Day: August 23, 2022

Kampala, Uganda: The United Kingdom is pleased to announce £9 million funding to the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and £2 million funding to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). This is part of our long standing funding partnership with both organisations. This humanitarian support will provide life-saving nutrition, food assistance and protection to refugees and their host communities and to vulnerable women and children in the Karamoja region.

Uganda hosts over 1.5 million refugees, the largest refugee population in Africa. About 80% are women and children. Conflicts in the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan continue to cause forced displacement to Uganda, with more than 86,000 refugees arriving so far in 2022, stretching limited resources.

Karamoja has Uganda’s highest levels of food insecurity and malnutrition. The current drought affecting the East Africa region has worsened the situation. More than 500,000 need food assistance, and about 100,000 children and pregnant and lactating women are acutely malnourished.

Speaking about the funding Her Excellency Kate Airey OBE, the British High Commissioner to Uganda, said “the UK applauds the longstanding partnerships with WFP and UNICEF. They have a strong record of reaching the most vulnerable with critical support in times of crisis.”

Minister of State for Relief, Disaster Preparedness and Refugees Hon Esther Anyankun stated: “Refugee food rations have been dwindling as needs continue to rise, and the Karamoja region is currently battling with acute food shortages and malnutrition, especially among vulnerable women and children. This lifesaving donation will go a long way to alleviate these challenges. As Government, we are committed to working with the UK as a key development partner of our country.”

“With food insecurity and malnutrition among children reaching critical levels, the funding UNICEF is receiving today from the UK Government is crucial. With this funding UNICEF will sustain and expand the provision of therapeutic feeding and child protection services. UNICEF thanks the Government of the United Kingdom for this timely support for vulnerable children and women in Karamoja and in refugee hosting districts,” said Munir Safieldin, UNICEF’s Representative to Uganda.

Abdirahman Meygag, WFP Uganda Country Representative added: “Soaring food and fuel prices are combining with unpredictable climate to push more people into poverty and hunger. With the contribution from UK, we shall be able to give food assistance to the most vulnerable — refugees and the people of Karamoja who are currently experiencing unacceptable levels of food insecurity. Giving emergency food assistance is the first step in enabling those hit by crisis get back on their feet and contribute meaningfully to their communities. With this contribution, we shall not only give general food assistance but also specifically target children under five, pregnant and breastfeeding women with malnutrition treatment. With this contribution, the fate of many children will be rewritten as we enable them to beat malnutrition, have better life outcomes, and a brighter future”

Source: World Food Programme

Brazzaville/Kinshasa, 23 August 2022 – Health authorities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo declared a resurgence of Ebola late last night, following confirmation of one case in the country’s eastern province of North Kivu.

A 46-year-old woman died on 15 August 2022 in Beni, a town located in North Kivu. She received care at the Beni Referral Hospital, initially for other ailments, but subsequently, exhibited symptoms consistent with Ebola virus disease.

Both the Beni and Goma branches of the country’s National Institute of Biomedical Research (INRB) confirmed Ebola virus in samples taken from the patient. Analyses showed that the case was genetically linked to the 2018-2020 Ebola outbreak in North Kivu and Ituri Provinces—the country’s longest and largest.

“Ebola resurgences are occurring with greater frequency in the Democratic Republic of the Congo which is concerning. However, health authorities in North Kivu have successfully stopped several Ebola flare-ups and building on this expertise will no doubt bring this one under control quickly,” said Dr Matshidiso Moeti, World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Director for Africa.

WHO staff and health authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo are working to stem the spread of the disease, having identified 160 contacts whose health is being closely monitored. Investigations are ongoing to determine the vaccination status of the confirmed case.

There are 1000 doses of the rVSV-ZEBOV Ebola vaccines available in the country’s stockpile, 200 of which will be sent to Beni this week. Ring-vaccination—where contacts and contacts of contacts are vaccinated to curb the spread of the virus and protect lives—is expected to begin shortly.

The last flare-up in North Kivu’s Beni health zone was brought under control in about two months, ending on 16 December 2021. There were 11 cases (eight confirmed, three probable), including six deaths.

Source: World Health Organization

Lomé, 23 August 2022 – With the burden of cardiovascular disease, mental and neurological disorders and diabetes rising in the region, African health ministers today endorsed a new strategy to boost access to the diagnosis, treatment and care of severe noncommunicable diseases.

The health ministers, gathering for the Seventy-second session of the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Committee for Africa in Lomé, Togo, adopted the strategy known as PEN-PLUS, A Regional Strategy to Address Severe Noncommunicable Diseases at First-Level Referral Health Facilities. The strategy supports building the capacity of district hospitals and other first-level referral facilities to diagnose and manage severe noncommunicable diseases early, resulting in fewer deaths.

Severe non-communicable diseases are those chronic conditions that that lead to high levels of disability and death among children, adolescents and young adults if left undiagnosed or untreated. In the worst cases patients live no longer than a year after diagnosis. In Africa, the most prevalent severe noncommunicable diseases include sickle cell disease, type 1 and insulin-dependent type 2 diabetes, rheumatic heart disease, cardiomyopathy, severe hypertension and moderate to severe and persistent asthma.

“Africa is grappling with an increasingly hefty burden of chronic diseases whose severe forms are costing precious lives that could be saved with early diagnosis and care,” said Dr Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa. “The strategy adopted today is pivotal in placing effective care within the reach of patients and marks a major step in improving the health and wellbeing of millions of people in the region.”

In most parts of Africa, severe non-communicable diseases are treated at tertiary health facilities, which are mostly in large cities. This exacerbates health inequities, as it puts care beyond the reach of most rural, peri-urban and lower-income patients, who can often only easily access district hospitals and local health centres. These facilities lack the capacity and resources to effectively manage severe non-communicable diseases.

The strategy adopted today urges countries to institute standardized programmes to tackle chronic and severe non-communicable diseases by ensuring that essential medicines, technologies and diagnostics are available and accessible at district hospitals. Only 36% of countries in the African region reported having essential medicines for noncommunicable diseases in public hospitals, according to a 2019 WHO survey. Governments should also ensure that people seeking care in private hospitals can access services for severe non-communicable diseases.

Additionally, countries should bolster the protocols for prevention, care and treatment of chronic noncommunicable diseases through training and strengthening the skills and knowledge of health workers.

Non-communicable diseases account for most of the out-of-pocket spending of patients in Africa and due to their chronic nature often lead to catastrophic health expenditures. By offering non-communicable disease care as a package of services available at primary and district health facilities, patients will find their expenses decrease as they spend less money on transportation, lodging in cities and less time in commuting to the health facilities.

The PEN-PLUS strategy adopted today builds on existing WHO initiatives for integrated detection, diagnosis, treatment, and care of non-communicable diseases in primary health care facilities. It has shown promising results in Liberia, Malawi, and Rwanda, with a significant increase in the number of patients accessing treatment for severe noncommunicable diseases and, a concomitant improvement in outcomes for these patients.

Source: World Health Organization

The total population of concern (PoC) to UNHCR in West and Central Africa (WCA) relates to the people UNHCR is mandated to protect and assist. It includes those who have been forcibly displaced; those who have returned home within recent years; those who are stateless or at risk of statelessness; and other groups to whom UNHCR has extended its protection or assisted on a humanitarian basis.

Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees

WHO Director-General, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, today extended his congratulations to the Republic of Togo, as it was confirmed that the West African country had become the first country to eliminate four devastating neglected tropical diseases.

The ceremony took place during the 72nd Session of the World Health Organization Regional Committee for Africa, in Lomé, and was attended by Togo’s President Faure Gnassingbé.

In addition to WHO’s acknowledgment, President Gnassingbé also received an outstanding achievement award on behalf of his country’s extended health workforce. The award was presented by WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr Matshidiso Moeti, and Ms. Thoko Elphick-Pooley, Director, Uniting to Combat Neglected Tropical Diseases.

In congratulating Togo, Dr Tedros noted that dracunculiasis, lymphatic filariasis, human African trypanosomiasis and trachoma had long been a terrible burden for the Togolese population and that their elimination constituted “a gift not only for the people of Togo today, but for generations to come”.

The elimination of human African trypanosomiasis, in 2020, coincided with the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, making Togo’s elimination of the deadly disease, also referred to as sleeping sickness, even more noteworthy.

Devastating burdens of disease

Dracunculiasis, also known as Guinea worm disease, is a parasitic infection transmitted via contaminated drinking water. It causes disability for the three-to-ten-week period of illness and can also lead to death.

Lymphatic filariasis is also caused by parasitic worms and often leads to elephantiasis. This causes swelling in the arms, legs, breasts, or genitals and, as well as being painful, may also lead to disfigurement and extreme social and economic stigma.

Human African trypanosomiasis has two principal forms, the gambiense and the rhodesiense, and is generally transmitted through contact with infected tsetse flies. If the infection is not treated promptly, it too is deadly.

Trachoma is a bacterial disease that particularly affects those with inadequate access to of water, sanitation and hygiene. It causes severe eye pain and often leads to blindness.

Disease of extreme poverty

All four of the diseases eliminated by the Republic of Togo are diseases of extreme poverty and affect populations already blighted by severe economic hardship. They are one of a group of some twenty diseases commonly referred to as neglected tropical diseases (NTD).

Many of those other NTDs still pose considerable health challenges to populations the world over, particularly in the poorest countries.

In celebrating Togo’s fine achievement and congratulating the country’s health workforce and leadership, Dr Tedros emphasized the need to pursue the elimination and eradication of all NTDs in all countries.

Source: World Health Organization