With his staff in hand and the firm voice of someone on a mission, Reverend Manuel Miranda, leader of the Prophetic Union of Angels Church in Camama, Luanda, addresses a group of parents who are sceptical about the new polio vaccination campaign. "Reverend, we don’t understand the reason for yet another campaign. Won’t so many vaccines harm our children?” Ask one of the parents. Calmly, the pastor replies: “The vaccine is protection, not a threat. Polio can paralyse a child for the rest of their life.

Makeni, Sierra Leone – July 2025

Abuja, Strengthening Frontline Capacity Nationwide
In response to a surge in cholera cases during the 2025 rainy season, the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) and World Health Organization (WHO) in collaboration with UNICEF, WaterAid, and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), have launched an initiative to strengthen cholera preparedness and response.

Nairobi/Brazzaville/Geneva—The World Health Organization (WHO) has validated Kenya as having eliminated human African trypanosomiasis (HAT) or sleeping sickness as a public health problem, making it the tenth country to reach this important milestone. HAT is the second neglected tropical disease (NTD) to be eliminated in Kenya: the country was certified free of Guinea worm disease in 2018.

Pujehun District, Sierra Leone – August 2025

Helinda Saffiatu Sandi is no stranger to the challenges of public health service delivery. At 37 years old, the trained nurse from Pujehun Government Hospital has dedicated the past five years to caring for her community, first at a Peripheral Health Unit (PHU), and now as a member of the District Health Management Team (DHMT). Her story is one of perseverance, community trust-building, and deep commitment to disease prevention.

Ethiopia has successfully concluded the second round of its nationwide novel oral polio vaccine type 2 (nOPV2) campaign, reaching more than 16.8 million children across ten regions. Led by the Ministry of Health and the Ethiopian Public Health Institute and supported by the World Health Organization (WHO), UNICEF, Rotary International, and other immunization partners, the campaign was conducted from 30 May to 2 June 2025.

Harare—World Health Organization (WHO)'s Regional Office for Africa (AFRO), through the Expanded Special Project for the Elimination of Neglected Tropical Diseases (ESPEN), conducted a joint technical mission to Zimbabwe from 7-11 July 2025.

Ethiopia has successfully completed its 2025 nationwide integrated measles campaign, reaching an impressive 18,570,244 children—99% of the targeted population. The ten-day campaign kicked off on 14 May 2025 across 12 regions, while Somali Region and Addis Ababa City Administration launched on 21 May and 26 May, respectively. The national launch event took place in Bishoftu, Oromia Region, led by the Ministry of Health in close collaboration with partners, community members, and political leaders.

This opinion piece was first published in Jornal de Angola, a copy of which can be found here: https://www.jornaldeangola.ao/noticias/9/opini%C3%A3o/644043/da-crise-%C3%A0-coordena%C3%A7%C3%A3o:-como-a-resposta-%C3%A0-c%C3%B3lera-est%C3%A1-a-salvar-vidas-

By Dr Indrajit Hazarika, WHO Representative in Angola

Morogoro: In a significant stride toward strengthening Tanzania’s health emergency preparedness, the World Health Organization (WHO), in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and funding from UK in Tanzania, conducted a two-day Risk Communication and Community Engagement (RCCE) training workshop.