen out of any new US funding for its HIV programme, government officials told journalists at a media briefing at the International AIDS Conference on Wednesday. Last […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older posts
Sexual Violence Surges in Eastern DRC as Conflict and Ebola Overwhelm Health System 30/07/2026 Stefan Anderson Panzi Hospital, a facility in South Kivu province in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), a region overrun by a civil war that has displaced millions, recorded an 85% increase in newly reported survivors of sexual violence in the first six months of 2026 compared with the same period last year, according to a […] Continue reading -> Adjusting to a Post-PEPFAR World 30/07/2026 Kerry Cullinan RIO DE JANEIRO – Zambia is hopeful that it can reach an agreement with the United States to salvage funds for its HIV programme, but South Africa remains frozen out of any new US funding for its HIV programme, government officials told journalists at a media briefing at the International AIDS Conference on Wednesday. Last […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older posts
Adjusting to a Post-PEPFAR World 30/07/2026 Kerry Cullinan RIO DE JANEIRO – Zambia is hopeful that it can reach an agreement with the United States to salvage funds for its HIV programme, but South Africa remains frozen out of any new US funding for its HIV programme, government officials told journalists at a media briefing at the International AIDS Conference on Wednesday. Last […] Continue reading -> Posts navigation Older posts