When Dr Biira* qualified as doctor in Uganda, she was hopeful about her future. Instead, she faced a common barrier: no job. Despite a huge shortage of doctors, no posts were available. Like many others, she left to work overseas. Across Africa, talented health workers overcome significant obstacles to train, only to be driven away […] Continue reading ->
Cholera in Africa is being driven by years of under-investment in water and sanitation, according to the Africa Centres of Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC). Four countries – Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Sudan and South Sudan – account for over 85% of the continent’s cholera cases and all have above-average death rates, […] Continue reading ->
Governments have been advised to impose ‘sin taxes’ on tobacco, alcohol and other unhealthy products to offset the severity of cuts to official development assistance (ODA), World Health Organization (WHO) Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a tuberculosis meeting on Thursday. His statements came two days after the administration of US President Donald Trump […] Continue reading ->
CEO of Ghana’s Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) Dr Delese Mimi Darko has been appointed the inaugural Director-General of the African Medicines Agency (AMA) by the agency’s Conference of State Parties (CoSP) at a meeting in Rwanda this week. Darko has a “wealth of experience and a distinguished track record in regulatory excellence”, according to […] Continue reading ->
Most countries’ climate action plans refer to the health benefits of adaptation and mitigation strategies, such as reduced air pollution, but few actually track them. And as World Environment Day is observed Thursday, global climate commitments remain extraordinarily weak. Only 21 countries out of the 195 parties to the UN Paris Agreement have submitted updated […] Continue reading ->
SRINAGAR, India – Areeba* tucks a strip of tiny blue pills into the back of her mathematics textbook before heading to class. It’s become second nature. “Half when I can’t sleep. One if I can’t walk,” says the 22-year-old university student, her voice calm, as if describing a cold remedy. “I don’t really want to […] Continue reading ->
In Nukus, Uzbekistan, 34-year-old surgical nurse Dilaram was devastated when she was diagnosed with drug-resistant tuberculosis (DR-TB). But instead of facing the standard treatment, including nearly 15,000 pills to be taken over two years and painful injections causing severe side effects, she could enrol in TB-PRACTECAL, the MSF-led clinical trial testing an all-oral, six-month regimen […] Continue reading ->
Over 30 health organizations representing 12 million doctors, nurses, and public health professionals globally have pledged to no longer work with advertising agencies that partner with the fossil fuel industry, citing conflicts of interest and the resulting health effects from industry disinformation campaigns. The organizations span five continents and include prominent groups such as Médecins […] Continue reading ->
Philanthropist Bill Gates announced on Monday that the majority of the $200 billion he plans to donate over the next 20 years will be spent in Africa. The focus will be “on partnering with governments that prioritise the health and wellbeing of their people”, Gates told government leaders, diplomats and partners during an address at […] Continue reading ->
As the world observes ‘No Tobacco Day’, the World Health Organization (WHO) has called on governments to ban all flavours in tobacco and nicotine products, including cigarettes, pouches, hookahs and e-cigarettes – which are playing an increasing role in hooking young people to tobacco products. Over 50 countries have banned flavoured tobacco, but manufacturers are […] Continue reading ->