By Henry Opondo Seventy-three countries have warned that they face the risk of stock-outs of antiretroviral (ARV) medicines as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new WHO survey conducted ahead of the International AIDS Society’s biannual conference. Twenty-four countries reported having either a critically low stock of ARVs or disruptions in the…
Is WHO turning around on the herbal tonic?
Rattled by the growing popularity of a possible treatment for COVID-19 by herbal tonic produced by Madagascar, the World Health Organization (WHO) appears to seek a way around its hardline position against the tonic. In a press statement released on Monday, 04 May 2020 WHO said that it recognizes that traditional, complementary and alternative medicine…
WHO, FIFA launch joint campaign to equip the football community to tackle COVID-19
Henry Opondo FIFA, the international governing body of football, and the World Health Organization (WHO) have teamed up to combat the coronavirus (COVID-19) by launching a new awareness campaign led by world-renowned footballers, who are calling on all people around the world to follow five key steps to stop the spread of the…
COVID-19 strengthens in Africa
More than 600 cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in 34 countries in Africa as of 19 March, compared with 147 cases one week ago. Although the region has seen a significant increase in confirmed cases recently, there are still fewer cases than in other parts of the world. “The rapid evolution of COVID-19 in…
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…
DR Congo: Measles outbreak deaths toll rises
With the death toll from the world’s worst measles epidemic in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) surpassing 6000, the World Health Organization (WHO) is calling for more funding to stop the outbreak. Under the leadership of the DRC Ministry of Health, WHO, Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, and other partner aid agencies vaccinated more…
Roche expands its Global Access Programme
Roche announced on Tuesday that the Global Access Program is expanding beyond HIV, to include Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB), Hepatitis B and C (HBV and HCV), and Human Papillomavirus (HPV) for low- and middle-income country programs where the disease burden is the highest. The expansion of the Global Access Program highlights Roche’s commitment to improve access…
WHO lauds Rwanda’s Ebola preparedness efforts
WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Thursday commended Rwanda on its ongoing Ebola preparedness efforts and confirmed that no cases of Ebola have been reported from the country to date. “Rwanda has been proactive and engaged in Ebola preparedness at all levels since the outbreak was declared almost one year ago in neighbouring Democratic Republic…