In 2021, I lost a close friend to tuberculosis (TB), the world’s most lethal infection. But I cannot say anything else about this friend, where I met him or when we became close. The stigma surrounding tuberculosis is too impenetrable and, unfortunately, it would not be fair to my friend’s family. Still, for me, his […] Continue reading ->
There is an urgent need for Africa to develop local manufacturing capabilities for Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) so as to reduce reliance on imports, enhance healthcare outcomes, and stimulate economic growth. But innovative technologies and international partnerships can help stimulate African pharma growth, revolutionize API production, and ensure self-sufficiency across the continent in a post-pandemic […] Continue reading ->
Europe is now poised to deliver cleaner, healthier air – thanks to adoption this week of the revised Ambient Air Quality Directive (AAQD) by the European Union. This marks a crucial victory for the health and wellbeing of millions across the EU and serves as a beacon for the clean air movement worldwide. The AAQD […] Continue reading ->
This World Food Day (16 October), Chile provides solid evidence that mandatory warning labels that target products with high salt, sugar, saturated fat and calories have reduced consumers’ appetite for unhealthy products. Worldwide, countries are grappling with diets increasingly composed of ultra-processed products, which are associated with obesity and other non-communicable diseases (NCDs). The proliferation […] Continue reading ->
Ten years ago, global health leaders came together to agree on the first-of-its-kind international Consensus Framework for ethical collaboration between patients’ organizations, healthcare professionals, and the pharmaceutical industry in support of quality patient care. Since then, the Framework has been adopted across countries worldwide and embedded in international initiatives. This Global Ethics Day, under the […] Continue reading ->
A recent article published by HPW based on research by Matthew Herder and Ximena Benavides made several criticisms and observations about the mRNA programme. HPW asked the mRNA co-leaders, the MPP and WHO, to respond to the issues raised and this is their response. The mRNA Technology Transfer Programme, established by the World Health Organization […] Continue reading ->
On the International Day of the Girl Child, new HPV vaccine is hailed as a lifesaver Across Africa, too many women are still dying from cervical cancer – a disease that is almost entirely preventable with HPV vaccines. For too long, these vaccines have been out of reach for many girls across the continent. But […] Continue reading ->
The recent CARICOM summit of Caribbean leaders has endorsed a new Afro-Caribbean Health and Development (HeDPAC) initiative aimed at stimulating South-South collaboration on resilient health systems, health worker capacity building, and local medicines and vaccines manufacture. The formal CARICOM Communiqué at the close of the Summit in Grenada invited its 15 member states and five […] Continue reading ->
The COVID-19 pandemic underscored the risks of over-reliance on global supply chains for essential health products. Disruptions led to severe delays and shortages of vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics, with low- and middle-income countries bearing the brunt. Vaccine inequality starkly highlighted Africa’s vulnerability. Yet this crisis unveiled a unique opportunity for the continent: a chance to […] Continue reading ->
WHO’s Regional Director for Europe reflects on why we haven’t been able to end AIDS despite having the tools to do so – as Germany hosts the 25th International AIDS conference. Twenty-four years ago, Maria Godlevkskaya was in a coma in a hospital in Russia, her immune system having failed without treatment for her HIV. […] Continue reading ->
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