Feature Stories

Brazzaville – Onchocerciasis – commonly known as river blindness – is a major public health problem in Congo. Once confined to rural communities living close to rivers and farmlands, the disease is now present in urban settings, particularly in communities located close to watercourses.

Freetown ‒ Sierra Leone is deploying a range of measures to control and end an outbreak of mpox in which 20 cases have so far been reported since the disease was confirmed on 13 January 2025.

Bangui – In the ongoing efforts to eradicate polio, the Central African Republic has placed a special emphasis on reaching vulnerable and underserved populations. Populations in mining regions like Zoubala, a locality in the Bossombélé district about two hours from Bangui, the capital, face unique challenges and heightened risks of poliovirus transmission.

Nouakchott – Mauritania has witnessed a significant decline in leprosy cases in recent years thanks to sustained efforts that have led to improvements in prevention, detection and treatment. Only 17 new cases were recorded in 2023 compared with 42 reported in 2010.

Luanda – Antonio Morais, from Paraíso neighborhood in Cacuaco, one of Luanda’s nine municipalities, has witnessed friends and neighbours succumb to cholera. So, when Morais heard about an oral cholera vaccination campaign as part of Angola’s efforts to step up outbreak control, he was first in line to receive a vaccine. “I feel relieved, as I know that vaccines save lives,” he says.

Abidjan – Edwige, a mother of two, is a devoted listener of a local radio station in her community in the southwestern Côte d'Ivoire. She especially tunes in for morning programmes before heading off to work at her cosmetics shop. That is how she first heard about mpox. 

“At first, I thought it was chickenpox ...,” she says.

Businga, Democratic Republic of the Congo – Salomon Kosoma, a fisherman and farmer in the north-west of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, is also a community mobilizer with a strong commitment to the prevention and control of Guinea-worm disease also known as dracunculiasis. In his fifties, Salomon decided to be part of the control effort when he realized the harmful health consequences of this neglected tropical disease. "I first heard about this disease during a polio vaccination campaign. That was in 2016," explains Salomon.

Biharamulo, Tanzania – A team of public health emergency experts from World Health Organization (WHO) has deployed to Tanzania’s north-western Kagera region to support the health authorities strengthen response to an outbreak of Marburg virus disease.

Yaounde – Ndzie Daniela and Ngah Daniel, twins, were the first children to receive the malaria vaccine when it was introduced in Cameroon on 22 January 2024. They have now received three doses of the vaccine and are both thriving. “My children are in excellent health. Since birth, they have never had malaria. Better still, I'd say they've never fallen sick,” says their mother Hélène Akono. “I must admit they've had a few teething problems, but nothing serious.”

Juba ‒ Nyaboth Gai, a 28-year-old resident of Rubkona, county in the north of South Sudan, is grateful to be alive after her family was severely affected by cholera, an infectious disease that can quickly lead to death if it is not detected and treated early. “All four members of my family got infected and I thank God for giving me another chance to live,” she says. “I am grateful for the treatment we have been receiving in the health facility.”