Infographics

A cloud of dust lifted slowly off the forecourt of Sebkha health centre where an ambulance had just rushed a patient. Inside visitors milled about as nurses paced up and down the corridors. When one of the nurses passed by, an elderly woman waiting outside the delivery room sat up and asked how her daughter was doing. “Don’t worry madam,” came the reply, “your daughter will give birth safely. She’s in good hands.”

The World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Africa and the United Nations Volunteers have launched the Africa Young Women Health Champions, an initiative to recruit early to middle career women professionals across 47 countries in the African region.

On entering Uganda’s Entebbe International Airport, visitors are greeted by posters on how to prevent COVID-19 transmission, even before having their temperatures taken by medical staff.  Video messages play in the departure and arrival lounges. So far, the number of people in Africa confirmed to have the virus is much smaller than other parts of the world. But as more health ministries in Africa have confirmed the presence of the virus in their countries, what was once a distant threat is now much closer.  

The last Ebola patient in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) was discharged today from a treatment centre in the north-eastern town of Beni. With no more confirmed cases, a 42-day countdown to declaring the end of the world’s second-deadliest Ebola epidemic began on 2 March.

Senegal today reported its first case of COVID-19, becoming the fourth country in Africa to confirm the virus. The patient is a French national and a resident of Senegal who returned to Dakar on 26 February.

In November 2019, a health care associated Lassa Fever infection in Tonkolili District led to the onset of cases of the disease and death including healthcare workers. The event occurred when two patients presented at the Masanga Hospital with fever and other complications and were treated for their conditions but subsequently died. The cause of their deaths proved to be Lassa Fever, which later spread to three other people including healthcare workers with one additional death

Sierra Leone has commenced the process of developing a National School Health Policy and Strategy to create a safe, healthy school environment for learning with the aim to improve social inclusion and sustainable human capital development. The process is being coordinated by an interministerial core group led by the Ministry of Health and Sanitation. The World Health Organization in collaboration with other United Nations agencies are providing strategic technical assistance to the government for the development of these national documents with funding from the British Government through DFID.