Haiti, one of the poorest countries in the world, was devastated by an earthquake in 2010. The disaster uncovered ...ht medbox">the realities of a non-existent mental health care system with only ten psychiatrists nationwide. Attempts were made to assess the increased prevalence of mental illness, likely due to the trauma to which many were exposed. Several interventions were carried out with aims to integrate mental health into primary health care services. The interplay between socio-cultural beliefs and health (both mental and physical) in Haiti has been widely commented upon by both foreign aid and local caregivers. Observations frequently highlight barriers to the willingness of patients to seek care and to their acceptance of biomedicine over traditional Vodou beliefs. The perception of Haitian beliefs as barriers to the availability and acceptance of mental health care has intensified the difficulty in providing effective recommendations and interventions both before and after the earthquake. Argued in this review is the importance of considering the interactions between socio-cultural beliefs and mental health when developing models for the prevention, screening, classification and management of mental illness in Haiti. These interactions, especially relevant in mental health care and post-disaster contexts, need to be acknowledged in any healthcare setting. The successes and failures of Haiti’s situation provide an example for global consideration.
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The issue of Antimicrobial resistance has become one of the most substantial health issues, prompting the World Health Assembly (WHA) to urge Membe...r States to finalise tailor made national action plans by May 2017, aligning them with objectives of the Global Action Plan (GAP). These cover awareness, surveillance and research, hygiene infection prevention & control, optimal use of antimicrobial medicines and economic case for sustainable investment. Indonesia, by virtue of its geographical terrain and complex interactions with diverse stakeholders, indicates a higher burden of AMR. Most of the country’s data currently relies on local studies conducted by labs and universities. To get a more accurate estimate of the situation, one has to rely on results from the Regional Resistance Surveillance Programme. By undertaking such measure, Indonesia would acquire data to detect AMR trends at a national level.
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The first case of COVID-19 was reported in Mozambique on 22 March 2020. As of 26 May, Mozambique had 194 confirmed cases of COVID-19, of which 168 were locally transmitted. The country’s capital, ...Maputo, and the province of Cabo Delgado are currently the epicentres of the outbreak in Mozambique, with Pemba and Afungi registering more than 50 percent of the overall cases. Other provinces affected are Manica, Inhambane, Gaza, Tete and Sofala.
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In 2021, the humanitarian community continued to support those in need, placing protection at the centre of its response. Learning from and building on past efforts, humanitarian actors will continu...e to respond and adapt their response to the various shocks impacting populations in Cameroon, such as violence against civilians, natural disasters, and epidemics, including the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Guidance for addressing a global infodemic and fostering demand for immunization
December 2020
Misinformation threatens the success of vaccination programs across the world. This guide aims to hel...p organizations to address the global infodemic through the development of strategic and well-coordinated national action plans to rapidly counter vaccine misinformation and build demand for vaccination that are informed by social listening.
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The PHC STGs and EML should be used by healthcare workers providing care at clinics, community health centres, and gateway clinics at hospitals.
Pharmaceutical and Therapeutics Committees (PTCs) are responsible for ensuring ...o-highlight medbox">the availability of medicines listed in the PHC EML at those facilities, as well as at higher levels of care.
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The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has launched a new Compendium of forgotten foods in Africa which is a first-of-its-kind comprehensive collection of 100 African forgotten ...food crops.
Also referred to as neglected, underutilized or orphan crops, these species offer valuable benefits, including nutrition and diet diversification, while supporting resilient, climate-smart agriculture but they are at risk of being lost as foods such as maize, rice and wheat dominate African diets.
The compendium list includes details on each crop's botanical classification, agroecological suitability, agronomic requirements, traditional and medicinal uses, value-added prospects and nutritional content. Among the entries are: African locust beans, African nightshade, baobab, Bambara nut, bush mango, cassava, fonio, marula, moringa, teff and tigernut.
Produced by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)'s Regional Office for Africa with the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA), the Compendium is a direct response to the UN Food Systems Summit and the Call for Collective Action in the Global Manifesto on Forgotten Foods.
Embracing both agricultural heritage and innovation can transform agrifood systems across Africa. By cataloguing these forgotten or underutilized crops, traditional knowledge is being honoured in the push to unlock the potential for better nutrition, sustainable agriculture, and resilience against the climate crisis.
In a joint foreword to the publication, FAO Assistant Director-General and Regional Representative for Africa Abebe Haile-Gabriel and FARA Executive Director Aggrey Agumya urged the mainstreaming of forgotten foods into African agrifood systems.
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Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) both in human and veterinary medicine has reached alarming levels in
most parts of the world and has now been recognized as a significant emerging threat to global public
health and food security. In June 2015, ... class="attribute-to-highlight medbox">the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
(FAO) passed a resolution on AMR at its governing
Conference. This followed the adoption of counterpart
resolutions on AMR by The World Organisation
for Animal Health (OIE) and the World Health Organization
(WHO) in May 20152, and marked the
beginning of a joint effort by the three organizations
to combat AMR globally.
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This manual will contribute directly to the fourth focus area of the FAO Action Plan by promoting the prevention of infections and ...ribute-to-highlight medbox">the prudent use of antibiotics in the pig and poultry sectors. The pig and poultry sectors are addressed together, as these sectors generally have the highest use of antibiotics. This manual is jointly applicable to veterinarians, other health professionals and farmers; a key to success in using antibiotics effectively and prudently is good dialogue among these professions.
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Strengthening resilient agricultural livelihoods
Level 3 responses are activated in the most complex and challenging humanitarian emergencies, when the highest level of mobilization is required acr...oss the humanitarian system. Even before the conflict escalated, the country suffered high levels of poverty, food insecurity, undernutrition and malnutrition, water shortages and land degradation. Yemenis are also facing armed conflict, displacement, risk of famine and disease outbreaks.
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In 2018, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in South Sudan must respond to the highest levels of food insecurity eve...r recorded in the country. To address this challenge, FAO revised its multiyear Emergency Livelihood Response Programme (ELRP) to enable rapid food production among the most vulnerable communities, protect their livelihoods and reduce dependency on humanitarian aid while building their resilience.
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Children living in humanitarian crises face an increased risk of abuse. While the threats of harm are increasing, the established systems in place to protect them are breaking down. Faced with ... class="attribute-to-highlight medbox">the COVID-19 pandemic and its impacts, vulnerable families suffer multiple hardships. Schools are closed and families have been pushed to the brink of poverty, sometimes having been denied the opportunity to protect and provide for their children.
The report provides an in-depth analysis of 19 Humanitarian Response Plans and Refugee Response Plans from 2019
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This report sets out the compelling case for repurposing harmful agricultural producer support to reverse this situation, by optimizing the use of scarce public resources, strengthening economic rec...overy from the COVID-19 pandemic, and ultimately driving a food systems transformation that can support global sustainable development commitments.
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Tracking progress on food and agriculture-related SDG indicators 2021 -
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Projects from around the world