Will eating raw onions once a day for three days protect me from Ebola? Is it safe to eat mangoes? Is it true that a daily intake of condensed milk can prevent infection with Ebola? These are just some of the questions posed to the health workers responding round the clock to calls received through the free Ebola hotline. With so many Ebola deaths to date, fear has allowed the spread of rumours and misinformation.

30 April 2014 | Geneva - A new report by WHO–its first to look at antimicrobial resistance, including antibiotic resistance, globally–reveals that this serious threat is no longer a prediction for the future, it is happening right now in every region of the world and has the potential to affect anyone, of any age, in any country.

“Today’s discharge of patients shows that Ebola is not always fatal. Good, early supportive care such as hydration, nutrition and appropriate medication can have a positive impact,” says Dr Tom Fletcher, Infectious Disease Physician at WHO, who provides clinical care to Ebola patients in the Guinean capital Conakry.

Two patients were released on the morning of 3 April from the Ebola isolation ward at Donka national teaching hospital, having spent 7 days in the isolation ward after testing positive for Ebola virus.

A three-day workshop was organized from 28-30 April 2014 for eight Anglophone countries in Accra, Ghana, brought together five participants each from Ghana, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Malawi, Kenya and Uganda. The participants were drawn from national EPI, National Regulatory Authority, Pharmacovigilance centres, and WHO national Focal Persons for EPI and Essential Medicines and Health Products. The workshop was facilitated and technical support provided by WHO HQ, WHO AFRO and WHO IST/ESA.   

Freetown 30 April 2014 - The Ministry of Health and Sanitation with support from Metabiota and WHO has trained 250 health workers on Ebola Virus Disease in Kenema, Kailahun, Kono, Pujehun and Western Area. The objective of the training was to provide updated information about Ebola Virus Disease focusing mainly on prevention. In that regard, emphasis was put on case detection, early reporting, sample collection and transportation, personal protection for health workers and communication.

As the Ebola outbreak evolves in Guinea and Liberia, WHO continues to expand its activities by sending additional expertise to assist in all areas of the response.

The immediate feedback from the just concluded 27th Expert Review Committee (ERC) on Polio and Routine Immunization in Nigeria has revealed  that the country ‘ is on the verge of making history by eradicating polio, the entire nation must be made aware, rallied and mobilized to capitalize on this unique window of opportunity’.

Every year World Malaria Day (WMD) is commemorated on 25th April and The Gambia joins the rest of the international community to mark this event. The Ministry of Health and Social Welfare (MOH&SW), WHO (UN) and partners all gathered in Basse, Upper River Region of the country to sensitize and educate the community on prevention, control and treatment of malaria.

The President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Dr Goodluck Jonathan, has tasked Governors of the 36 states ‘to continue to provide personal leadership, in your states for the programme by requesting and reviewing monthly reports from the local government chairpersons on the progress being made in their areas’ in order to avoid complacency or relapse to the era of widespread transmission of the paralysing disease.

"Immunization is a shared responsibility!" This call was made by the First Lady Mama Salma Kikwete when she launched the Immunization Week.