ADDIS ABABA, 15 December 2015 | More than 17 million children aged 5–14 years will be treated for two neglected tropical diseases – soil-transmitted helminthiases (intestinal worms) and schistosomiasis (bilharzia) between 23 November 2015 and 29 February 2016. The programme by the Ethiopian Federal Ministry of Health started late last month in Hawassa in the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region.

The country-wide initiative of the Ministry of Health is supported by the Ministry of Education and aims at reducing the parasitic burden of both diseases. 

KAMPALA, 17 December 2015:- The African Programme for Onchocerciasis Control (APOC) founded in 1995 has been formally closed and a new entity – the Expanded Special Project for the Elimination of Neglected Tropical Diseases (ESPEN), with an expanded mandate, proposed to replace it. ESPEN was formally introduced to delegates at the 21st session of the Joint Action Forum (JAF) of the African Programme for Onchocerciasis Control (APOC) that has concluded in Kampala, Uganda.

Banjul - 17 December 2015: The United Nation System  in the Gambia  joined the rest of the world in commemorating UN Day 2015 which was  observed on 24th October 2015. This year’s commemoration coincided with UN’s 70th anniversary under a global theme: Strong UN-Better World”.  The ceremony was hosted at the Kairaba Beach Hotel and was graced by the Diplomatic Mission, Senior government officials, civil society organizations and other partners, UN Staff and students.

ADDIS ABABA, 16 December 2015 | Ethiopia joins over 130 countries to introduce Inactivated Polio Virus (IPV) vaccine against poliomyelitis.

The Minister for Health, Community Development, Gender, Elderly and Children Hon. Ummy Mwalimu (MP), conducted a fact finding operation on the Cholera outbreak currently ongoing in the country.  Her programme included a Cholera Press Conference, an inspection of Mburahati Cholera Treatment Centre and an observation of DAWASCO water pipes in a sewerage trench in Manzese Ward. WHO staff were present in all the Minister’s activities.

Summary of Ministers’ Cholera Press Conference

Kampala 16th December 2015:  The Reproductive Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health (RMNCAH) assembly took place at Serena Hotel in Kampala under the theme “Better accountability and coordination for Reproductive Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health.

The meeting was organized for stakeholders to share experiences and lessons learned around the development, use and sustainability of an engagement platform for the RMNCAH stakeholders for better health outcomes of mothers, children and adolescents and improved accountability mechanisms.

Harare: ,12 December 2015: The Friendship Bench - a brief intervention delivered by supervised lay health workers who have received training in problem solving therapy - a Cognitive-behavioural intervention geared to improve an individual’s ability to cope with stressful life experiences was hailed as a locally developed innovation in the delivery of mental health services in Zimbabwe.

Dakar, 14 December 2016 - Immunization experts have called for concrete actions to stem the tide of vaccine preventable diseases in the WHO African Region. The call came from the African Regional Immunization Technical Advisory Group (RITAG) which concluded its 2-day meeting on 14 December 2016 in Dakar, Senegal, to discuss the state of immunization in the region. The RITAG serves as the principal advisory group to the WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, on regional immunization policies and programmes.

14 December 2015 - In South Sudan, the World Health Organization (WHO) is working alongside the Ministry of Health to implement a new disease early warning system capable of monitoring approximately 500 000 people in hard-to-reach settings for only three cents per person.

ADDIS ABABA, 11 December 2015 | The World Health Organization (WHO) is working alongside the Ethiopian Ministry of Health and 22 partner organizations to respond to the health needs of 3.6 million people vulnerable to health and nutrition emergencies due to the El Niño weather phenomenon. Humanitarian partners came together in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, today to launch joint plans for the crisis response in 2016.