Being vaccinated against COVID-19 this week was a “bittersweet” moment, reflecting both a “triumph of science” and a “gross distortion” in vaccine access, World Health Organization (WHO) Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyusus told the body’s media briefing on Friday. Thanking health workers at the Geneva Emergency Hospital for vaccinating him on Wednesday, Dr Tedros […] Continue reading ->
A draft “Rome Declaration” to be issued at next Friday’s G-20’s Global Health Summit, co-hosted by Italy and the European Commission (21 May), makes a series of 10 sweeping commitments to ensure equitable access to vaccines; expand medicines manufacturing capacity; assure WHO access to sites posing an outbreak risk; and invest in global health systems.  […] Continue reading ->
Though more than 114 million people have been vaccinated against COVID-19 in the Americas, the WHO Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) has warned that the pandemic is far from over.  Last week, the region reported more than 1.2 million new COVID-19 cases and nearly 34,000 COVID related deaths – nearly 40% of all global deaths […] Continue reading ->
IBADAN – The Nigerian government has decided to move ahead with a second dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine for the nearly 2 million citizens who already received the vaccine – despite advice from Africa CDC and the World Health Organization (WHO), that vaccine-strapped African countries could also choose to administer just one vaccine dose  – […] Continue reading ->
In a rush to jumpstart more global vaccine manufacturing capacity, the global COVAX vaccine facility is now stepping into the fray.  A new COVAX Supply Chain and Manufacturing Task Force has laid out a three-stage plan to enhance existing vaccine production capacity, as well setting up a new “vaccine manufacturing group” – to further expand […] Continue reading ->
A sweeping report on the global pandemic response has found that the World Health Organization should have taken a more “precautionary’ approach to the emerging SARS-COV2 virus in the early days of the pandemic, advising countries earlier on that it could be transmitted person-to-person — rather than only warning of such a “possibility”. The report […] Continue reading ->
Overcrowding in refugee camps, mistrust of authorities including vaccination registration processes, and lack of access to vaccines are some of the most pressing problems preventing migrants, refugees and other “uprooted people” from getting COVID-19 vaccines. A diverse, but also common set of issues are faced in refugee camps, informal settlements that house an estimated 79.5 […] Continue reading ->
India’s COVID crisis has laid bare the health costs of inadequate access to medical oxygen supplies – faced by many other countries even before India’s pandemic surge began.  Already in February, WHO said that oxygen shortages to treat those seriously ill were impacting more than half a million people in low- and middle-income countries every […] Continue reading ->
KAMPALA – A chorus of human rights organizations, joined by the United Nations, have condemned Uganda’s controversial law that criminalizes same-sex relationships, sex work and imposes mandatory HIV testing on people accused of rape – calling on the east-central African country to amend the law as it would violate human rights standards and undermine public […] Continue reading ->