The World Health Organization and the German government on Wednesday announced the launch of a new Global Hub for Pandemic and Epidemic Intelligence that aims to harness the world of big data, media and epidemiological reports to more rapidly identify and respond to emerging disease risks. The hub, to be launched in Berlin later this […] Continue reading ->
CAPE TOWN – The “circular discussion” at the World Trade Organization (WTO) on the TRIPS waiver needs to move to “text-based” negotiations, Ambassador Xolelwa Mlumbi-Peter, South Africa’s Permanent Representative to the WTO said on Tuesday. Her Indian counterpart, Brajendra Navnit, added that opponents of the waiver had been using “delaying tactics” since the beginning of […] Continue reading ->
“If we could participate in the WHO and World Health Assembly (WHA), the warning messages we would give to the organisation would receive more weight, and this would probably result in better responsive actions.” – Taiwan Health Minister Shih-Chung Chen Arguably, Taiwan has been repeating this statement for decades. Yet when Chen’s mild words are […] Continue reading ->
PUNE – For two weeks now Sijo Raju, along with a group of 20 young men and women, have been fielding calls from family members looking for oxygen cylinders, ventilator beds and ambulances. Finding a match can take a few hours as India’s overwhelmed health system and front-line healthcare workers try desperately to provide a […] Continue reading ->
KAMPALA – Uganda, Kenya and Rwanda have suspended passenger flights from India amid that country’s surge in COVID-19 cases and fears that a number of African countries are on the brink of their own surges. “All flights from India and all passengers originating from India are suspended from 1 May,” the Uganda Ministry of Health […] Continue reading ->
The World Health Organization (WHO) appears to be inching towards the approval of the Chinese Sinopharm and Sinovac vaccines as it struggles to fill a looming vaccine vacuum left by India’s Serum Institute – which has halted exports as the country continues to reel from a tragic coronavirus outbreak. Meanwhile, the WHO declared the latest […] Continue reading ->
JOHANNESBURG – South Africa received its first batch of 325,260 Pfizer vaccine doses late on Sunday night, Health Minister Zweli Mkhize announced. This follows lengthy negotiations between the South African government and Pfizer, during which the company made “difficult and sometimes unreasonable” terms including at one stage that the country put up sovereign assets as […] Continue reading ->
A new appeal about the course of the SARS-CoV2 virus hunt, penned by an international group of scientists, urges WHO member states to seize the moment of the upcoming World Health Assembly to adopt a much tougher mandate, with more rigorous scientific measures, to get to the truth of whether the SARS-CoV2 virus first infected […] Continue reading ->
Even as foreign aid from multiple countries arrives in India in response to its COVID-19 surge, a new epicenter of the SARS-CoV2 virus is emerging in Syria. The situation in Syria is “deteriorating extremely rapidly,” according to UN agencies and aid relief organizations. Although the official number of confirmed cases and deaths in Syria is […] Continue reading ->
Moderna has announced new investments from Europe and the US to increase global vaccine supply, expecting to increase 2022 capacity to up to 3 billion doses of its COVID-19 vaccine. The announcement was followed by the World Health Organization’s (WHO) decision to list the Moderna vaccine for emergency use, making it the fifth vaccine to […] Continue reading ->