This report provides an overview of air pollution levels and associated health impacts in cities around the world. Since urban areas are often hotspots for poor air quality, city-level data can help to inform targeted efforts to curb urban air pollu
...
tion and improve public health. This report draws on data from the Global Burden of Disease project and from peer-reviewed analyses led by Susan Anenberg of the George Washington University.
more
The brief concludes that sustaining the continuity of EHS requires policies that ensure a whole-society and systems strengthening approach. This involves increased health care investment, community engagement, disease control regulations, and multisector approaches to improve resilience, EHS quality
...
, and equity.
more
This report provides insight into the work that UNFPA has been doing to tackle FGM across borders in these border areas, where country offices are implementing a wide range of initiatives to address the issue. The information provided
...
in this report is structured into four pillars, namely those listed in the regional action plan to eliminate cross-border FGM endorsed by the Governments that participated in the interministerial meeting on ending cross-border FGM held in 2019.
more
The importance of robust mortality surveillance systems cannot be overstated in an era marked by increasing global health challenges where health threats loom large and population dynamics continue to evolve. Accurate and timely mortality data is es
...
sential for identifying trends and detecting emerging health threats, evaluating the impact of interventions, and guiding evidence-based policy decisions.
This framework outlines a holistic approach to strengthening routine mortality surveillance systems, considering the unique contextual factors and challenges faced by African countries. It emphasizes the importance of establishing efficient data collection mechanisms, enhancing data quality and completeness, and promoting data sharing and collaboration among stakeholders.
Moreover, the framework recognizes the pivotal role of technology in the integration of data from fragmented mortality data sources. It highlights the potential of innovative data capture methods, advanced analytics, and real-time reporting systems to enhance mortality data’s accuracy, efficiency, and timeliness.
The continental framework for mortality surveillance aligns with Africa CDC’s mission and strategic goal by serving as a fundamental component in strengthening public health systems, enhancing disease surveillance capacities and capabilities, informing evidence-based policies and interventions, and promoting collaboration and coordination among African countries to address health challenges and improve health outcomes on the continent.
The successful implementation of this framework requires collective commitment and concerted efforts from governments, health institutions, and the international community. We hope this document will serve as a catalyst for transformative change, enabling countries to build resilient mortality surveillance systems that protect public health, save lives, and contribute to evidence-based decision-making.
more
Climate-induced water insecurity poses one of the biggest threats to humanity and will lead to more hunger, disease and displacement
Oxfam water engineers are having to drill deeper, more expensive and harder-to-maintain water boreholes used by some of the poorest communities around the world, mo
...
re often now only to find dry, depleted or polluted reservoirs.
Today, during World Water Week, Oxfam publishes the first of its series of reports, “Water Dilemmas”, about the growing water crisis, in large part driven by global heating from greenhouse gas emissions. The report describes how climate change will impact water security in different regions, leading to more hunger, disease and displacement.
Carlos Calderon, Humanitarian Advocacy and Partnerships Lead for Oxfam Aotearoa said, “This new Oxfam research is focused on the global Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WaSH) situation, but it paints a picture that illustrates the complexity of elements that, combined, will continue to increasingly affect women, girls, boys and men in the decades to come. Changing weather, poverty, inequality, gender-based violence, political instability and conflicts are impacting the availability and quality of adequate water systems. All governments, particularly those from rich countries, should responsively take action at a global scale. The clock is ticking. Our children will judge us for our actions today, or for the lack of them.”
more
Little is known about the patterns of development assistance (DA) for each component of reproductive, maternal, newborn, child and adolescent health (RMNCAH) in conflict-affected countries nor about the DA allocation
...
in relation to the burden of disease
more
Donor financing to low- and middle-income countries for reproductive, maternal, newborn, and child health increased substantially from 2008 to 2013. However, increased spending by donors might not improve outcomes, if funds are delivered in ways tha
...
t undermine countries’ public financial management systems and incur high transaction costs for project implementation
more
These guidelines – an update to the World Health Organization’s 2015 publication Consolidated strategic information guidelines – present a set of essential aggregate indicators and guidance on choosing, collecting and systematically analysing strategic information to manage and monitor the nat
...
ional health sector response to HIV.
more
DEMOGRAPHIC RESEARCH, VOLUME 36, ARTICLE 37, PAGES 1081-1108; PUBLISHED 5 APRIL 2017; http://www.demographic-research.org/Volumes/Vol36/37/; DOI: 10.4054/DemRes.2017.36.37
Education in emergencies is a young area; the evidence of its impact is often anecdotal, and although its status as a humanitarian concern has gained legitimacy in recent years, it has yet to be ac
...
cepted across the humanitarian community. Much more needs to be done to enhance our understanding of the links between education and child protection in emergency situations.
more
This policy brief aims to provide a review of the current progress on implementing the Kenya national action plan on AMR, identifies critical gaps, and highlights findings to accelerate further progress in the human health sector. The target audienc
...
e includes all those concerned with implementing actions to combat antimicrobial resistance in Kenya.
more
This report presents, for the first time, a global assessment of the extent to which health care facilities provide essential water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) services. Drawing on data from 54 low- and middle-income countries, the report concludes that 38% lack access to even rudimentary levels
...
of water, 19% lack sanitation and 35% do not have water and soap for handwashing. When a higher level of service is factored in, the situation deteriorates significantly. A number of areas require urgent action and WHO will work with UNICEF, Governments and other partners to develop a global plan to address the most pressing needs and ensure that all health care facilities have WASH services.
more
The Updated guidelines on Management of tuberculosis in children and adolescents include new recommendations that cover diagnostic approaches for TB, shorter treatment for children with non-severe drug-susceptible TB, a new option for the treatment
...
of TB meningitis, the use of bedaquiline and delamanid in young children with multidrug- and rifampicin-resistant TB and decentralized and family-centred, integrated models of care for TB case detection and prevention in children and adolescents.
more
This guideline provides global, evidence-informed recommendations on a number of specific issues related to the management of severe acute malnutrition in infants and children, including in the cont
...
ext of HIV.
more
Advances have been made through expanded interventions delivered through five public health approaches: innovative and intensified disease management; preventive chemotherapy; vector ecology and management; veterinary public health services; and the provision of safe water, sanitation and hygiene.
...
In 2015 alone nearly one billion people were treated for at least one disease and significant gains were achieved in relieving the symptoms and consequences of diseases for which effective tools are scarce; important reductions were achieved in the number of new cases of sleeping sickness, of visceral leishmaniasis in South-East Asia and also of Buruli ulcer.
The report also considers vector control strategies and discusses the importance of the draft WHO Global Vector Control Response 2017–2030.
more
Tobacco control legislation: an introductory guide
This brief summarises key considerations about the social, political and economic context of Goma in relation to the outbreak of Ebola in the DRC as of March 2019. Goma is the administrative capital
...
of North Kivu province and a major urban centre in the Great Lakes Region. The city is home to an estimated 1.5 million people and serves as an important economic and transportation hub that links eastern Congo to the broader East African sub-region. The arrival of Ebola in Goma would substantially increase the at-risk population and heighten the potential for cross-border transmission to neighbouring countries, particularly Rwanda. This brief therefore focuses on local social and political structures that can be leveraged to promote preparedness and readiness actions.
more