This document addresses preparedness as an important investment against natural and man-made disasters. Through good practices, it urges the humanitarian community, governments and regional bodies to use preparedness thinking to be aware of risks, to reduce them and to plan ahead to combat them in o...rder to respond more effectively and reduce the threat of hunger, disease, poverty and conflicts. It uses examples from Bangladesh, Bhutan, Bolivia, Colombia, Cook Islands, Ghana, Haiti, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Korea, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Kyrgyzstan, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Panama, Philippines, Samoa, Solomon Islands, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Tonga, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Zambia and Zimbabwe
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Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs), including mental disorders, currently pose one of the biggest threats to health and development globally, particularly in low and middle income countries2. It is predicted that unless proven interventions are rapidly implemented in countries, in the short to medium ...term, health care costs will increase exponentially and severe negative consequences will ensue not only to individuals and families but to whole societies and economies. NCDs are already a major burden in South Africa, but without added rigorous and timely action the health and development consequences may well become catastrophic. Immediate and additional, high quality, evidence based and focussed interventions are needed to promote health, prevent disease and provide more effective and equitable care and treatment for people living with NCDs at all levels of the health system. The problem is further compounded by the rising global prevalence of multi-morbidity (defined as the coexistence of two or more chronic diseases in one individual).
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Africa CDC strengthens the capacity and capability of Africa’s public health institutions as well as partnerships to detect and respond quickly and effectively to disease threats and outbreaks, ba...sed on data-driven interventions and programmes.
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To help increase continental testing efforts and reduce COVID-19 transmission in Africa, Africa CDC has launched the Partnership to Accelerate COVID-19 Testing (PACT): Test, Trace, Treat. PACT will ...mobilize experts, community workers, supplies and other resources to TEST, TRACE and TREAT COVID-19 cases in a timely manner to minimize the impact of the pandemic on the Africa continent.
Available in English and French
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The global pandemic has highlighted fragility in international supply chains and the dependency of many African countries on imported personal protective equipment (PPE). Market pressures have also increased prices for imported supplies and put addi...tional pressure on areas with limited resources for procurement. There is an urgent operational need to develop the domestic capacity to supply PPE from within the African continent. There is huge variation in Member
States industrial manufacturing capacity and the regulatory and testing capacity of government agencies at present. Growing number of companies, including micro- and small-medium enterprises, have responded by repurposing, albeit temporarily, to manufacture an assortment of PPEs. This workshop aims to bring together government representatives, industry, and subject matter experts on material testing and standards to promote the development of domestic production of safe and effective PPE made in Africa.
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In an effort to limit transmission and achieve pandemic control on the continent, Africa CDC is proposing the following measures to be taken by all Member States:
Remain vigilant
Countries should adapt or adopt best practices, strategies, guidel...ines and recommendations proposed by the Africa CDC and World Health Organization (WHO), aimed at limiting transmission. Measures taken should strike a balance between saving lives and minimizing the impact of the pandemic on the economy and social wellbeing of citizens.
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August 2020, The Africa Joint Continental Strategy for COVID-19 is underpinned by the need to limit transmission, prevent deaths and reduce associated harms. Participation by African nations in clin...ical trials is an essential step to ensure that sufficient data is generated on the safety and efficacy of the most promising vaccine candidates among the region’s populations.
While current COVID-19 clinical trial activity on the continent is limited, Africa has substantial experience and capabilities to conduct clinical trials for preventative vaccines across a range of diseases, and many organizations on the continent are working tirelessly to help prepare additional trials on potential COVID-19 vaccines. As the number of candidate vaccines in the development pipeline continues to increase, it will be important for organizations responsible for managing clinical trials in the region to partner with vaccine developers to identify potential and appropriate trial locations, provide support to remove any critical obstacles impeding commencement and progress of trials, and to provide oversight ensuring that trials are conducted safely and ethically.
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AMSP opens COVID-19 vaccines pre-orders for 55 African Union Member States
Limited coverage of laboratory services and long turnaround times from real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (rRT-PCR) for the detection of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has been insufficient to meet the demands in many ...hlight medbox">African countries in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Rapid antigen diagnostic tests (AgRDTs) are potentially useful as they can inform healthcare workers and individuals of their infection status at point-of-care testing
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AstraZeneca-SKBio in South Korea and Serum Institute of India
Sub-Saharan Africa faces a major public-health challenge from non-communicable diseases. Although infectious diseases continue to afflict Africa, the proportion of the overall disease burden in sub-...Saharan Africa attributable to cancer is rising, and the region is predicted to have a greater than 85% increase in cancer burden by 2030. This Series of seven papers focuses on cancer control in Africa, outlining the current situation, detailing barriers to care, and presenting ideas to advance cancer care and control in the region.
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Given the intimate association between silicosis and tuberculosis, understanding the epidemiology of the South African gold mining industry silicosis epidemic is essential to current initiatives to control both silicosis and tuberculosis in this pop...ulation, one of the most heavily affected globally. The study’s objectives were to compare the prevalence of silicosis among working black gold miners in South Africa during 2004–2009 to that of previous studies, including autopsy series, and to analyse the influence of silicosis and/or tuberculosis on exiting employment.
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WHO Progress Brief
Progress Brief
July 2017
The virtual conference, co-organised by the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) and the South African Medical Research C...ouncil (SAMRC) brought together African leaders, public health professionals and researchers, policymakers, business leaders and civil society and community leaders.
The objective was to discuss strategies and approaches to remove barriers to widespread delivery and uptake of effective COVID-19 vaccines across Africa, guided by African voices and indigenous values. The goal of the conference was to provide input for a framework for fair, equitable and timely allocation of COVID-19 vaccines in Africa.
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17 February 2021
During the second joint meeting of African ministers responsible for health, ICT and transport on the rollout of the Africa Against COVID-19: Saving Lives, Economies and Livelihood...s campaign, a call was made to African countries to work together towards harmonizing travel entry and exit requirements, and to increase mutual recognition and cross-border information exchange for enhanced surveillance
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