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Tag: World Health Organisation

  • Bridging the gaps between diagnosis and treatment

    According to global reports, Nigeria is ranked as the country with highest number of tuberculosis (TB) disease in Africa, leading to 420 people dying daily of TB and other multi health disease cases.

    According to the Country Representative, Nigeria, World Health Organisation (WHO), Dr. Wondimagegnehu Alemu, TB is a killer disease that continues to kill globally, with the disease killing over 11 million people yearly, while 300,000 undiagnosed TB patients are untreated.

    He noted that every hour 47 Nigerians develop acute TB, HIV and AIDS and other deadly diseases, adding that it is becoming more worrisome how Nigerians die of TB, simply because the basic amenities to prevent the disease are unavailable.

    Lending credence to this, the Coordinator, National Tuberculosis and Leprosy Control Programme, Dr. Adebola Lawanson, said TB prevalence rate in Nigeria is alarming and many people are nonchalant about it.

    To end TB and other related diseases in Nigeria, Lawanson said the Ministry is into partnership with various organisations to tackle this up to the grassroots. “There is need to proffer solutions to challenges of financing TB programmes in Nigeria and to propose strategies to improve energy among different stakeholders to harness and leverage on available resources to end TB in Nigeria,” she said. Such is the ministry’s partnership with software companies to providing easy access to diagnostic data as well as monitoring and evaluation systems.

    In 2012, SystemOne was established in Boston to fill this gap in providing fast access to diagnostic data, monitoring and evaluation systems, and connectivity solutions using software and services supporting multiple diagnostic devices and multiple diseases.

    Systemone’s helmsman, Christopher Macek, pointed out that this growing wave of devices is the future of diagnostics as it is faster and more accurate than cultures, slides and microscopes. According to him, SystemOne technology connects these new machines in difficult-to-reach, bandwidth-constrained geographies rife with infectious disease, creating a diagnostic device that enables rapid response to outbreaks and visibility into performance, inventory management, user training and more.

    “Traditionally, the health sector has been done with paper and pencil, registers this kind of get very difficult for people to see. So as technology evolves and as Nigeria evolves and adopts technology, the health sector is now in a process of beginning this movement. A new opportunity arose in Nigeria where there was a particular machine, the first diagnostic device we found, that was suitable for connecting the internet to a database. It was typically used around the world to diagnose tuberculosis. We worked with Nigeria to first connect a small pilot, and then this was rolled out nationally in a couple of stages over the three-year period. In the end, we connected all of their gene experts to systems for rapid diagnosis and analysis of tuberculosis,” he said.

    Within a year, Macek revealed how the software started publishing and publicising the results of that work and the software we created. “”A number of other countries started approaching us to see if they could use it to similarly connect their gene experts to diagnose a range of diseases.”

    Speaking on how people at the grassroots will benefit from the diagnostic machine, Macek said: ‘We are working with the National Co-coordinator for Tuberculosis and Leprosy Control in Nigeria, Dr. Mrs. Adebola Lawanson. She is very committed to everybody having access as well as people being treated. Apart from her, we also work with other health departments from federal level to local government level. We understand the fact that not everybody has access to technology, but the disease is affecting everybody all over the country so we have to find solutions where necessary and we can

    Macek
    Macek

    only use whatever technology available that can be appropriate and accessible in this situation.”

     

     

    The success stories, he said, is numerous with fact that the device has been in use for (6)six years.

    But the challenge lies in the fact that trying to treat TB in Nigeria requires education, outreach, medicine, long treatment, managing the treatment, finding the people infected and diagnosing them. “So there are many aspects to treating the disease and people with the disease,” he said.

    “The good news is that Nigeria has always been on the forefront of the innovation. We are setting up a network so that the result of the diagnostic machine will be collected within the shortest time. The results are evidence in each state, local government area, research centres, how many people are tested and how many are positive so that they are placed on treatment, how they get treated, thereby bringing awesome visibility through technology into the health sector,” Macek said.

    Regarding how the system works, he stated that “as soon as the devices have the result, we help push the result in a smart way back to the patient, physician, healthcare worker, TB, HIV centres, logistics, suppliers, medications etc and all of these coordinate the treatment response.”

    On the issue of partnership, he pointed out that it has been in partnership with the Leprosy and Tuberculosis Control Programme since 2012. “We also partner with them in the area of malaria, HIV, among others. Our partnership is most matured in Nigeria in the TB department and we are expanding our scope in Nigeria.”

    He added that “our aim is to give patients the required health care needed. Our overall goal is to help people to stay healthy. And to some extent, technology has helped in doing this.”

    In terms of coverage, especially at the grassroots, he said Systemone has expanded her network in the past three to five years to the grassroots in all of the states with over 400 molecular devices. “But the goal of the ministry is to get a hundred percent diagnosis with these machines. What we are working on presently is get to a stage whereby wherever you are in Nigeria a patient can get connected to these machines and get tested. And WHO has given a directive that everyone should have access to this kind of test. Because of its accuracy, we intend increasing the molecular devices. Most importantly, wider use of these systems will save lives in developing countries,” he concluded.

  • WHO supports Borno to reach 850,000 children with anti-malaria drugs

    The World Health Organisation (WHO) says it is supporting Borno Ministry of Health to reach more than 850,000 children with anti-malaria drugs to reduce high child morbidity and mortality rates in children under five.

    A statement issued by the Ms Charity Warigon, Media Communication Specialist, WHO Nigeria, on Monday in Abuja said the activity was part of the 4th cycle of Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention (SMC) campaign.

    According to her, SMC is a WHO-recommended intervention for children under five years living in the Sahel sub-region of Africa.
    She said: “The use of this preventive strategy especially during the peak transmission period (rainy season) has been shown to reduce cases of severe malaria by about 75 per cent.’’

    She added that the campaign aimed to reduce the burden of malaria especially among children between three to 59 months who have been predisposed to mosquito bites in Borno.

    Warigon quoted WHO Health Emergency Programmes Manager, Dr Collins Owili, as saying that SMC campaign is introduced in Borno with a view to reducing high child morbidity and mortality rates in children under five in Borno due to malaria.

    “In response to high burden of malaria in north-east Nigeria, WHO initiated a seasonal malaria modelling exercise in 2017 aimed swiftly reducing the toll of malaria by saving 10,000 lives among children under five in the state.

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    “This exercise has proven to be effective and that is why we continued with another four cycles this year.

    “It is hoped that lessons learned from the campaign in north-eastern Nigeria can be applied in other emergency settings across the world,” he said.

    The statement also quoted Borno state Malaria Programme Manager, Mr Mala Waziri, attesting to the effectiveness of the intervention in the state.

    Waziri said that the burden of malaria in the state has evidently reduced since the exercise was modeled in 2017.

    He said even though the state was yet to conduct an impact assessment of the SMC exercise in Borno, the intervention has helped to reduce the incidence of malaria in the household.

    He added that because of the intervention, many households reported less malaria cases in the clinics in 2018 as compared to the previous year.

    The statement said the 4th cycle was the last of the planned malaria campaign for the state this year.

    It added that WHO and other partners would continue to emphasize on the use of use of Long Lasting Insecticide Nets (LLIN) to ensure that the population were prevented from malaria after the campaign.

    “WHO will continue to support and facilitate partnership as well as mobilization to support malaria control in Borno state,’’ it said.

  • WHO to commence maternal treatment, child immunisation in Edo

    The World Health Organisation (WHO) has said that it will commence maternal treatment, newborn and child immunisation exercise in Edo.

    Mrs Kate Ogieugo, WHO State Representative made this known in Benin on Wednesday during a one-day stakeholders’ sensitisation meeting for the upcoming campaign.

    Ogieugo said the campaign scheduled to start on November 19 would be targeted at children and child bearing women of 15 to 49 years.

    She also said that Vitamin A would be given to children of six to 59 months to prevent child mortality.

    She said the programme was made possible due to the payment of counterparts fund for the programme by the Edo Government.

    “The interventions during the week will include immunisation of children from zero to 59 months, health education on exclusive breastfeeding for first six months.

    “Complementary feeding, prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV/AIDS, simple hand washing techniques using soap and water, personal hygiene, birth registration and family planning services.

    “Vitamin A supplementation to children from six months to five years, DE-worming , Ante-natal service including malaria prevention and treatment, administration of Tetanus Diphtheria Vaccine to pregnant women and Nutrition screening,” she said.

    According to her, the programme would be carried out at all health centres and designated centres across the state from 8.00am to 4pm daily.

    Ogieugo said “Vaccinators will not move from house to house. In a single visit, all health interventions will be provided for mother and child at health and designated centres.

    “It is a package of high impact, preventive and curative services. It is cost effective. Repeated Oral polio Vaccine (OPV) will boost the child immunity,’’ she added.

    According to her, all services rendered during the week-long programme will be free. She urged mothers and caregivers should take their children to the nearest health centres.

  • ‘Female genital mutilation victims develop sexual problems later’

    Women who are victims of the Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) may develop sexual problems like pain during intercourse, reduced satisfaction and potential challenges with orgasm.

    A Consultant Psychiatrist, Dr Tomi Imarah, made the assertion in an interview with our reporter on Wednesday

    Imarah runs an online Mental Health Counselling Service, called “Dr Tomi’s Haven’’ via her facebook page, @drtomihaven.

    “Orgasm is a feeling of intense sexual pleasure that happens during sexual activity.

    “FGM affects the sexual life of victims; the clitoris is the female erogenous organ that is capable of erection under sexual stimulation.

    “It is not that victims of FGM are incapable of enjoying sex; it is just that it may take more efforts.

    “Women should not have to struggle because some people decided their genital organs should be excised for no good reason. Ignorance is not an excuse, “ she said.

    The consultant psychiatrist said that men could help their partners who were victims of FGM to enjoy sex better in a number of ways.

    According to her, first of all, men should be more loving and show more understanding in such a situation.

    “The deleterious impact of FGM go beyond physical injuries; there can be serious psychological effects.

    “Moreso, repeated challenges during sexual activities may make women withdraw emotionally.

    “It is important to have honest conversations about their feelings regarding their sexuality and specific measures the man can take to make things better.

    “Another thing is that couples should consider exploring other erogenous zones; these are body parts with heightened sensitivity, which elicit sexual responses when stimulated.

    “Some specific zones are lips, nipples, glans, penis for male and clitoris and rest of the vulva for the female.

    “All the erogenous zones are capable of eliciting varying degrees of pleasure; so, they can be explored and accentuated by loving partners,“ Imarah said.

    She called on stakeholders to join efforts to prevent women from becoming victims of FGM and also, law enforcement strategies should be a priority.

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    Quoting the World Health Organisation (WHO), she said that FGM were procedures that intentionally alter or cause injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons.

    Imarah said these procedures had no health benefits whatsoever, but were actually harmful to women physically, psychologically and socially.

    “FGM is a human rights violation and should be treated as such.

    “The procedure is irreversible for the 200 million girls and women in the world; however, we should work toward preventing the next 200 million victims.

    “Many organisations and government agencies have been mounting awareness and advocacy efforts over the years; it is time we all joined the efforts.

    “News and social media platforms can be utilised in the awareness efforts.

    “Let us have conversations about FGM in family meetings, hangouts, Town Hall meetings, Whatsapp groups, religious events and so on.

    “Gradually, the next generation will find the idea of clitoridectomy strange and unpardonable.

    “Also, law enforcement strategies should be a priority; if we have a law in place and no one is prosecuted, it is rendered impotent.

    “Let us have a few well-publicised FGM prosecution cases and you will be pleasantly surprised to learn that FGM will decline pretty fast, “ she said.

    According to the 2013 Nigeria Demographics and Health Survey (NDHS) findings, 25 per cent of Nigerian women between the ages of 15 and 49 have been circumcised.

    “Osun has the highest prevalence of circumcised women with 77 per cent, followed by Ebonyi- 74 per cent, and Ekiti-72 per cent.

    “Female circumcision occurs mostly during infancy; that is, four in five women and about 82 per cent, who had been circumcised had their circumcision before their fifth birthday,’’ NDHS shows.

  • Buhari departs for New York Sunday to attend UN General Assembly

    President Muhammadu Buhari will on Sunday depart for New York to participate in the 73rdSession of United Nations General Assembly (UNGA73) which officially opened September 18, 2018.

    The theme for this year’s Session is: “Making the United Nations relevant to all People: Global Leadership and Shared Responsibilities for Peaceful, Equitable and Sustainable Societies.”

    The highpoint of President Buhari’s participation, according to a statement by the Special Adviser on Media and publicity, Femi Adesina, will be his address on Tuesday to the General Assembly on the opening day of the General Debate.

    “The President’s presentation of Nigeria’s National Statement is expected to reaffirm the nation’s commitment to international peace and security; sustainable socio-economic development; disarmament and denuclearisation; youth and women empowerment; climate change; rule of law and human rights; among others.

    ‘He is also expected to particularly canvass international support for the fight against corruption; the return of illicit assets; counter-terrorism and insurgency; curbing irregular migration; re-settling Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs); recharging the receding Lake Chad; and calls for the reform of the United Nations, especially the expansion of the permanent membership of the Security Council to make that vital principal organ of the global organisation reflect regional and equitable geographical representation.” he said.

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    The statement also said that the President and his wife, Aisha, will also attend a welcome reception hosted by the UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres and his spouse for Heads of State and Government and their spouses.

    The Nigerian leader and his delegation will participate in a High-Level meeting on the Fight against Tuberculosis organised by the World Health Organisation as Nigeria currently ranks seventh amongst the high TB-burden countries globally, and second in Africa.

    The Nigerian delegation is expected to attend the Mandela Peace Summit, which is a High-Level Meeting on Global Peace in honour of the centenary birth of the late South African President and Nobel Peace Prize winner, Nelson Mandela.

    Other side-events lined up for the Nigerian delegation include: High-Level Meeting on Financing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development; World Economic Forum’s Sustainable Development Impact Summit; the Second Annual Bloomberg Global Business Forum; High-Level Meeting on Action for Peace-Keeping; Commemoration and Promotion of the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons; High-Level Meeting on the Third Industrial Development Decade for Africa; and Pathway to Localising a Global Agenda.

    During the course of his stay in New York, in addition to the audience with the UN Secretary-General, the Nigerian President is also expected to have bilateral meetings with African and world leaders including Bill Gates with a view to promoting national and African interests.

    He will also grant audience to a select group of Nigerian professionals based in the United States.

    Apart from his wife, President Buhari will be accompanied by Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State; Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama; Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami; Minister of Health, Isaac Adewole; Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Okechukwu Enelamah; Minister of Budget and National Planning, Udoma Udo Udoma; and the Minister of State for Environment, Ibrahim Jibrin.

    Others on the presidential entourage include: the National Security Adviser, Maj. Gen. Babagana Monguno (rtd); Director-General, National Intelligence Agency, Ahmed Abubakar; Comptroller-General, Nigeria Immigration Service, Mohammad Babandede; and the Acting Chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ibrahim Magu.

  • WHO calls for urgent action to end TB

    The World Health Organisation ( WHO ) has called for urgent global action to end Tuberculosis (TB), the world’s deadliest infectious disease which claims 4000 lives daily. The call was made at a press conference to launch the 2018 Global Tuberculosis report, held yesterday at the United Nations headquarters in New York.

    The report provides a comprehensive assessment of the TB epidemic, with data on disease trends and response in 205 countries and territories. It also outlined a monitoring framework with data on SDG indicators and a graphic country profiles from the top 30 high-TB-burden countries.

    According to the report, Nigeria’s TB treatment coverage stands at 24 percent with 155 000 deaths, including 35 000 deaths among people with HIV. Also, 24, 000 people fell ill with drug-resistant TB while 58, 000 people living with HIV fell ill with TB. The TB cases in Nigeria were attributed to five risks namely alcohol, smoking, diabetes, HIV and undernourishment.

    The Director, Global TB Programme, WHO, Dr Tereza Kasaeve called for urgent actions to close the gaps and reach all people affected with TB worldwide with proper care. In a chat with The Nation, Dr Irene Koek, the Deputy Administrator for Global Health, US Agency for International Development (USAID) charged leaders from African countries to recognizeTB as an important issue that demands urgent attention with political commitment which invests in the needs of patients and health systems.

    Heads of State are expected to meet at the first-ever United Nations General Assembly High-level Meeting on TB on 26 September in New York, to commit to accelerate the TB response.

  • DRC begins vaccination against latest Ebola outbreak

    The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has started vaccination against the latest Ebola outbreak in the northeaster North Kivu province, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Thursday.

    The vaccination has targeted high risk populations in North Kivu, in which the provincial health minister and the provincial coordinator of the Expanded Program on Immunization were the first to be vaccinated.

    They were followed by first line health workers from the Mangina health center, 30 km from the town of Beni, who had been in contact with people who were confirmed cases of Ebola.

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    “Vaccines are an important tool in the fight against Ebola. This is why it has been a priority to move them rapidly into place to begin protecting our health workers and the affected population,” said DRC Health Minister Dr. Oly Ilunga.

    A total of 3,220 doses of rVSV-ZEBOV Ebola vaccine are currently available in the country, while supplementary doses have been requested.

    While the vaccine goes through the licensing process, an agreement between Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, and Merck, the developer of the vaccine, ensures that additional investigational doses of the vaccine are available.

    The vaccination operation was launched just one week after the announcement of a second outbreak of Ebola this year in the country, in which a total of 44 cases have been reported so far as of Wednesday, including 17 confirmed and 27 probable.

    The death toll has risen to 36.

    Earlier on Tuesday, Peter Salama, deputy director-general of emergency preparedness and response at the WHO, said on Twitter that results of genetic analysis had confirmed Ebola Zaire strain was the cause of the latest outbreak in the DRC.

    The WHO, he said, is providing logistical support for the establishment of the cold chain and sending supplies needed for the vaccinations, in addition to supporting the negotiation of protocols with the manufacturer and national authorities.

    He said that the WHO was also supporting the deployment of vaccination experts from Guinea to work alongside national staff, who began the vaccination.

    However, North Kivu province and eastern areas of the adjacent Ituri province are among the most populated in the DRC, with many major cities, which brings heightened risks and new challenges in the fight against Ebola, according to Dr. Salama, who has called for fighting the outbreak with all tools, old and new.

  • Commission develops new food labelling standards to protect consumers

    The Codex Alimentarius Commission, a UN International Food Standards-Setting Body, is set to release new guidelines on food labelling to provide simplified nutritional information to consumers to enable them make healthier food choices.

    The World Health Organisation (WHO) on its Twitter Handle @WHO said on Wednesday that developing this guidance was very important as it would stop increased incidence of obesity and some non-communicable diseases.

    WHO said that the commission has also revised the general standard for labelling of repackaged foods and improving date marking and storage instructions.

    It said that date marking whether indicating date of manufacture, packaging, best before, use by or expiration, should provide reliable information to consumers.

    WHO said that it should also ensure food safety and prevent food waste.

    It assured however that the commission was working to ensure that it avoided creating unnecessary obstacles to the food trade while developing and implementing the new standards.

    “The commission agreed to undertake new work to develop a guidance on providing simplified nutrition information to consumers to enable them identify healthier food choices while avoiding creating unnecessary obstacles to the food trade.

    “Food labelling bearing this information is an important tool to help stop the increased incidence of obesity and some chronic non-communicable diseases.

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    “These are part of the new International Food Safety Standards protecting consumer health and ensuring fair practices in trade,” it said.

    WHO said the commission has also set new limits for contamination of the naturally occurring contaminant found in chocolate to protect consumers against high exposure to cadmium.

    It said that cocoa beans used in the production of chocolate could take up high levels of cadmium from the soil and water, stating that this contaminant could remain in the human body for a long time.

    According to WHO, higher intake of cadmium is linked to kidney damage, while limiting cadmium levels in chocolate can ensure exposure to the contaminant is not too high.

    It said that to protect against high exposures of lead, the commission has also set new limits for contamination of heavy metal found in food as it was detrimental to human health.

    “To protect against high exposures of mercury, the commission has set new limits for methylmercury found in fish. Fish that live for a long time and are higher in the food chain have raised levels of methylmercury in their bodies.

    “Mercury can have toxic effects on the nervous, digestive and immune system of humans and on lungs, kidney, skin and eyes.

    “To reduce exposure to methylmercury, the commission set limits for several fish species ranging from 1.2 to 1.7 mg per kilogram of fish.

    “This includes no more than 1.2 mg of methylmercury per kilogram of Tuna, 1.5mg per kilogram of Alfonsino, 1.7mg per kilogram of Marlin and 1mg per kilogram of Shark.”

    The commission is an intergovernmental body with over 180 members within the framework of the Joint Food Standards Programme established by the Food and Agricultural Organisation of the UN.

    The commission was set up to protect the health of consumers and ensure fair practices in the food trade.

    Its primary responsibility is also to promote coordination of all food standards work undertaken by international governmental and non-governmental organisations.

    The commission works to provide guidance on general labelling of foods and the health or nutritional claims producers make on labels.

    It ensures that consumers understand what they are buying and that it is what it says it is. 

    NAN

  • Unanswered questions at the UNN

    The tobacco industry can be likened to the proverbial devil that never sleeps. The last two years have witnessed a plethora of exposes on their behind-the-scenes activities including attempts to derail the implementation of the World Health Organisation – Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) and exploitation of war zones and unstable countries to sell their deadly products. Two leading multinational tobacco companies – British America Tobacco (BAT) and Philip Morris International (PMI) have been linked to the disturbing trends.

    A Reuters report in July 2017 unveiled a massive, secret campaign by PMI to undermine the WHO FCTC, depicting “a company that has focused its vast global resources on bringing to heel the world’s tobacco control treaty.”

    BAT was not only mentioned in allegations of widespread bribery and corruption in Africa, it was also heavily indicted in secret movement of millions of undocumented U.S. dollars across international borders into war-torn Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). An investigation by The Guardian of London exposed BAT’s role in flooding South Sudan with its cheapest cigarette brands following years of war and operating around Somalia to continue selling cigarettes in the country.

    As if these were not enough, in September 2017, PMI announced it was funding a foundation for smoke-free world to the tune of $1 billion over a 12-year period beginning in 2018.

    The foundation was formed to promote research into so-called “reduced-risk” products currently being developed and marketed by PMI and other tobacco companies. But the WHO swiftly warned its global partners to keep a safe distance from the foundation, insisting it’s WHO/FCTC and not PMI’s alleged ‘harm reduction’ business strategy or its foundation – represent global consensus on how to prevent and reduce tobacco use and associated death and disease. Renowned institutions across the globe were unanimous in their “No” to the PMI initiative.

    Some of the denouncers include the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, the International Framework Convention Alliance for Tobacco Control, American Cancer Society, World Heart Federation, Physicians for a Smoke-free Canada, among others.

    Also, 17 public health schools in the U.S. and Canada, including Harvard and Johns Hopkins, early this year also pledged not to touch any form of research money from the foundation, citing the fact that it is too closely tied to an industry that sells deadly products to millions.

    But the warning of the WHO would seem not to have sunk into the ears of Nigerian authorities as the foundation is said to be in talks with the International Centre for Biotechnology (ICB) – a Category II Centre under the auspices of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) domiciled at the University of Nigeria Nsukka (UNN) to support alternative livelihoods for Africa’s smallholder tobacco farmers.

    Though a host of public health experts have raised concerns about the foundation’s engagements with UNN, and even petitioned the Vice Chancellor, Professor Benjamin Ozumba, details of the talks are still not in the public domain. A local NGO – The Environmental Rights Action (ERA) – equally petitioned the institution cautioning that the institution risks undermining its reputation and credibility by associating with the Foundation hence it should distance itself from it.

    It also alerted that the foundation had begun contacting civil society organisations, conference committees and other entities around the world to initiate dialogue and inform them about potential “funding opportunities.”

    In the letter, the group said the work of the foundation will enable PMI to boost its credibility as a legitimate stakeholder in discussions about tobacco risk reduction while it continues to aggressively market its cigarette brands and instigate legal entanglements to derail countries acting to implement policies proven to reduce tobacco use.

    It is noted that the foundation’s communications are currently targeting low-income, low-prevalence countries where reduced risk products represent a new business opportunity for PMI’s tobacco products, not a solution to the epidemic.

    This development cannot be said to be the first of its kind and PMI is not alone in the scramble for an acceptable public image. BAT Nigeria (BATN) is also involved in similar schemes that it tags Corporate Social Responsibility through which it launders its image and strikes the pose of a stakeholder in Nigeria’s agricultural development.

    Nigerians are, however, not fooled. Tobacco companies have always claimed they want to help find solutions to harm caused by their products. For nearly 70 years, they have funded so-called “independent researches” with manipulated outcomes to advance cigarette sales.

    It therefore goes that the UNN owes Nigerians a response to the petition as it prides itself as an institution of global repute. If research institutes of its kind in other parts of the world have distanced themselves from the PMI-funded foundation, there is no reason why it should continue to play the ostrich to calls to make public what it has going on with the foundation.

    • Ben Olumide

    Lagos.

     

  • Yellow fever gets WHO’s, partners’ attention

    About a billion persons will be vaccinated against yellow fever in 27 high-risk African countries by 2026 with the support from World Health organisation (WHO); Gavi-the Vaccine Alliance, UNICEF and more than 50 health partners.

    The commitment is part of the Eliminate Yellow fever Epidemics (EYE) in Africa strategy, which was launched by WHO Director-General, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus,  Minister of Health, Prof Isaac Adewole, and partners at a regional meeting in Abuja.

    According to WHO Director-General, Dr Ghebreyesus, “the world is facing an increased risk of Yellow fever outbreak and Africa is particularly vulnerable. “With one injection we can protect a person for life against this dangerous pathogen. This unprecedented commitment by countries will ensure that by 2026 Africa is free of Yellow fever epidemics,” Dr Ghebreyesus said.

    During the three-day EYE strategy regional launch meeting representatives from key African countries, WHO, UNICEF, Gavi, and other partners developed a roadmap on how to roll-out the strategy at national level. This implementation effort follows the endorsement of the strategy by African Ministers of Health at the 67th WHO regional committee in September 2017.

    “This comprehensive, global strategy offers an unprecedented opportunity to end the devastating Yellow fever epidemics that periodically impact Africa,” said Dr Seth Berkley, CEO of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance. “Ensuring that the most vulnerable communities have access to the vaccine through routine systems plays a central role in making this happens. Vaccine manufacturers and Gavi partners have worked hard to improve the global vaccine supply situation in recent years to make sure there is enough vaccine to respond to outbreaks, allow preventive campaigns and that routine immunisation functions at full capacity.”

    The three objectives of the strategy include protecting at-risk populations through preventive mass vaccination campaigns and routine immunisation programmes, preventing international spread, and containing outbreaks rapidly. Developing strong surveillance with robust laboratory networks is key to these efforts.

    UNICEF will make vaccines available, advocate for greater political commitment and provide support in vaccinating children through routine immunisation as well as during outbreaks of the disease.

    “Today, the threat of yellow fever looms larger than ever before, especially for thousands of children across Africa,” said Stefan Peterson, UNICEF’s Chief of Health, adding: “Given that almost half of the people to be vaccinated are children under 15 years of age, this campaign is critical to saving children’s lives, and would go a long way towards stamping out of this disease.”

    After outbreaks of Yellow fever in densely populated cities in Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo had caused 400 deaths in 2016, the acute viral haemorrhagic disease re-emerged as a serious global public health threat. Brazil is currently battling its worst outbreak of Yellow fever in decades with more than 1,000 confirmed cases. The ease and speed of population movements, rapid urbanisation and a resurgence of mosquitoes due to global warming, have significantly increased the risk of urban outbreaks with international spread.

    Experience in West Africa demonstrates that the EYE strategy can work. When Yellow fever re-emerged as a public health issue in the early 2000s, countries in the region controlled the epidemics through preventive mass campaigns combined with routine immunisation. No yellow fever epidemics have been recorded since in countries which successfully implemented this approach.