The World Health Organization and UNICEF warned Wednesday of an alarming decline in the number of children receiving life-saving vaccines around the world. This is due to disruptions in the delivery and uptake of immunization services caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. According to new data by WHO and UNICEF, these disruptions threaten to reverse…
COVID-19: Hope for African countries as GAVI, UNICEF pact to secure PPEs, diagnostics
Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance has urgently made US$ 40 million available to UNICEF to secure personal protective equipment (PPE), diagnostic tests and other vital supplies on behalf of Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Malawi, Sudan, and Togo among others as they respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. The PPE delivered will help these…
GAVI pleads for urgency as COVID-19 firms up in Africa
By Henry Opondo With the COVID-19 pandemic already affecting 47 Gavi-supported countries mostly in Africa, Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance has taken new steps to help strengthen the preparedness of health systems in lower-income countries with the full support of its Board. According to the WHO, at least 33 African countries had reported more than 600…
Somalis urged to vaccinate children against polio
Somalia and Puntland health authorities rolled out a polio campaign yesterday to vaccinate more than 940 000 children under 5 years of age to stop an ongoing outbreak of a strain of poliovirus. The campaign runs from 24 to 27 June 2019, with support from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s…
DR CONGO: Major cholera vaccination campaign kick off
A vaccination campaign against cholera in North Kivu in the Eastern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) that targets over 800,000 people has on Monday been launched. The campaign is being implemented by the DRC Ministry of Health with support from the World Health Organization (WHO) and partners and funded by Gavi,…
Gavi initiates Cholera Vaccination campaign in Mozambique
An oral cholera vaccination campaign to protect survivors of Cyclone Idai Started Wednesday in Beira, Mozambique. Funded by Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, the campaign will be carried out by the Mozambique Ministry of Health, with support from the World Health Organization (WHO) and other partners, including UNICEF, the International Federation of the Red Cross and…
TICAD 7: Japan to host event on vaccination of African kids
The health of millions of African children will prominently feature at the TICAD 7 set for Yokohama, Japan. At the event, held on the eve of GAVI’s 20th anniversary, Japan will host a launch meeting for the Vaccine Alliance’s third replenishment to continue its work vaccinating millions of children in the world’s poorest countries. “Japan has…
Sub-Saharan Africa: Child deaths on the rise amidst slowing preventive progress –UN report
A baby born in sub-Saharan Africa or in Southern Asia was nine times more likely to die in the first month than a baby born in a high-income country. Yet progress to saving newborns has not been slower than for other children under five years of age since 1990. In 2017, half of all deaths…
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