The immediate objective of the country visit to Cameroon was to ensure that the country is as o...perationally ready as possible to effectively and safely detect, investigate and report potential Ebola virus disease cases and to mount an effective response that will prevent a larger outbreak. After technical working group meetings, field visits, a “table-top” exercise and a hospital-based simulation exercises were undertaken.
Key strengths and weaknesses were identified, and the following areas for improvement were proposed to the Ministry of Health: coordination, surveillance, contact tracing, infection prevention and control, rapid response teams, case management, social mobilization, laboratory, points of entry, budget, logistics.
more
The far-reaching impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic underscore the critical need for evidence-info...rmed, transparent and inclusive decision-making. Policy-makers have grappled with complex choices amidst uncertainty. They have constantly reassessed response measures while navigating their economic implications and unintended consequences on societal well-being. Effective communication of the basis for these decisions has also posed a challenge, requiring transparency and public trust.
more
The aim of this paper is to map and critically analyse evidence of good practice in prevention and response to gender-based violence (GBV) in human...itarian contexts which can support humanitarian practitioners and policy makers to improve the quality of GBV programming in the field. The paper is structured as follows. Following a brief discussion of key concepts and definitions in relation to GBV, Chapter 2 presents an overview of the extent of GBV in emergencies, and some of the challenges in responding to the problem. Chapter 3 then analyses some of the literature on the evidence of GBV programming effects in humanitarian settings, and draws out key lessons with regard to good practice. Chapter 4 discusses some of the key issues emerging from this review, and Chapter 5 concludes the paper with a discussion of the implications of the findings for research, policy and programming on GBV.
more
The goal of this Global Action Plan is to articulate synergistic actions that will be required to prevent HIVDR from undermining efforts to achieve global targets on health and HIV, and to provide <...span class="attribute-to-highlight medbox">the most effective treatment to all people living with HIV including adults, key populations, pregnant and breastfeeding women, children and adolescents. The Global Action Plan has five strategic objectives: 1) prevention and response; 2) monitoring and surveillance; 3) research and innovation; 4) laboratory capacity; and 5) governance and enabling mechanisms.
more
The Child Protection handbook provides a synthesis of good practice and learning and enables better advocacy and communication on child protection risks, needs and responses. Standards addressing ch...ild protection needs cover core work areas and critical issues. Those addressing strategy relate to case management, community-based child protection, child-friendly spaces and protection of excluded children. A fourth set of standards gives guidance on how workers in other sectors can ensure that their programmes are accessible and beneficial to children. DOCUMENT ALSO AVAILABLE IN: Arabic, Chinese, French, Indonesian, Korean, Spanish, Turkish, Urdu on http://cpwg.net/minimum_standards-topics/cpms-full-version/.
more
The purpose of the toolkit is to bring together existing learning and guidance as a starting point for stakeholders to begin SRH preparedness work.... Within the SRH sector the field of preparedness is relatively new and growing. More collective effort is required to further evaluate the impact of preparedness efforts and push the field forward. This effort is a first attempt at a draft guidance for SRH preparedness, and is intended for field testing. The toolkit recognizes the longstanding work of the field of emergency and disaster risk management, and endeavors to bridge that work with the human rights-oriented and peoplecentered field of sexual and reproductive health.
more
Almost half (46%) of the world’s 1.7 million children living with HIV were not on treatment in 2020 and 150 000 children were newly infected with HIV, four times more than ...o-highlight medbox">the 2020 target of 40 000
more
The immediate objective of the country visit to Senegal was to build upon the public health prep...aredness already in place and to ensure that systems are available to investigate and report potential EVD cases and to mount an effective response to prevent a larger outbreak. The joint team for strengthening preparedness for EVD was composed of representatives of Senegal’s Ministry of Health, WHO, CDC, the United Nations Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the European Centres for Disease Prevention and Control, the Erasmus Medical Centre, Netherlands, and John Hopkins University, USA.
more
Improving the survival chances and quality of life of women, newborns, and children remains an urgent global challenge. Since 2012, substantial pro...gress has been made in reducing maternal and under-5 deaths, and a only handful of countries are on target to meet the SDG targets in 2030. Yet, 5 million children still die each year under the age of 5, and nearly half of those are newborns less than a month old. Worse still, the global maternal mortality ratio is going in the wrong direction.
A Decade of Progress and Action for the Future will examine the tenacity and innovation that helped us make gains, the lessons learned through monitoring, country-led adaptation and leadership, analysis, and reflection, as well as the approaches we must take to reinvigorate the momentum and global commitment to improving maternal and child survival. Increasing coverage, strengthening the quality of care, and enhancing equity will be tantamount to our global progress.
more
The purpose of the landscape analysis is ultimately to facilitate improved engagement of private... providers, thereby contributing to universal access to quality and affordable TB care and the end of the TB epidemic. It focuses on the role of private for-profit providers and on specific challenges and experiences in engaging them for TB prevention and care.
more
Shielding is a term used to describe the protection of individuals at high risk of severe COVID-19 illness by separating them from ...ribute-to-highlight medbox">the general population.
more
Little is known about the patterns of development assistance (DA) for each component of reproductive, maternal, newborn, child and adolescent healt...h (RMNCAH) in conflict-affected countries nor about the DA allocation in relation to the burden of disease
more
The aim of the framework is to provide guidance to Member States and partners on region-specific priority actions towards ...-highlight medbox">the goals, targets and milestones of the GTS. The central pillar of the framework is the adoption of programme phasing and transitioning, aimed at facilitating a tailored approach to malaria control/elimination. This is in response to the increasing heterogeneity of malaria epidemiology among and within countries of the region.
more
Countries are making progress toward the global goal of 95% of people living with HIV knowing their status by 2025. However, considerable gaps rema...in in achieving these goals globally. Men in high HIV burden settings and men from key populations in all settings are consistently less likely to know their HIV status than women. Globally, 78% of men ages 15 years and older who are living with HIV are aware of their HIV status, compared with 86% of women with HIV of these ages.
Offering HIV testing services, including HIV self-testing, at formal and informal workplaces has emerged as an effective, acceptable and feasible approach for reaching men. A 2018 World Health Organization (WHO) and International Labour Organization (ILO) policy brief provides key guiding principles for HIVST implementation at workplaces. Building on the 2018 policy brief, this brief captures early experience with HIVST implementation at workplaces and discusses emerging approaches of sustainable financing that can be adapted for HIV self-testing at workplaces.
The primary audiences for this policy brief are ministries of health and labour, national HIV programmes, employers’ organizations, workers’ organizations (labour unions), enterprises, implementing partners, including civil society organizations, and health insurance agencies.
more
The occurrence of a high percentage of couterfeit medicines on the global medicines market is of...ten attributed to a lack of effective regulation and a weak enforcement capacity. This review, while focusing on counterfeit medicines and medical devices in developing countries, will present information on their impact and how these issues can be addressed by regulation and control of the supply chain using technology appropriate to the developing world.
more
Significant progress has been made in the eradication of three priority diseases in the African Region, as a result ...ight medbox">of extensive collaboration between the Regional Office, WHO country offices and countries. For example, in August 2020, the region was certified free of wild poliovirus. In the area of neglected tropical diseases, Guinea worm disease is on the verge of eradication, and 12 member states are within reach of being certified as having eradicated yaws by the end of this year.
more
Taking the whole of Africa approach to fighting the COVID-19 pandemic has and will continue to require coordinated efforts from multiple stakeholde...rs from across the continent. Africa CDC would like to acknowledge the deep partnership and continued support of AUDA-NEPAD, AVAREF, WHO AFRO, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Mastercard Foundation. These partners have helped to shape and drive the continent’s strategic response to the COVID-19 pandemic and have offered support to ensure the continent receives a fair and equitable share of the COVID-19 vaccine without delay.
We look forward to continuing and deepening our partnership for the benefit of the public health of Africa.
more
The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the inadequacy of investments in public health, the persistenc...e of profound economic and social inequalities and the fragility of many key global systems and approaches.
more
Mental disorders are a leading cause of the global burden of disease, and the provision ...ass="attribute-to-highlight medbox">of mental health services in developing countries remains very limited and far from equitable. Using the Creditor Reporting System, we estimate the amounts and patterns of development assistance for global mental health (DAMH) between 2007 and 2013. This allows us to examine how well international donors have responded to calls by global mental health advocates to scale up evidence-based services. Although DAMH did increase between 2007 and 2013, it remains low both in absolute terms and as a proportion of total development assistance for health (DAH). The average annual DAMH between 2007 and 2013 was US$133.57 million, and the proportion of DAH attributed to mental health is less than 1%. Approximately 48% of total DAMH was for humanitarian assistance, education, and civil services. More annual DAMH was channelled into the nonpublic sector than the public sector. Despite an expanding body of evidence suggesting that sustainable mental health care can be effectively integrated into existing health systems at relatively low cost, mental health has not received significant development assistance.
more
Global UNIDO Project: Strengthening the local production of essential generic drugs in the least developed and developing countries