Cabo Verde sets the bar for ending mother-to-child transmission of viral hepatitis 

Orisa Brito with her baby Lila and the WHO Cabo Verde DPC, Carolina Leite

“Vaccinating is protecting who you love the most. Everyone should do it,” implores Orisa Brito, a mother of three children living in Praia, the capital of Cabo Verde. Her youngest child, Lila, is a healthy 5-month-old who received a dose of hepatitis B vaccine within hours of her birth and is due for another dose in a month.

Countries strategize their plan on Integrated Community Case Management (iCCM) to end preventable child death

Group photo
Globally, 5.4 million children under the age of 5 died in 2017. Nearly half of these deaths (2.71 million) occurred in sub-Saharan Africa. Pneumonia, diarrhea and malaria remain the main causes of death among children 2-59 months of age. Since 2012, the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF have recommended the integrated Community Case Management (iCCM) as a key strategy to deliver life-saving interventions for malaria, pneumonia and diarrhea to populations with poor access to health services.  iCCM is a component of a comprehensive strategy for integrated management of childhood illness (IMCI), which includes a broader and multi-sector community approach.

Ethiopia joins global efforts to end cholera by 2030

23 July 2019: Addis Ababa – The responsibility to eliminate cholera in Ethiopia – a country where almost a third of the population has sub-standard water supplies – lies with stakeholders at all levels, from ministries to partners and non-governmental organizations.
This was the message to delegates at a recent high level briefing with sectoral ministries, regional health bureaus, partners and donors on a multi-sectoral approach to eliminating cholera from Ethiopia by 2030.

The Executive Secretary of SADC hosts the WHO Representative as he bids farewell

Dr Stergomena Lawrence Tax  - The Executive Secretary of SADC (right) and Dr Martins Ovberedjo - outgoing WHO Representative to Botswana (left)

Gaborone, Botswana - 26 July 2019: Dr Stergomena Lawrence Tax, The Executive Secretary of the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC), this morning, hosted Dr Martins Ovberedjo, the WHO Representative to Botswana (WR), who was bidding her farewell as he completes his tour-of-duty in Botswana. Dr Ovberedjo has served in Botswana since January 2016 and he is leaving on re-assignment to Eritrea.

WHO’s Data Tool improves Ebola Surveillance, Contact Tracing and Decision Making in Uganda

Go.Data in Ebola response in Uganda

Kasese, 26th July 2019: - The recently introduced Go.Data, a software tool for outbreak investigation and contact tracing has revolutionized data collection, collation and analysis which are critical in disease outbreaks situations. 

For instance in the recent Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) outbreak in Kasese district, western Uganda, the tool enabled frontline health workers and District Health Teams (DHTs) to handle information management for contact follow-up and reporting in real-time. 

Ethiopia, Somaliland and Puntland jointly plan for the synchronized HoA cross-border polio response

cross boarder picture
The second synchronized Horn of Africa cross-border polio coordination and micro planning meeting which was organized for district level health officials of Ethiopia and Somaliland and Puntland held from 16-18, July 2019 in Jigjiga city of Somali region in Ethiopia. The first synchronized cross border micro planning meeting was held in Hargeisa Somaliland from 12 to 13 June 2019 with great success where the lower level staffs were fully involved and engaged in the process of cross-border micro plan.

WHO Representative to Botswana finishes tour of duty on re-assignment

His Excellency Dr Mokgwetsi E.K. Masisi, President of the Republic of Botswana (left) meeting with Dr Martins Ovberedjo, the outgoing WHO Representative to Botswana (right)

Gaborone, Botswana - 25 July 2019: This morning, His Excellency Dr Mokgwetsi E.K. Masisi, President of the Republic of Botswana, hosted Dr Martins Ovberedjo, the WHO Representative to Botswana (WR), who was bidding him farewell as he completes his tour-of-duty in Botswana. Dr Ovberedjo has served in Botswana since January 2016 and he is leaving on re-assignment to Eritrea.

Zambia Commemorates World No Tobacco Day

The WHO Representative, US Ambassador, Ministry of Health and Ministry of Education senior officials were part of the WNTD function

On 11 July 2019, Zambia commemorated the World No Tobacco Day to advocate for effective policies to reduce tobacco consumption and to engage stakeholders across multiple sectors in the tobacco control.

Seychelles engages on ways to redefine bringing health for all at first ‘National Primary Health Care Conference’

Delegates at the PHC Conference

In Seychelles, every Seychellois is entitled to basic health care as enshrined in its Constitution. In the early 1980s, the country adopted the primary health care approach, where all Seychellois, irrespective of their living circumstances, receives primary health services free of charge at the point of use in the public sector. Close to forty years down the line, with the technical support of the World Health Organisation (WHO), the Ministry of Health (MoH) held a national conference to take stock of the country’s primary health care system.