Football star Didier Drogba aims to use his new position as the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Goodwill Ambassador for Sport and Health to promote healthy lifestyles, especially to young people. “Many people do not have access to health services and non-communicable diseases such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes are rising globally,” the former Chelsea striker […] Continue reading ->
The World Health Organization (WHO) has named 26 scientists to a new Scientific Advisory Group for the Origins of Novel Pathogens (SAGO), which will take forward the work of the international expert group that led an initial mission to Wuhan in January 2021, as well as investigating future pandemics. Six of the scientists are associated […] Continue reading ->
A sweeping World Health Organization report on Climate and Health, published just ahead of a critical Glasgow climate conference (COP 26) that begins 31 October, has declared that “the burning of fossil fuels is killing us” – the bluntest denunciation to date by the global health agency of societies’ fossil fuel addiction. “Climate change is […] Continue reading ->
The World Health Organization’s (WHO) Strategic Advisory Group of Experts (SAGE) has recommended that people over the age of 60 who received the Chinese Sinovac and Sinopharm vaccines, should get a third shot – possibly with another vaccine. “The use of a heterologous platforms vaccine for the additional dose may also be considered based on […] Continue reading ->
The hoarding of more than 870 million excess doses of COVID-19 vaccines in just 10 high-income countries is likely to deprive hundreds of millions of healthcare workers and vulnerable populations in low- and middle-income countries of the opportunity to get even a first vaccine dose, according to a new report by Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF). […] Continue reading ->
Long months of pandemic lockdown have only exacerbated the harms due to alcohol experienced by billions of people worldwide. Now, WHO is in the process of developing a new alcohol action plan, in an effort to re-energize a stagnant process and overcome a “lost decade” of little progress on alcohol policies. Can it make a […] Continue reading ->
The World Health Organization (WHO) believes that is possible to get 70% of the world vaccinated against COVID-19 by June – but only if wealthy countries redirect their doses and orders to poorer countries that are lagging behind. Eleven billion vaccines are needed to reach the 70% target, said WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus […] Continue reading ->
Moderna should work through the Partnership for African Vaccine Manufacturing (PAVM) if it wants to invest in vaccine production on the continent, according to the head of the Africa Centers for Disease Control (CDC). The company announced on Thursday that it plans to invest $500-million in a “state-of-the-art mRNA facility” in Africa that can produce […] Continue reading ->
Africans are a step closer to speedier access to newer, safer medicines following this week’s notification by 15 African Union (AU) member countries that they have formally ratified and deposited their accord to create a new African Medicines Agency (AMA). Although the AU adopted the treaty to set up the AMA back in February 2019, […] Continue reading ->
Nineteen countries have been prioritised for support to implement new global targets aimed at preventing maternal and newborn deaths. This emerged at the launch on Tuesday of the new targets, which were developed by the World Health Organization (WHO), UN Population Fund (UNFPA) and their partners in the Ending Preventable Maternal Mortality (EPMM) initiative. UNFPA […] Continue reading ->