News Releases

Accra, 10 November 2023 – African lawmakers gathering for the continent’s first-ever parliamentary meeting on health security today agreed to support actions for stronger health systems to enable countries effectively prevent, prepare and respond to public health threats. 

Brazzaville – With one in five children currently missing crucial immunizations, African Immunization experts have pledged to address the pressing issue of vaccine access and equity. Following an intensive and collaborative meeting of the Regional Immunization Technical Advisory Group (RITAG) in Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo, over 150 immunization experts in the African Region committed to enhancing access and accelerating efforts to protect children from vaccine-preventable diseases.

Brazzaville/Istanbul – In a first of its kind, the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Africa’s Pathways to Leadership for Health Transformation Programme this week gathered experts from three of the Organization’s regional offices to equip them with crucial skills on health leadership to help bolster individual and organizational efforts towards a stronger future for global health.

Abuja, 24 October 2023 – Nigeria today introduced the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine into its routine immunization system, aiming to reach 7.7 million girls – the largest number in a single round of HPV vaccination in the African region – in a vaccination drive against the virus that causes nearly all cases of cervical cancer. 

Girls aged 9–14 years will receive a single dose of the vaccine, which is highly efficacious in preventing infection with HPV types 16 and 18 that are known to cause at least 70% of cervical cancers. 

The Ministry of Health, Cancer Unit has recorded 577 cases of cancer between January 2023 and June 2023, 33 of which are cancers of the breast. While many cancer patients in middle-income countries succumb to the disease, 50-year-old Fikile Hlatjwayo is lucky to have survived the deadly disease.

Antananarivo – Quality assurance surveyor Anja Mandimbisoa arrives at a random lot numerically selected, throws her pen in the air, and whichever house it is pointing at when it lands is the next on her evaluation list. With their consent, she then sits down with the family to verify whether the children in the household have the mark on their little fingers confirming they have been vaccinated against polio.