In Kenya, toxicologists and epidemiologists face a difficult choice: to pursue better-paid work to support their families, or volunteer as reviewers for vaccine clinical trials, often without the compensation needed to cover even their children’s school fees. Their dilemma underscores a broader challenge in Africa’s clinical research ecosystem. Slow, duplicative approval processes and limited regulatory […] Continue reading ->
The post-pandemic decline in infection-prevention practices, along with the broader crash in global health finance, are undermining progress against antimicrobial resistance – one of the planet’s most urgent health threats. At a recent panel discussion co-hosted by the Geneva Health Forum (GHF), leading experts from WHO, academia, biotech, and patient advocacy warned that national AMR plans […] Continue reading ->
For the first time, the G20 Leaders’ Declaration explicitly references the Lusaka Agenda – a significant milestone for developing countries that have long called for a fairer global health architecture. This acknowledgement gives political weight to an agenda that places integrated health systems, universal health coverage, and national leadership at the center of global health […] Continue reading ->
“Why is it always those who have light skin that win,” asks a young Senegalese man tasked with handing out flyers for a local beauty pageant. The setting is Dakar, where the newly-released film Timpi Tampa tells the story of a young man, Khalilou, whose mother is diagnosed with cancer, potentially from using skin-lightening products […] Continue reading ->
In August 2025, Guyana’s President Irfaan Ali removed all taxes and customs duties on feminine hygiene products. Now, Guyana’s Ambassador to the UN in Geneva calls on other countries to follow suit. In most developing countries male condoms are distributed freely. Free access to condoms is a globally recognized harm reduction strategy in public health. […] Continue reading ->
Global health knowledge is expanding faster than ever, but so are confusion and inequity over who can access trustworthy information and use it to improve their lives. In a live recorded discussion at the World Health Summit in Berlin, featured in the latest Global Health Matters podcast, Joy Phumaphi, executive secretary of the Africa Leaders […] Continue reading ->
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) is transferring the majority of its Geneva jobs to Rome, in the latest wave of upheaval to hit the city and longtime global health hub, as UN agencies scramble to respond to international aid cuts and save money. A UNICEF spokeperson confirmed on Friday that some 290 jobs would […] Continue reading ->
A fire Thursday afternoon at the UN Climate Conference (COP30) venue in Belém, Brazil, led to delays in the crucial final stage of climate negotiations as discussions in the plenary paused for much of the penultimate day. The talks were at a contentious stage when the fire happened and remained so Friday’morning, when talks resumed […] Continue reading ->
Technological advances in Artificial Intelligence applications for healthcare are quickly outpacing regulatory and ethical safeguards, creating a dangerous gap in patient safety, warns a milestone report on AI in Health Systems, published Wednesday by the World Health Organization’s European Region (WHO/EURO). Paradoxically, the WHO’s urgent call for tighter AI regulation coincided with a far-reaching European […] Continue reading ->
The United States government is moving rapidly to secure Memorandums of Understanding (MOU) with African countries that offer limited health aid for five years in exchange for 25 years’ access to countries’ data about “pathogens with epidemic potential”. Some commentators have described the terms of the bilateral MOUs as “extractive” as they fail to offer […] Continue reading ->